Get a new looks with fashionable wigs

Agus Maryono, The Jakarta Post, Purbalingga, Central Java

Do you want your hair to look like top singers Kris Dayanti or Titi DJ? Or maybe you want to go blonde or brunette for a change?

Thanks to wigmakers in Purbalingga, Central Java, women can enjoy different looks for different occasions.

Wig-making is a big business in Purbalingga regency, particularly in the village of Karangbanjar. And the wigmakers do not only specialize in wigs, but also make accessories such as small and big hair buns (gelung).

In 1962, the wigmakers here were only producing hair buns, which were mostly used by the wives of government officials for ceremonial events.

Now, according to one wigmaker, Maryoto, 58, the village has some 200 people making wigs and hair buns, most of them women.

"The profits are not really that high but it's better than working as a laborer," said the man who has been in the business since 1962.

The village receives orders for wigs and hair buns not only from local customers, but also from abroad.

"Orders come from as far away as Malaysia, Singapore and Suriname," Maryoto said.

In hunting down the main materials for their products -- hair -- some wigmakers go from house to house, or from village to village. Maryoto has even traveled as far afield as Surabaya to buy hair, which can be difficult to secure because it has to be at least 25 centimeters long.

"You know, not many women have long hair these days. Its not like in this village, where the women know if they grow their hair they can sell it later on," said Kasini, Maryoto's wife.

Sometimes, Maryoto spends three days hunting down suitable hair. "I usually buy 20 to 30 kilograms of hair each time," Maryoto said.

He pays between Rp 50,000 and Rp 75,000 for a kilogram of hair, depending on the quality. For instance, long, black and shiny hair fetches the highest price.

"I usually buy long hair, at least 25 centimeters in length. Otherwise, it will be too difficult to use to make wigs or hair buns," Maryoto said.

A kilogram of hair can be turned into 20 small hair buns, which are sold for Rp 10,000 each, or into five wigs.

"I usually sell wigs for Rp 150,000 each," said Maryoto. He added that 90 percent of his wigs were sold in big cities like Jakarta, Surabaya and Yogyakarta.

On a monthly basis, he can sell over 30 wigs.

"I get a lot of orders for wigs. In good times, we can get orders for 100 wigs," he said.

Hair buns, however, are becoming less popular, he said, probably because people now prefer easy-to-wear wigs instead.

Women also prefer to rent hair buns instead of buying them. Large hair buns usually cost Rp 25,000 each.

"Renting a hair bun only costs Rp 5,000. And now hair buns are rarely used, maybe once a year on Kartini Day," Maryoto say. Kartini Day falls on April 21 and marks the birth of the heroine of women's emancipation.

The economic crisis has had little impact on the wig-making business, since the price of the raw material has not changed much.

"But I still raised my production costs a little because I had to give my workers raises since the price of staple foods kept increasing," said Maryoto, who is assisted in his business by his wife, three children and three employees.

Apart from the wigs and hair buns made by small-scale operations, Purbalingga is also home to five large Korean companies that produce quality wigs. These companies, which export about 90 percent of their products, mainly to the United States, not only produce wigs but also fake eyelashes.