July-august. 2020 | Glam Halal
Lifestyle
27
Recently, we
participated in
the Business of
Fashion (BoF,
an online trade
publication) roundtable
meeting with representatives
from 24 countries. It included
Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan,
South Africa, South America
and Europe. We agreed to hold
virtual fashion weeks until
the end of the year.”
– Ali Charisma
Indische and Rengganis
Riri Rengganis, owner of kebaya label
Indische and ready-to-wear line Rengganis,
also saw her sales plunge, by 40 per cent
during February and March. April was worse
– she was pushed to the edge when sales
dropped by 80 per cent.
Pre-pandemic, Riri would typically sell
around 80 pieces per month overall.
Trying to push sales, Riri blasted a
WhatsApp promotion to her 500 customers.
Unfortunately, it backfired, with customers
saying she wasn’t sympathetic to them when
they were going through financial difficulties
during the pandemic.
Changing strategies, she started adding a
more personal touch by replying directly to
customers, as well as walking them through
fittings through video calls. She also started
providing a new service, sewing without
cutting, to help customers save on the cost of
fabrics and textiles.
Since May, Riri has revived sales to prepandemic
levels. She realises, however, that
carrying out business online and using digital
tools are not the only solutions.
“During the pandemic, the most important
factor is the personal touch,” said Riri.
But that’s on top of shrewd business decisions.
She said her strategy also included a
new collection, price adjustments (since there
was no offline activity and no consignment
fee she could lower her online prices), and
seeking new markets overseas since there
was a drop in shipping fees.
“Since I also made masks for the foreign
market, I got a new customer database from
Singapore, London, Portugal, Germany, the
Philippines and South Korea,” she said.
“From my experience, during the pandemic,
the demand is still there, but you have
to look deeper.”
Anemone
Hannie Hananto, the owner of the Anemone
label, turned to TikTok.
“During the large scale social distancing,
people stayed at home, but they were making
online purchases for staple foods, household
equipment and fashion,” said Hannie.
“As a designer, we should be able to read
what is ‘hip’ on the ground. I usually use IG
stories and feed to do short product reviews,
to make sure my brand is still talked about
by people.
“I started to use TikTok, and this converted
into sales from some new customers,” Hannie
told Salaam Gateway.
With the help of IG and TikTok, she sold
hijabs and dresses that were planned for
Femme Makasar Fashion Week in March
that had to be cancelled due to the pandemic.
Hannie said she did not have to give customers
significant discounts.
To manage costs, her tailors, who are
mostly from Sumedang where the fabrics
come from, worked remotely.
Like the other designers, Hannie also
started selling face masks.
“Until we find a vaccine, I will not stop
mask production because there are still
people who want to change their masks every
day with different patterns.
“I also look for opportunities. For example,
the must-have items during the pandemic,
such as modified masks, hand gloves, and
big-sized bags to fit lunch boxes from home.”
Hannie also attended virtual fashion
weeks such as Muslimah Creative Stream Fest
2020 in May hosted by Scarf Media. She will
participate in other virtual fashion weeks, she
said, while seeking feedback from customers
on how good the looks and overall shows present
on the screen.