The Khadi Shop – Indian Incense Sticks

Design: Abhishek Gaurav
Location: India
Project Type: Student Project
School: MIT Institute of Design, Pune
Tutor: Prof. Samson Mathai
Packaging Contents: Indian Incense Sticks
Packaging Substrate / Materials: Recycled Paper/Cardboard and corrugated sheet
Printing Process: Digital Printing, Matte Finish

To avoid Indians lose their jobs to the apparent cheap offering of the industrial expansion in the early 20th century, Mahatma Gandhi popularized the use of Khadi as a part of the non-cooperation movement. Traditionally, a Khadi is a handwoven fabric made of cotton and wool. But, the Khadi movement was more than just promoting Khadi clothing.

It was a spirit to attain self-reliance by working for oneself and promote home-based small scale industries. Though the time has tested the spirit over the years, the khadi spirit has been kept alive by promoting these industries by the Indian government. In the modern-day, Khadi has become a symbol of purity and quality. Besides government NGOs and private companies are involved in creating and promoting Khadi products.

The Khadi Shop at ‘www.khadishop.com’ is an e-commerce platform that offers khadi products. The current product range includes handmade shops, lotions, face-creams, herbal oils, etc. I have envisioned the introduction of organic incense sticks in their product range, which already include many handmade herbal and aromatic items. Indian incense stick industries are primarily home-based industries that provide incense sticks to companies that coat them with their fragrance and sold under their brand names. The Khadi Shop can leverage such home-based industries to commission exclusive organic products, free from any harmful chemicals.

Packaging of such organic incense sticks has been conceptualized to carry the essence of khadi. The box is made of recycled/handmade paper. The graphics feature regional art/craft which portrays the story of the region where these incense sticks were manufactured. A small description of the graphic on the top cover is printed on the back for the interested users to know more about it.

What’s Unique?
The packaging box consists of a holder/tray and a slide-open cover. The holder/tray contains single-face corrugation to keep the incense sticks at their place. This also prevents sticks from rubbing on each other and loose fragrance coating. Further, the corrugation/flute introduces an aesthetically pleasing negative spacing between the sticks.