Escaping the
routines of work, my colleague and I left Jakarta for Klaten, Central java,
where we coincidently met this inspiring man who had transformed himself from
zero to hero. A one-hour conversation with him had really given me a new way of
how to perceive this life.
What was so natural about the batik was the dye used to color it. All were made from natural materials.
These were some materials used to dye the batik. The bark of mahogany was for reddish color, mango for bluish, coconut for brownish, and the rind of joho (local fruit) was for cream color. All the materials had to be soaked and boiled to extract the colors.
One good part of being a local entrepreneur is that you can empower people surrounding you. That was what happened there too. All the labors working in the workshop were from Kebonagung.
Sarwidi was aware the importance of internet to promote his natural batik. Every night, he spends few hours surfing in the cyber world, something that was impossible to do six years ago, when he was still a rickshaw driver. He also participates in batik exhibition which is regularly held in some cities like Yogyakarta, Semarang, and Jakarta.
As we took off, he gave me his business card and we exchanged our blackberry PIN numbers, promised to keep in touch, and he would welcome us anytime we return to Kebonagung. The meeting was short but I was so impressed that I suddenly thought that our meeting with Sarwidi had been probably not a coincidence. It could have been something set by God. And I believed that. I believed he had been sent to inspire us.
“Hallo, I’m
Sarwidi. Welcome to my house,” said a 39 year old humble man while shaking our
hands firmly. It was a very heartwarming welcome. Sarwidi is a young local
entrepreneur, running a home industry of traditional batik making. He has since
the beginning focused on natural batik. We were curious to know what was so
natural about his batik. So we decided to stay for awhile at his house at Kebonagung,
Kelurahan Jarum, Kecamatan Bayat, a place known for its batik industry.
Sitting in the
guest room that appeared to me like a front porch, Sarwidi, proudly put one of
his many works on his lap, began to share his story about how he had started
the business.
Having to cope
with financial matters at early age, Sarwidi, now 39 years old, was dropped out
from school at the age of ten. Since then, he had managed to survive. To him,
life was a learning process which was like a curve when sometimes he was placed
at the bottom before finally reaching the top.
In 1993, he came
to Jakarta and became a street vendor, selling fruit ice in West Jakarta. For
millions of people, Jakarta was the best place to find their footing and start
a new life. But for Sarwidi, Jakarta was a huge crime scene where people got
mugged and stabbed nearly every day. At least that was what he saw at the place
he ran the business.
At that time, he
met a woman who later became his wife. She worked as a labor at a factory in
Tangerang. It was funny to hear his story about how he dated the woman. He had
to go back and forth from Jakarta to Tangerang. And despite the little money he
earned, he sometimes rode a cab to impress his girlfriend.
Shortly after
they got married, he decided to move to Yogyakarta to become a rickshaw driver
at Lempuyangan. Thanks to his hardworking and never give up attitude, he
could buy two rickshaws and got some loyal customers who mostly were
middle class women, riding the rickshaw to the market. After the tectonic
earthquake shook Yogyakarta in 2006, Sarwidi decided to return to Kebonagung. I
could say that this was like his turning point that would change his life.
As soon as he returned to Kebonagung, he was strongly determined to
start his business in batik making. With the amount of 950.000 rupiah he had
saved from riding rickshaw, he bought ten sheets of white fabric and began to
make batik. As for the early marketing, he approached those middle class women
who used to be his rickshaw customers in Yogyakarta. He rode his old bicycle,
came from door to door to offer his batik.
“This is the very
first stage of making batik,” said Sarwidi while putting a white, uncolored
fabric which had been drawn with a batik motive.
“I drew all the
motives myself. It is something I have been passionate about ever since I was a
kid,” Sarwidi continued, claiming that he was a self-taught person.
Moving to the back of the house, we were taken to the workshop where a
group of women were working on fabrics. One woman worked on a silk which was
not a regular fabric for batik. It was for a special order.
What was so natural about the batik was the dye used to color it. All were made from natural materials.
”This plant is called tarum, we pick the leaves to create indigo
color,” explained Sarwidi. Before that, the leaves had to be soaked and
fermented.
These were some materials used to dye the batik. The bark of mahogany was for reddish color, mango for bluish, coconut for brownish, and the rind of joho (local fruit) was for cream color. All the materials had to be soaked and boiled to extract the colors.
And if you wonder where he got all the materials, the answer was
simple: from the backyard where he dried all the fabrics.
One good part of being a local entrepreneur is that you can empower people surrounding you. That was what happened there too. All the labors working in the workshop were from Kebonagung.
I guessed the
hard-working attitude had run in the DNA of Sarwidi's family. His
father - deciding not just to sit and relax, considering his age - also
worked at the workshop. That day, he was dipping the fabrics to remove the
wax from them.
Sarwidi was aware the importance of internet to promote his natural batik. Every night, he spends few hours surfing in the cyber world, something that was impossible to do six years ago, when he was still a rickshaw driver. He also participates in batik exhibition which is regularly held in some cities like Yogyakarta, Semarang, and Jakarta.
As an entrepreneur who started everything from zero, he was sometimes
invited to be a guest lecturer or a speaker at several colleges and seminars.
Before leaving
the house, I asked Sarwidi what was the main key to his success. His answer was
pretty simple: persistence! Then, he quoted a Javanese proverb which he claimed
to be his motto: “Sopo sing tekun pasti tekan,” roughly translated as those who
are persistent will reach the point of success.
As we took off, he gave me his business card and we exchanged our blackberry PIN numbers, promised to keep in touch, and he would welcome us anytime we return to Kebonagung. The meeting was short but I was so impressed that I suddenly thought that our meeting with Sarwidi had been probably not a coincidence. It could have been something set by God. And I believed that. I believed he had been sent to inspire us.
- Thursday, April 26, 2012
- 4 Comments
