Yesterday, I visited a museum owned by a 45-year-old business that has spread its wings across numerous cities in Indonesia. It is the House of Danar Hadi, showing over 800 batik garments, including some of the owners’ favorites, as part of a total of 11,000 kept.
Batik, in the form of garment or clothing, has been a commodity in Indonesia for decades. The manufacturing of batik was started by Dutch investors who employed native Indonesians to produce batik with Dutch design. The wide variety of designs was greatly influenced by politics and local cultures (wherever it was produced). Some tell stories of folk tales, such as Little Red Riding Hood, and images of wars taking place in lands that are now part of the Republic of Indonesia. The colors identify which area they originated from; those with bright colors come from the northern coast line of Java, and darker colors from the inland areas. Batik has also been used as an artistic expression of ancient Javanese empires. Yogyakarta and Solo are two empires that still exist today. Their kings still ruling their respective regions and royal families living in palaces called keraton. In the past, they made an agreement that they went separate ways; Solo was a proponent of Dutch ‘divide-and-conquer’ interest, and Yogyakarta was against. Yogya people, today, consider themselves more liberal and tolerant. Each has their own batik design; some features are total opposites of each other. Batik is worn for formal occasions or daily activities as uniforms or work clothes. Being part of modern fashion, batik is now printed in factories and made much more available at low prices. A typical process of modernization – mass production.
Walking across the museum forced me to look at things historically. Classic batik designs tell stories and contain hidden symbols, produced by Dutch, Chinese, and native Indonesian designers (both from and for the common people and the royal families). Contemporary batik is simply made commercial. Yes, it is a lucrative business, but it still makes me wonder about what we produce today. Do products, today, have meaning? Does the evolution of a product have meaning?
Batik Danar Hadi’s vision is to produce batik that is relevant with the evolving market, while preserving the art of batik making.
As I am constructing the story for my social enterprise, I met a competitor, who might as well be my partner in the future. We are going to talk on the phone tomorrow.
Question of the day: What’s the story of your product or enterprise?
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Dried ink
A medical condition + vacation = a break
“Waiting for the pen to dry up so he can start fresh with thoughts that are worth new ink.” ~ Story People
The last few days, before leaving town for vacation, were full of meetings - networking with fellow entrepreneurs, photographers, a distributor. As an entrepreneur with a cause, there was also a meeting to discuss how to expand the college scholarship program that I started, and now run, in order to include internships as part of college experience.
A fellow entrepreneur who is now gaining acknowledgment and a significant market share in the local fashion industry advised me about focusing on one enterprise. This is where the mental conflict comes around, when one has too many 'brilliant' (self-declared) ideas and tries to realize them simultaneously.
Now, the dilemma lies within starting a business benefiting a cause separate from the business? Two separate co-dependent entities. In my case, one business is making a surplus which is being used to finance the development another that is more strongly related to a social cause and expected to incur losses for the first three years. So, developing both together has been a challenge (for the lack of a better word). How does one give equal attention to both? How does one with genuine passion for entrepreneurship and a social cause sacrifice one for the other? Impossible would be the easy answer. For an enterprise, timing is crucial; for a cause, the need is ever growing. But one plausible scenario would be to focus on profit making for the for-profit enterprise and gather funds over time to start another social enterprise which is not profit-oriented and designed to be initially dependent of donations (assuming no angel investor). This, however, is a confirmation that profits, though as a tool, somehow come first. This does not go well with idealism, especially that of a fresh blood in the world of social entrepreneurship where the social impact always comes first. So what are some other scenarios?
Delegation, perhaps. Having partners is always preferred; in spite of inevitable conflicts, partners are more likely to get things done, making division ofun attention and resources possible. Hiring employees who don't believe in the vision of the entrepreneurs is unproductive. Vision casting takes time.
Loose leadership? I bought a book on clearance titled Loose: The Future Business is Letting Go with the following description:
“The future of business is loose—loose organizations, management styles, brands, thinking, and communications. For example, Google breaks the traditional rules of branding by changing its logo everyday, … Shaking up the status quo and showing how prevailing business wisdom needs to change, this book will help you change their terms of business, before they are changed for you.”
I am still regretting not bringing this book with me for the trip, but I will get to it soon.
This kaleidoscopic perspective is certainly unsettling. Unsettling enough for me to consider keeping my one of three enterprises dormant. We’ll see.
Question of the day: Profits or social impact, or both? Both simultaneously or consecutively?
