Handicraft production is still a fairly significant element of the economy of some states, although at first glance it is an outdated concept. There are a number of criteria for distinguishing handicraft, handicraft and factory production.
Who are the artisans?
The word "handicraft" comes from the German kunster, which means "craftsman, artisan". However, the very phenomenon of handicraft production originated much earlier, because at the dawn of human civilization there could be no question of any kind of mass production, and all material goods were produced individually.
According to one of the definitions, handicraft production is the creation of small batches of certain products, as a rule, without the use of complex technical devices. In fact, handicraft production is a cross between a craft and mass production in a factory environment, possessing certain qualities of each of these types of production activities.
Despite the fact that there are quite a lot in common between handicrafts and artisans, the differences between handicraft production and handicraft do not allow them to be combined into one type of activity. If an artisan, as a rule, works on order, that is, in fact, he creates this or that thing in a single copy, artisans produce whole (albeit small) lots of things for sale.
As for mass production, it differs from handicraft activities in incomparably large volumes of work, as well as the use of high-tech means of production, while artisans mainly use manual labor. Naturally, in the case of handicraft production, there can be no talk of the conveyor method of work, although the division of labor is also present here.
Handicraft production in the modern world
In the modern world, the factory method of production occupies a leading position, but there are many groups of goods that are made by artisans. For example, jewelry is mostly a product of handicraft activities. The same applies to luxury goods, various ethnic and national costumes and accessories. However, even designers who produce collections of clothes for sale can be called artisans, since they meet all the criteria.
Handicraft production is still one of the main elements of the economy of a number of countries with a conservative lifestyle. There are especially many handicraftsmen in the countries of Southeast Asia: India, Nepal, Vietnam, Thailand, China. Such handicraft industries successfully exist thanks to the tolerant policy of states in relation to small businesses. This allows artisans to compete with industrialists and even transnational corporations. In addition, a thing made in a limited number of copies (and the rate of handicraft production is always limited) is valued more than a faceless factory product.
