Jakarta, 27 September 2021 – Ahead of National Batik Day which falls on 2 October 2021, Tokopedia noted that sales of batik products increased almost 2x during the second quarter when compared to the same quarter last year.
“Batik shirts, jarik cloth and batik cloth masks are some of the most sought after batik products by the public,” said VP of Public Policy and Government Relations Tokopedia, Astri Wahyuni.
These various improvements encourage Tokopedia to continue collaborating with strategic partners, for example with the National Crafts Council (Dekranas) to hold the Pameran Online Rumah Kriya Asri (RKA) until December 2021.
Chairperson of the National Dekranas, Hj. Wury Ma’ruf Amin, revealed, “With the theme 5 Super Priority Tourism Destinations, the Dekranas online store at Tokopedia introduces dozens of MSMEs with thousands of Indonesian handicraft products, including batik. It is hoped that through the use of technology, MSMEs can continue to be a milestone for the national economic recovery.”
The owner of Batik Marunda, Irmanita H. Sinurat (Irma) is one of the UMKM batik craftsmen who have joined the Dekranas RKA Online Exhibition through Tokopedia. Since 2015, Irma has empowered dozens of mothers and young women who have dropped out of school in the Marunda Flats area through her batik business.
“We continue to provide batik training for the flat mothers so that they can be economically independent, and even train other MSMEs. We also collaborated with a number of well-known artists and designers who contributed their ideas to be used as our batik motifs,” said Irma.
The number of craftsmen who join Batik Marunda has now increased 5 times compared to the beginning. In addition to the women who live in the flats, Irma also helps local businesses of batik cloth and tools from Pekalongan as a provider of materials for making Batik Marunda.
Since the pandemic, Batik Marunda’s turnover has fallen by 80% of the total revenue. “However, we continue to innovate by making batik cloth masks that are more relevant to the current situation,” said Irma.
As a mentor, Irma is also looking for ways to market Batik Marunda so that the economy of the women who live in the flats can continue to be helped. If products are usually sold in several offline galleries, now digital platforms such as Tokopedia are the storefronts for Batik Marunda.
“After joining Tokopedia through the Dekranas program, there were many benefits, ranging from training related to online product marketing, ease of transactions to promotion to the wider community,” said Irma.
Even now the turnover of Batik Marunda is slowly increasing again. This is the motivation for Irma and other crafters to produce batik products at more affordable prices in order to attract the millennial market.
The existence of MSMEs – including those engaged in the batik industry – is very important to be supported by all parties. “Let’s support the sustainability of the domestic batik industry by using products made by local MSMEs so that we can rise together to restore the Indonesian economy,” concluded Astri.
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