Handicraft maker jumps on bike bandwagon<\/p>\n
By Heru Prasetya<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): It's always a case of different strokes for
\ndifferent folks. Creating wooden miniatures of Harley Davidson
\nmotorcycles during his spare time from his studies was what
\neventually brought success for Nugroho Heru Hermanto. Today he
\nexports his crafts to many countries and enjoys a monthly
\nturnover of over Rp 20 million.<\/p>\n
A resident of Klurak Baru village in Bokoharjo Prambanan,
\nSleman -- some two kilometers south of Prambanan temple in
\nYogyakarta -- Heru started with capital of only Rp 400,000.<\/p>\n
It was tough at first but demand began to swell when he
\noffered the souvenirs to tourists visiting Prambanan temple and
\nother tourist sites in the area.<\/p>\n
Today he has 30 employees to help him produce the Harley
\nminiatures along with miniatures of other vehicles.<\/p>\n
\"The business kept me busy and as a result it took me 10 years
\nto complete my studies which I began in 1987,\" said Gadjah Mada
\nUniversity alumni.<\/p>\n
In the process, he had to face tough marketing competition.<\/p>\n
Souvenir shops in Bali, he recalled, once rejected his
\nproducts as they feared there would be little interest in them
\nand also because they were fragile.<\/p>\n
\"Then, I gave them a no-payment guarantee if the products were
\ndamaged. In two weeks, they ordered more,\" said Heru, who
\ndisplayed his works during the recent Jakarta Fair.<\/p>\n
Following his success, many similar businesses emerged in his
\nvillage and neighboring areas. Heru's younger brother, Kunto
\nWinarno, who is also in the business, now has 40 workers while
\nsome of Heru's former workers have opened their own cottage
\nindustries. In total, there are about 165 people in the
\nneighborhood who are in the same business.<\/p>\n
Besides Harley Davidson motorcycles, Heru also produces over
\n70 types of automotive models like limousines, VW and Mercedes
\ncars, choppers, trucks, tankers, F-16 jet fighters, Pinishi
\nvessels (schooners), pedicabs and bemo (three-wheeled motorized
\nvehicle).<\/p>\n
According to Heru, some buyers specially order their preferred
\nitems.<\/p>\n
The business is profitable. Heru disclosed that a miniature
\nmodel only cost a third of its selling price. \"But as a work of
\nart, the price is still low,\" he insisted.<\/p>\n
The miniatures are made of quality teak wood. They come in
\nsmall and irregular pieces, remnants of furniture production, and
\ncost Rp 400 per kilogram for good A-class type and Rp 300 per
\nkilogram for medium B-class type.<\/p>\n
In a month, Heru needs 1.5 tons of A-class wood and a ton of
\nB-class wood to produce about 1,000 of the smallest Harley
\nDavidson models, which are sold at Rp 9,000 each. The miniature
\nmotorcycles come in bigger sizes too: a 20-centimeter model costs
\nRp 14,000, 35 cm at Rp 25,000 and 60 cm at Rp 55,000.<\/p>\n
The largest model -- a real-size Harley Davidson -- cost Rp
\n7.5 million per unit. So far, he has created five such units --
\nall of them for export to Germany. He has received two more
\norders for the real-life Harleys to be delivered to the
\nNetherlands.<\/p>\n
The time taken to produce these models depends on their size
\nand complexity. For instance, a worker can complete about 100
\nunits of smaller sized models (15 cm, 20 cm, 35 cm and 60 cm) in
\n10 to 15 days.<\/p>\n
Real-size Harley Davidson motorcycles, which will take three
\nworkers three weeks to complete, are not only made of wood.<\/p>\n
\"Some parts like the axles are made of steel so that the model
\nis strong enough to be sat on,\" Heru said.<\/p>\n
Other models, like the VW cars, are cheaper, at Rp 4,000 per
\nunit for the 10 cm model, Rp 8,000 for 25 cm model and Rp 12,000
\nfor the 30cm to 35 cm model.<\/p>\n
Production<\/p>\n
There are seven stages in the production process from carving
\nthe wood manually or mechanically to giving it its final touch of
\nmelamine spray.<\/p>\n
However, exported products are given better treatment than
\nlocally sold ones. Teak wood for models to be exported, for
\ninstance, is heated in an oven for a finer finish.<\/p>\n
\"The different treatments are made to meet market demand.
\nUnlike foreign buyers, locals prefer lower prices rather than
\ngood quality,\" Heru explained.<\/p>\n
Apart from Yogyakarta and Central Java, the crafts' local
\nmarket covers big cities like Jakarta, Bandung, Surabaya, Malang,
\nBali, Bukittinggi, Riau, Lampung, Palembang and Tebingtinggi.<\/p>\n
Heru also exports his products to as far as Australia,
\nBritain, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the United
\nStates.<\/p>\n
So far, Australia is the largest importer with a bimonthly
\nrecord of about 3,000 units worth Rp 55 million, followed by
\nBritain with 3,000 units every six months and the United States
\nwith 3,000 units annually.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/handicraft-maker-jumps-on-bike-bandwagon-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}