Community Adaptation and Economic Development During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of the Indigo Dyeing Community Enterprise Group of Ban Non Sabaeng Kantharawichai District Maha Sarakham Province.

Abstract

This research consists purposes were 1. to investigate the adaptation and economic development techniques of the Indigo Dyeing Community Enterprise Group of Ban Non Sabaeng Kantharawichai District Maha Sarakham during the COVID-19 pandemic and 2. to explore the economic development approaches of the Indigo Dyeing Community Enterprise Group of Ban Non Sabaeng Kantharawichai District Maha Sarakham during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this qualitative study, 35 informants, obtained through the purposive sampling technique, included five experts chairman and deputy chairman of the group, village headman, local expert, and community developer ten practitioners members of the weaving group and middlemen and 20 ordinary people. The data were analyzed through the content analysis approach. The findings are divided into two parts 1) regarding adaptation, the findings are discussed in four different aspects. Regarding personnel adaptation, the group’s chairman played an essential role in solving problems. Regarding production adaptation, in the past, the group produced products and stocked them before distributing them to sell to government agencies and at the store, but changed to produce products per customer’s order instead. In terms of product adaptation, the group designed the products and garments to serve the situation, such as a cloth face mask. Lastly and most importantly, the group adapted its marketing strategy to online marketing by using famous people in the community to sell products through live broadcasting on social media platforms and 2) regarding community economic development, the group also adopted four techniques. First, personnel development was conducted by organizing training programs and workshops for group leaders and members on community enterprise management. Production development was achieved by managing the right process in the right way and at the right time to produce good quality products at a low cost. To develop products, the group learned to create an image for the products by processing the product, designing the package, and creating a story for the products. Regarding marketing development, the group learned about customers’ needs, competitors’ information, selling prices, and channels for communicating with customers and disseminating products’ stories, such as print media, special events, and websites. The study also suggested that government agencies should assist community enterprises through several approaches, such as financial support, knowledge development, and product distribution centers. All relevant agencies should work together to drive community enterprises toward success.