“Waiting for the pen to dry up so he can start fresh with thoughts that are worth new ink.” ~ Story People
The last few days, before leaving town for vacation, were full of meetings - networking with fellow entrepreneurs, photographers, a distributor. As an entrepreneur with a cause, there was also a meeting to discuss how to expand the college scholarship program that I started, and now run, in order to include internships as part of college experience.
A fellow entrepreneur who is now gaining acknowledgment and a significant market share in the local fashion industry advised me about focusing on one enterprise. This is where the mental conflict comes around, when one has too many 'brilliant' (self-declared) ideas and tries to realize them simultaneously.
Now, the dilemma lies within starting a business benefiting a cause separate from the business? Two separate co-dependent entities. In my case, one business is making a surplus which is being used to finance the development another that is more strongly related to a social cause and expected to incur losses for the first three years. So, developing both together has been a challenge (for the lack of a better word). How does one give equal attention to both? How does one with genuine passion for entrepreneurship and a social cause sacrifice one for the other? Impossible would be the easy answer. For an enterprise, timing is crucial; for a cause, the need is ever growing. But one plausible scenario would be to focus on profit making for the for-profit enterprise and gather funds over time to start another social enterprise which is not profit-oriented and designed to be initially dependent of donations (assuming no angel investor). This, however, is a confirmation that profits, though as a tool, somehow come first. This does not go well with idealism, especially that of a fresh blood in the world of social entrepreneurship where the social impact always comes first. So what are some other scenarios?
Delegation, perhaps. Having partners is always preferred; in spite of inevitable conflicts, partners are more likely to get things done, making division ofun attention and resources possible. Hiring employees who don't believe in the vision of the entrepreneurs is unproductive. Vision casting takes time.
Loose leadership? I bought a book on clearance titled Loose: The Future Business is Letting Go with the following description:
“The future of business is loose—loose organizations, management styles, brands, thinking, and communications. For example, Google breaks the traditional rules of branding by changing its logo everyday, … Shaking up the status quo and showing how prevailing business wisdom needs to change, this book will help you change their terms of business, before they are changed for you.”
I am still regretting not bringing this book with me for the trip, but I will get to it soon.
This kaleidoscopic perspective is certainly unsettling. Unsettling enough for me to consider keeping my one of three enterprises dormant. We’ll see.
Question of the day: Profits or social impact, or both? Both simultaneously or consecutively?
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
One for three!
So it's no secret that I am now trying to start and run three businesses.
My ideas from before the fall semester have matured a little more, and I definitely have more confidence now after being forced to create a business plan for one of them and considering the people factor of running businesses overseas. Ambition is still there, but knowing that gaining traction would be a slower process compared to most business start-ups I have to settle for patience.
I am doing what I can do as a lone ranger for now. Hiring a web developer and a graphic designer in a third-world country with first-world quality work is precious. They are now working on a digital catalog and websites to support the three intellectual children of mine. Creating the logos is one process where I get really picky, and they bear with me; picking my colors is whole another process by itself. A good friend who is also an entrepreneur told me to let the developer and designer take ownership of these projects, and I spent three hours sitting down with them, brainstorming, putting the pieces of the puzzle together. We construct the aesthetics for each and the mind map to inter-connect information in these digital products, and set timelines for the next six months. We consider the different target markets and design around them. As an entrepreneur, I will have to learn how to control the content and how to plan and implement the income generation systems.
For the next few days, I will focus on completing one website for the family-run business to help their building materials store provide a pleasant buying experience. This experience that I envision is digital; customers come to our store to browse sanitary products on a large computer screen, instead of looking at old, dirty, and wrinkled catalogs. The will see high-resolution pictures of model bathroom to help them create a picture for their own. Of course, it will take teaching them how to appreciate high-quality images and to not settle for slapping all 'good' things together (which have turned out to be design disasters in houses in this part of the world). We will see how bringing modernity to a buying experience will turn out for the business, as the store has been known to have a better environment for customers compared to the local competitors.
A glimpse of the necessity of entrepreneurs to be the jack of all trades ...
A scary picture of running multiple things on one engine ...
Question of the day: Back to the people factor, how do I even start hiring people, when the workforce here is known to be short-sighted, dishonest, and striving for mediocrity?
My ideas from before the fall semester have matured a little more, and I definitely have more confidence now after being forced to create a business plan for one of them and considering the people factor of running businesses overseas. Ambition is still there, but knowing that gaining traction would be a slower process compared to most business start-ups I have to settle for patience.
