A migrant workers’ suitcase, carried on a pole across the shoulders. The other end was attached to a bedding roll and a laundry bag filled with clothes. Nanjing, China.

Rural-Urban migration is reshaping Asia. By 2050 China will, for the first time in its history, be a predominantly urban society. India is heading in a similar direction. This migration is an economic one, with millions of rural workers moving to the town to find better-paid work and new opportunities.

These migrant workers are generally overlooked by brands, seen as transitory, poorly paid and outside of the mainstream economy. It’s a big oversight as migrants send back money and information about brands to families back at home. They buy big-ticket goods to bring home at festival times and back in their own communities they are the most affluent and influential members. Building a relationship with these migrants means and a direct line to the hard to reach volume rural markets and a chance to connect to the future working class of the main cities.

To give you an idea of what migrants face have a look at this film report from India. Look out for the migrant who has settled in Mumbai, working as a waiter, and note the difference between him and the young boys he is advising. His worldly advice to the boys that “In Bombay you keep your dreams, but they get a little smaller” is honest, poignant, optimistic and says so much about the migrant predicament. And it’s just the sort of moment we try to capture in our work.

For the International Herald Tribune film click here.