Fair yet to attract more visitors
Urip Hudiono, Jakarta
The 2004 Jakarta Fair organizers said on Saturday they had recorded a significant increase in visitors over the first two days compared to last year's figures.
Project director Ralph R. Schuneman said as of Saturday evening, the fair had drawn between 50,000 and 60,000 visitors.
"The fair saw about 19,000 visitors on opening day. On the second day, it saw some 23,000," he said, explaining that these indicated respective increases of 20 and 16 percent from last year's turnout.
The annual event at the Jakarta Fairground in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, was officiated on June 17 by President Megawati Soekarnoputri and will last until July 18. The fair is one of many activities being held to commemorate the capital's 477th anniversary, which falls on June 22.
The organizers predicted the fair would attract 2.2 million visitors, or 70,000 people daily, and generate transactions of up to Rp 250 billion (US$26.6 million).
The prediction is well above the 2003 figures of 1.7 million visitors and Rp 208 billion in transactions.
Several vendors at the fair, however, claimed they had yet to see as many visitors as last year.
Ucok, a bag vendor at Pasar Gambir Kemayoran inside the fairground, said sales were low during the first two days, due to the lack of visitors.
"Last year, I sold 30 bags a day. The first two days, I was lucky to sell 10," he said. "You can see that other stands also have more attendants than buyers."
Ucok, who has had a stand at the fair since 1999, pointed to this year's space allocation and poor promotion as the main reasons for the lack of visitors.
The organizers have allocated different areas for its 800 exhibitors based on their products: Hall A and Hall B are for electronic appliances and furniture, while Hall E and Pasar Gambir Kemayoran are for retail clothing and food.
"Last year, all the retail vendors were located in one place, so visitors didn't have to go from one place to another to shop," he said. "Promotional banners were also put up in every corner of the city so people knew about the fair and came."
Sabrawi, a vendor selling kerak telor (traditional cake made from glutinous rice, eggs and coconut) behind Hall E, said he, too, had found sales low.
"I can't hope to make a profit yet. I'm just trying to make ends meet now," he said.
Sabrawi and other food vendors have rented space for between Rp 5 million and Rp 10 million, and fiercely compete with each other to woo customers.
Commenting on the vendors' remarks, Schuneman said it was normal for the fair to pick up momentum gradually before finally kicking into gear.
"But we are optimistic that visitors and sales will eventually increase and fulfill the target," he said.
Schuneman explained further that three new attractions were expected to attract more visitors: the Shouzou lantern pavilion, the Negeri Dongeng (Fairyland) children's pavilion and the Shaolin kungfu show.
The fair is open from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Rp 8,000 per person on weekdays, and from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Rp 10,000 per person on weekends. Additional fees apply to select attractions inside the fair.