I am doing what I can do as a lone ranger for now. Hiring a web developer and a graphic designer in a third-world country with first-world quality work is precious. They are now working on a digital catalog and websites to support the three intellectual children of mine. Creating the logos is one process where I get really picky, and they bear with me; picking my colors is whole another process by itself. A good friend who is also an entrepreneur told me to let the developer and designer take ownership of these projects, and I spent three hours sitting down with them, brainstorming, putting the pieces of the puzzle together. We construct the aesthetics for each and the mind map to inter-connect information in these digital products, and set timelines for the next six months. We consider the different target markets and design around them. As an entrepreneur, I will have to learn how to control the content and how to plan and implement the income generation systems.
For the next few days, I will focus on completing one website for the family-run business to help their building materials store provide a pleasant buying experience. This experience that I envision is digital; customers come to our store to browse sanitary products on a large computer screen, instead of looking at old, dirty, and wrinkled catalogs. The will see high-resolution pictures of model bathroom to help them create a picture for their own. Of course, it will take teaching them how to appreciate high-quality images and to not settle for slapping all 'good' things together (which have turned out to be design disasters in houses in this part of the world). We will see how bringing modernity to a buying experience will turn out for the business, as the store has been known to have a better environment for customers compared to the local competitors.
A glimpse of the necessity of entrepreneurs to be the jack of all trades ...
A scary picture of running multiple things on one engine ...
Question of the day: Back to the people factor, how do I even start hiring people, when the workforce here is known to be short-sighted, dishonest, and striving for mediocrity?
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Premiere!
Big thanks to the inspiring cohort in AU's Social Enterprise program who stay ambitious despite the less-than-ideal environment where we all met, especially Stevie Smyth who awakened this previously-dormant idea of sharing my journey of creating enterprises.
Warning! This blog will represent some degree of my silliness in trying to make a small ripple in the ocean, and some degree of hubris that keeps me going everyday to keep generating ideas. There will be a silly attempt to post a few words every single day that I am still breathing, to share the continuous struggle of becoming and being an entrepreneur and explain myself in words which may turn into a best-seller, at least in my own little world.
So here is an excerpt of an article that I recently wrote for a writing competition for entrepreneurs:
"It is within the interest of both entrepreneurs and governments to have an educated and healthy workforce. So with our economic influence, why don’t we, entrepreneurs, answer the call to be our employees' keeper and invite more as our businesses grow?"
"Small- and medium-size entrepreneurs should not feel small, as opposed to large corporations who seem to have strong political influence. There are procedures in developed, democratic countries for businesses to form coalitions to voice their opinions on various issues and policies."
"Private-public partnership, a healthy exercise of power from both sides, is the answer to and the future of using the natural interdependence between the two sectors for the greater good, and our own good."
I did not win this competition, fortunately, because I put down these words within 48 hours with jet lag. It would not be fair if I did win. But guess what? I also want to confront those who read my broken essay about the power that entrepreneurs possess: economic, intellectual, and political power. We are not just business-doers; we make things happen with creativity. We are loud in our action and humble in our thought, learning indefinitely from mistakes and getting back up again and again. We break barriers, recruit allies, and keep our enemies close. So ... as I rebuild this essay during this winter break (relating to those in the Northern hemisphere), I hope to address this topic without any limit in length or tone. This is a political issue and I am happy to be political.
Warning! This blog will represent some degree of my silliness in trying to make a small ripple in the ocean, and some degree of hubris that keeps me going everyday to keep generating ideas. There will be a silly attempt to post a few words every single day that I am still breathing, to share the continuous struggle of becoming and being an entrepreneur and explain myself in words which may turn into a best-seller, at least in my own little world.
So here is an excerpt of an article that I recently wrote for a writing competition for entrepreneurs:
"It is within the interest of both entrepreneurs and governments to have an educated and healthy workforce. So with our economic influence, why don’t we, entrepreneurs, answer the call to be our employees' keeper and invite more as our businesses grow?"
"Small- and medium-size entrepreneurs should not feel small, as opposed to large corporations who seem to have strong political influence. There are procedures in developed, democratic countries for businesses to form coalitions to voice their opinions on various issues and policies."
"Private-public partnership, a healthy exercise of power from both sides, is the answer to and the future of using the natural interdependence between the two sectors for the greater good, and our own good."
I did not win this competition, fortunately, because I put down these words within 48 hours with jet lag. It would not be fair if I did win. But guess what? I also want to confront those who read my broken essay about the power that entrepreneurs possess: economic, intellectual, and political power. We are not just business-doers; we make things happen with creativity. We are loud in our action and humble in our thought, learning indefinitely from mistakes and getting back up again and again. We break barriers, recruit allies, and keep our enemies close. So ... as I rebuild this essay during this winter break (relating to those in the Northern hemisphere), I hope to address this topic without any limit in length or tone. This is a political issue and I am happy to be political.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)