Ex-model steps out into shoe business<\/p>\n
By Agni Amorita<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A successful modeling career is the dream of
\nmany young girls. But Auk Murat said goodbye to modeling when she
\nwas at the peak of her career. She decided to go into shoe
\ndesigning in what she herself describes as a \"long story\".<\/p>\n
Although her modeling career was brief, she had already made a
\nname for herself. She was crowned the best model in the country
\nand received the Rahadian Yamin Award for modeling in 1987 at the
\nage of 17. She realized that modeling success would inevitably
\nbe shortlived.<\/p>\n
\"After becoming a professional model, I realized that I was
\nmoving in a very small world,\" she says. \"I'm talking of physical
\nand mental restrictions, because one's skin and figure become
\nvulnerable to change as we grow older.\"<\/p>\n
She believed remaining in the fashion business would be the
\nbest place for her due to her existing connections within the
\nJakarta fashion scene. She saw opportunities in shoe design.<\/p>\n
\"In 1989, I observed that fashionable shoes for women were
\nstill missing from the scene,\" she said at her showroom on Jl.
\nCiragil in South Jakarta which is decorated in a rainbow of
\ncolors and lined with shelves of the latest shoe styles.<\/p>\n
\"At that time, what we had were casual shoes, which were in
\nmass production. We couldn't find any fashionable shoes to wear
\nalong with couture evening gowns. That's why I decided to go for
\nit.\"<\/p>\n
Auk's name is today synonymous with fashionable women's shoes,
\nbut she had qualms when she started out in the business.<\/p>\n
\"It was a new field since there were no other designers. I
\nheld a marketing test first. The market grew and this meant there
\nwas demand for my product.\"<\/p>\n
The marketing test lasted for two years and was conducted as a
\nperson-to-person sales effort.<\/p>\n
\"When consumer trust was established, I abandoned the first
\nmethod of subcontracting shoemakers. I set up my own office and
\nopened a home industry. I started out with three staff members
\nbut I now have 12 employees who supply the shoes to five
\noutlets.\"<\/p>\n
Auk's handmade shoes are also sold in the Seibu department
\nstore and several stores in Kuningan and Kemang. She produces 80
\npairs of shoes a week. A maximum of 15 pairs are made of a
\nspecific model. She uses local leather, local imitation leather
\nand textiles, but the raw material, such as the carton, is
\nimported from France and the heels from Taiwan. Her collection
\nranges in price from Rp 95,000 to Rp 295,000 a pair.<\/p>\n
\"What is special about my shoes is its selective models,
\nlimited numbers and ultimate fashion trend,\" she said.<\/p>\n
She designs herself all the shoes, which always feature open
\nheels.<\/p>\n
\"I learned from doing. I look closely at the anatomy of the
\nwearers. I keep on improving my drawing technique, sharpening my
\nintuition and the feel of my art.\"<\/p>\n
In the beginning, she marketed her shoes to her model friends
\nonly. Now Auk's customers include wives of government officials,
\ncareer women and schoolchildren.<\/p>\n
She chooses to describe herself as a \"shoe artist\" instead of
\nas a businesswoman running a home industry. The success of her
\ncareer has come at the expense of one of her youthful ambitions
\nto become a lawyer.<\/p>\n
\"I had to make a very difficult decision, to study or to go in
\nthe business,\" said the former law student of Tarumanegara
\nUniversity.<\/p>\n
\"I was already in the second year of university when I got
\ncarried away in modeling activities. There were often four shows
\nin one day, either out-of-town shows and international shows.
\nAfter an absence from academics, I was certain that my future was
\nin the world of fashion. So I said goodbye to university life.\"<\/p>\n
Her family was shocked by the decision. \"My father, who was a
\nlegal consultant, was especially concerned about education. I was
\nlike a \"destroyer\" in my family. But it all depends on how we
\nprove ourselves, and how consistent we are.\"<\/p>\n
Her family has now come to accept her involvement in the
\nbusiness, and her father has even permitted the use of the family
\nhome for the shoe operations.<\/p>\n
Tennis<\/p>\n
Auk, whose real name is Sasanti Paramita Rahayu, was born in
\nJakarta on June 26, 1970.<\/p>\n
Auk toyed with the idea of becoming a tennis player during
\nadolescence and made other career detours before becoming a
\ndesigner.<\/p>\n
\"I was among the best 16 junior players of Indonesia. I won
\nseveral times in the girl's doubles tournaments and I became one
\nof the foremost athletes in West Jakarta. At that time, I was
\nexercising five times a week from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.\"<\/p>\n
Auk joined the Mercubuana club, owned by businessman
\nProbosutedjo, who discovered tennis players Yayuk Basuki and
\nWailan Walalangi.<\/p>\n
\"My life has indeed been quite colorful. When I was a small
\ngirl I was active in Javanese and Balinese dancing, I joined a
\ntheater group, and I became an actress too.\"<\/p>\n
She acted in the film Bibir Merah (Red Lips) directed by
\nthe late film director Arifin C. Noer, which won her a nomination
\nfor best supporting actress in the Indonesian Film Festival 1991.<\/p>\n
She received awards as the most promising poetry reader of
\nJakarta, earned a reputation as a comedy actress because of the
\nTV serials Dongeng Langit (Tale from the Sky) and Hari Hari Mau.<\/p>\n
Auk's motto in life is to improve and maintain balance. \"This
\nmotto stems from my character as a woman who expects to have a
\nfamily of her own one day,\" said Auk, who has an Australian
\nboyfriend.<\/p>\n
\"Whatever my future ambitions are, I always connect them to
\nthis motto of balance. We all have some plan and a target in
\nfuture like I do, but I do not want to bit more than I could
\nchew. \"<\/p>\n
Of all the targets she set in her life, the shoe project has
\ncome to fruition. She is now heading for the second target of
\nestablishing a children's party organizer firm under the name
\nBocah (Kids).<\/p>\n
Bocah has not been established for business alone but also to
\nrecapture some of the childhood fun she missed out on during her
\nmodeling career.<\/p>\n
\"And I still miss my childhood days. Aside from that, I like
\nto be with children. I love children. I want to realize an old
\nidea of mine with the establishment of Bocah,\" said Auk.<\/p>\n
\"The business aspects of this new venture are also good. The
\nkids' world has not been fully explored yet, particularly in the
\nfield of child entertainment. I plan to combine the entertainment
\nworld with child education. For instance, there will be
\nperformances where children play an active part to entertain
\ntheir friends and to strengthen their sense of independence.\"<\/p>\n
Auk has another target for next year.<\/p>\n
\"I've started the preparations, little by little,\" she said
\nwhile fixing the long hair which was her trademark in modeling.
\n\"I am going into the adventure tourism services. This field has
\ngreat potential in our country. Ah, I like keep on moving and
\nmoving.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ex-model-steps-out-into-shoe-business-1447893297",
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"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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