Closing Up Shop in Bandung's Toytown

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/lifeandtimes/closing-up-shop-in-bandungs-toytown/360103

If you take the main exit to Bandung, via the Pasteur tollgate, you will see a shabby panda statue on the left side of the road, just a few hundred meters after the gate.

The statue marks the location of kampung boneka (doll-makers district), in the Sukamulya neighborhood. But these days even locals have only a vague idea of where the once-famous doll makers are to be found, which can lead to frustrating searches and confusing phone calls.

And once kampung boneka is finally located, the experience can be, well, disappointing. Instead of rows of shops filled with dolls and craftspeople hard at work, there are just a handful of small shops scattered through the cramped alleyways. And the lack of signs makes it impossible for outsiders to navigate the area without a guide.

Despite all of this, in the middle of the neighborhood hangs a banner stating that Bandung’s mayor, Dada Rosada, had declared the area a tourism site in July 2009.

Shop-owner Andri Andriansyah implied the tourism sign came a decade too late, recalling how much livelier the area was in the late 1990s.

“Back in the heyday of 1997, there were 57 doll producers with hundreds of workers. But now there are only 17 producers left,” Andri said.

He said the shops had once provided employment for local women, allowing them to work from home while looking after their children.

Andri’s small shop, Ivy, has a display of dolls in the front room, while two rooms in the back make up the workshop. There are three employees and three sewing machines.

After establishing Ivy in 1998 with only Rp 10 million ($1,000) in capital, Andri said that he initially earned up to Rp 100 million a month selling dolls as far away as Kalimantan and Aceh. He even made it overseas on one occasion, filling an order from Singapore for 1,000 dolls.

“Now the turnover is about Rp 3 million a week, which thankfully is still enough to cover the expenses and pay my employees, although not much is left for profit,” Andri said.

But his shop has done well to survive at all. Since 2002, many doll makers have gone bankrupt and closed down. One such shop owner is Dede Suhana, who once ran one of the area’s first doll shops.

Dede established his business in 1986. The business slowly grew and at its peak he had 20 employees.

“But the materials [for the dolls], which are imported from Korea, are getting more expensive and more difficult to find. There are locally made materials, but not as good as the Korean ones. They are also expensive. Cheaper material is available, but the quality is bad, obviously,” he said.

A little less than a year ago, Dede gave up on his dolls, turning his hand to a motorcycle-washing business.

Rising expenses are not the only obstacles faced by Sukamulya’s doll makers. They are also facing growing competition and a shrinking market.

Wulan Atriani, another shop owner, said: “Vendors in Bekasi and Cikampek [in West Java] used to come here to buy our products. But now they make their own. They also have the advantage of proximity to the material producers in Bekasi.”

Wulan started her business in 1993 with 50 employees, but now only employ 10 people.

In Bandung particularly there is fierce competition, so what left are orders from other cities like Surabaya and Kediri in East Java, as well as from cities in Kalimantan and Aceh.

The Bandung administration and some state-owned companies have tried to assist struggling producers with loans and other forms of support, but their efforts have not been able to turn things around.

Wulan said she received a low-interest loan from state-owned fertilizer company Pupuk Kujang. Bank Negara Indonesia, Biofarma pharmaceutical company and Jasa Raharja insurance company — all of them run by the West Java administration — have also provided loans to producers. The local Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) also organizes occasional training programs for the doll makers.

Despite these efforts, some producers say not enough is being done to help them.

“The mayor has declared the area a tourist site, but that’s it. It seems that the administration only makes symbolic efforts,” said Endah Tedjaningrum, a producer who often uses artisans in Sukamulya to fill large orders.

Andri said there was no lack of skill in Sukamulya.

“Give me any design and we’ll make it. Our shop can produce up to 100 kinds of toys,” he said, pointing to the stuffed animals, action figures, sandals and dolls that fill his shop.

Many producers see the problem as one of marketing, and believe assistance with this would be the best way to boost the flagging industry.

“We’re having difficulties in marketing our products. Shops only want to buy on a consignment system. But if we do this, the dolls will get dirty and will go to waste if nobody buys them,” Andri said.

Andri’s wife, Asri Zulaika, said the best way for the government to help would be to provide a showroom in a busy area where doll makers could display and sell their products.

This, she said, would benefit not only the shop owners, but also their employees.

Posted by hera at Tuesday, February 23, 2010 7:40 AM | Permalinks