Gift package business drops

Indra Harsaputra, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya

Eva Ayunda, the owner of a gift package business in Surabaya, is worried. She has been in business for five years, but the last two years have been tough.

Business was slow last year after President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono instructed all governments officials not to give or accept gift packages, for fear of creating the impression of conflicts of interest. Her earnings last Ramadhan dropped to Rp 20 million, much less than the Rp 30 million she made the previous year.

This year, business has been slow since the government raised fuel prices on Oct. 1 by an average of 126 percent.

She has sold only about six packages a day over the last couple of days, while last year she was selling close to 20 packages every day.

Another woman in the gift package business, Ita, is also concerned. Many of her clients, mostly insurance companies and banks, stopped their orders after fuel prices went up. She received 150 orders last Ramadhan, but this year her orders are down by 70 percent.

However, a florist and gift package provider company, Tiffany's Indonesia, is confident there is money to be made in the business.

After opening branches in several cities across the country, the Jakarta-based company just opened a branch in Surabaya. Darma, a Tiffany's Indonesia employee, said the company planned to dominate the gift package business in Surabaya.

The company offers high quality items in its gift packages, such as ceramics and kitchen utensils imported from the Czech Republic. It also offers gifts made by the renowned wood carvers of Jepara.