Anisah sells cosmetics well in KL

Anisah sells cosmetics well in KL

SURABAYA (Antara): Anisah Umar, an Indonesian from Cirebon, West Java, has successfully developed a cosmetics and skin care business in Malaysia.

Though in her 40s, she looks younger than her age and she swears this is because she takes good care of her skin with her products.

Armed with her skill in cosmetics and some money, Anisah said she left for Malaysia in 1986 following a dispute with her husband.

"Since I was a teenager, I liked to take care of my face. My mother was also a beautician, who was quite popular in Cirebon," said Anisah, a mother of two daughters aged 21 and 22.

At first she lived in Johor where she introduced her skills to neighborhood women. She invited them to her place to learn about skin care.

"I taught them about facial care and how to put makeup on the right way. I did it for free," she said.

After she had made enough acquaintances, her business instincts started to develop.

In 1987 she established a beauty salon in her house. She observed that many of her customers liked to use imported beauty products, including those made in Indonesia. This gave her the idea to make her own cosmetics, which later turned into reality with the help of some pharmacologists. She produced cleansing cream, softening cream and face powder under the brand name of Citra Ayu (Beauty Image). While most Indonesian women in Malaysia work as housemaids and have a low social status, Anisah's star is rising high. Now she has 50 employees to produce her products in two places: Johor and Kuala Lumpur.

The products are also marketed in Batam. Since 1995, they have been available in Surabaya, Jakarta and other big cities in the country. A package of beauty care products costs at least Rp 300,000 -- more expensive than local products.

Anisah, who is married to a Malaysian man, said her business has been affected by the region's economic crisis.

The sales both in Malaysia and Indonesia dropped by 50 percent.

"Our (annual) sales have dropped from Rp 4 billion to half of that," she said in Surabaya.

She was in the East Java capital to promote her products in an effort to improve her sales. Another effort is by producing smaller packages which cost less.