What began as a passion to make high-quality craft supplies accessible in India has today evolved into one of the country’s largest creative ecosystems. Through Crafters Corner and its homegrown brand Dress My Craft, the company has built a platform that not only provides products but also nurtures learning, entrepreneurship, and creative communities.
At the Shows of India Conclave 2026, where Crafters Corner joined as a Gold Partner, the brand shared its perspective on the growing intersection of crafting, experiential events, and the creator economy.
In this conversation with EVENTFAQS Media, Shalini Mittal, Creative Head & Partner, Crafters Corner, reflects on the brand’s journey, the rise of India’s DIY culture, taking an Indian brand to global markets through Dress My Craft, and why handmade creativity continues to hold emotional value in an increasingly digital world.
1. Crafters Corner started with a simple yet powerful idea, making world-class craft supplies accessible in India. Looking back at the journey today, what do you think helped the brand evolve from a passion-driven venture into one of India’s largest creative ecosystems?
Honestly, Crafters Corner started from a very simple feeling: Indian crafters deserved access to the same quality, variety, and inspiration that creators across the world had. In the beginning, it was not just about selling products. It was about opening a door for people who wanted to create but did not know where to find the right materials, guidance, or community.
What helped us grow was staying very close to our customers. We listened to what they struggled with, what they wanted to learn, what they could not find in India, and what would help them turn creativity into something bigger. Over time, Crafters Corner became a place where people did not just come to buy craft supplies. They came to learn, experiment, build confidence, start small businesses, and feel part of a creative family. I think that emotional connection with our customers is what helped us evolve from a passion-led brand into a larger creative ecosystem.
2. With over 16,000 products and hundreds of brands under one roof, Crafters Corner has built a space that goes far beyond retail. How would you define the larger role the brand plays today within India’s growing creator and DIY culture?
Today, I see Crafters Corner as more than a craft store. It is a platform for creativity. We bring together products, education, inspiration, and community under one roof.
India has so much talent, but many people need the right tools and the right confidence to begin. Our role is to make that journey easier. Whether someone is a hobby crafter, a home baker, a scrapbooker, a resin artist, a DIY enthusiast, or a woman trying to start a small business from home, we want them to feel that creativity is possible for them.
For many customers, Crafters Corner becomes the starting point of their creative identity. They discover a product, learn a technique, attend a class, make something beautiful, and then sometimes that small beginning becomes a business. That is the larger role we play today: we enable creativity, but we also enable confidence, entrepreneurship, and self-expression.
3. In an age dominated by digital content and AI-driven creativity, what do you think keeps handmade art, crafting, and tactile creativity emotionally relevant for consumers across generations?
Digital creativity and AI are amazing, and they are changing the world very fast. But handmade creativity has something that technology cannot replace: touch, emotion, imperfection, and human connection.
When you make something with your hands, your energy goes into it. A handmade card, a scrapbook, a decorated gift, a DIY frame, or a small personalised keepsake carries a feeling that no machine-made product can fully copy. It says, “I spent time on this for you.” That emotion is very powerful.
Across generations, crafting also gives people a pause. Children learn patience and imagination. Adults find relaxation and expression. Mothers and daughters bond over projects. Friends create memories together. In a world where everything is becoming faster and more digital, handmade art brings us back to something slower, personal, and deeply human. That is why it will always remain relevant.
4. Through Dress My Craft, you’ve taken Indian innovation to international shelves. What were some of the biggest challenges and breakthroughs in transforming from a distributor of global brands to becoming a globally recognised Indian manufacturer yourself?
The journey from distributing global brands to building our own Indian brand, Dress My Craft, was both challenging and very emotional for us.
As a distributor, we understood what the global market expected: quality, finishing, packaging, consistency, and innovation. But when we decided to manufacture ourselves, the challenge was to prove that an Indian brand could stand proudly on international shelves and compete with global names.
The biggest challenges were product development, quality control, international packaging standards, understanding different markets, and building trust with retailers outside India. We had to learn everything deeply, from design and production to export expectations and global customer behaviour.
The breakthrough came when international customers and retailers started appreciating our products not because they were from India, but because they were genuinely good, useful, and innovative. That was a proud moment. Dress My Craft allowed us to take Indian creativity to the world, and it also showed us that India can be not only a market for global brands but also a creator of global brands.
5. Your products are designed to make creativity more accessible, precise, and limitless for artists and hobbyists. How much of Crafters Corner’s growth has come from understanding not just what creators buy, but how they create?
A very large part of our growth has come from understanding how creators actually create. For us, a product is never just a product. We always ask: How will someone use it? Will it save time? Will it make the finish better? Will it help a beginner feel confident? Will it help a professional create faster or more beautifully?
Because we interact so closely with crafters, we see their real problems. Sometimes they need better tools. Sometimes they need simpler techniques. Sometimes they need products that make premium-looking projects possible without too much difficulty. This understanding has shaped many of our choices, whether in selecting products for Crafters Corner or developing products under Dress My Craft.
Creators do not only buy supplies. They buy possibilities. They buy the hope of making something beautiful. Once we understood that, our focus became very clear: make creativity easier, more joyful, more professional, and more accessible.
6. Crafters Corner joined Shows of India Conclave 2026 as a Gold Partner this year. What made the platform relevant for the brand, and how do you see the worlds of crafting, creativity, and experiential events coming together in the future?
Shows of India Conclave was relevant for us because it brings together the world of experiences, events, brands, and creativity, and that is exactly where we see the future moving.
Today, crafting is no longer limited to a table at home. It is becoming part of birthdays, weddings, corporate events, brand activations, community gatherings, exhibitions, and experiential marketing. People do not only want to attend an event anymore. They want to participate, create, personalise, and take back a memory.
For Crafters Corner, this is a very exciting space. We have always believed that creativity connects people. Through DIY experiences, brands can engage audiences in a more meaningful way. A handmade activity can make an event more memorable, more emotional, and more shareable.
As a Gold Partner, we wanted to be part of a platform that understands the power of experiences. I believe the future of events will not just be about what people see. It will be about what they feel, what they make, and what they remember. Crafting has a very strong role to play in that future.
From enabling hobbyists to discover their creative potential to helping entrepreneurs turn passion into profession, Crafters Corner’s journey reflects the evolution of India’s rapidly growing DIY and creator ecosystem. What began as a mission to make world-class craft supplies accessible has grown into a platform that combines products, education, innovation, and community under one roof.
With Dress My Craft taking Indian manufacturing to international markets and experiential platforms increasingly embracing hands-on engagement, the brand sees creativity becoming an integral part of how people connect, celebrate, and engage with experiences. As the events industry continues to evolve, Crafters Corner believes the future will be defined not just by what audiences witness, but by what they create, personalise, and take home as lasting memories.
