Idea 46 of 500. Cluster 3: Souvenirs that are actually from here
Carved stone miniatures of heritage sites
The mechanism, from the book
The Zermatt water bottle. Sigiriya has not got a stone with its own name on it.
Every idea in cluster 3 uses this mechanism.
A first step
Commission one stone carver to make 10 small miniatures of the nearest heritage site at a fixed price. Take them to a shop near the ticket office, a guesthouse reception and a hotel shop, and ask each to sell them for a week on commission. Units sold, and the price visitors paid without haggling, tell you whether to order a larger batch.
- Who pays first
- Visitors leaving a heritage site who want a solid souvenir of the place made by a local hand, and the shops that sell to them.
- What leaves today
- Souvenirs sold at the sites are often imported; a carving of the site by a local carver keeps the souvenir spending on the island.
The idea and the mechanism are from the book. The first step was written for this site as a suggestion; if you know a better one, say so.
The test
Does it keep value that now leaves the island, or build the proof that lets somebody else do so?
The only test any idea on this site has to pass. The four rules that go with it are here.
In the book
- Ch. FiveThe Most Photographed Rock in the World
The Matterhorn water bottle and the souvenir that is from there
More from cluster 3
Idea 46 of the 500 in the appendix of Why Not Sri Lanka? Every one can be started by one person, one family or one small firm.