House of Prajudi a regeneration success story

Sun, 30 Aug 1998

By Agni Amorita

JAKARTA (JP): On a bright Friday morning on Aug. 21, celebrities were seen having coffee along with ladies from several embassies at a cafe in Pasaraya, Blok M, South Jakarta. Melodious notes from a Balinese gamelan orchestra played behind the stall of Indonesian handicrafts accompanying that morning's program of '98 Bali Festival, featuring a fashion show of the latest collection from Rumah Mode Prajudi, or the House of Prajudi.

Thirty-eight sets of outfits were a harmonious blend between the traditional and modern. Balinese elements in batik patterns and ornaments presented the choice of first-class material from satin silk to chiffon, worked into a batik piece in soft pastel colors.

Balinese traditional motifs, such as that resembling the squares on a chessboard, were modified with a handmade batik technique on cotton. The blend of black and broken white showed its cosmopolitan flair in simply cut three pieces: a tank top, a bolero and a blazer with pallazo pants.

In another presentation, a sense of Indonesia was sufficiently evinced in the sarong style adopted for a sleeveless gown with the motif of twig flowers, so tiny they looked more like ornaments.

The use of the modernized hibiscus motif and choice of trendy textiles -- such as the combination of a silk sleeveless long dress with a transparent chiffon coat -- made traditional chic assume greater prominence than "oldie" accessories such as laced shoes or batik shawls.

For instance, the collection of Balinese kebaya (traditional blouse) colored in terra-cotta featured a lush Balinese brassiere, while the selendang, or long cloth, was tied to the waist as an artistic belt with a silver corsage.

Despite the fact Indonesia is in a severe crisis, there was no shortage of demand for the collection, priced between Rp 500,000 and Rp 3 million a piece (roughly equal to one ton of medium- quality rice).

"Our sales volume in rupiah has increased by 300 percent," said Ari Seputra, chief designer at Prajudi's Boutique.

This may be surprising to some considering that Ari, 36, is the successor to Prajudi Atmodirjo, the founder of the boutique who died three years ago.

Successful regeneration in haute couture in Indonesia is still rare. When famed designer Arthur Harland died in 1995, for example, his business folded.

Sister

In the global fashion world, there are famous examples of others stepping into the shoes of established designers. The most recent example is probably Gianni Versace's sister, Donnatella, who soon after his death began steps to ensure the slain designer's brand continued.

In the case of Prajudi, it is Lily Atmodirdjo, his sister-in- law, who has taken over the boutique and brought it to the present level of success.

"For two days I tried to persuad Prajudi to go to the hospital," Lily said, remembering Prajudi's last moments. Because of advanced pancreatic cancer, Prajudi was hospitalized only one day, Dec. 7, 1995, before he died.

Since then, Lily has been doing her best to continue the business of Prajudi, famed for his great love of batik.

She has the help of three fashion designers, two textile designers and a managerial team. "Important decisions about the choice of materials and market development are made by the artistic and managerial divisions," added Ari. He comes out with a new theme once every three months. Unity in creating a cooperation system has brought good results.

"When we must get foreign consumers, for example, we find from our research that the motifs popular among them are those which are light and naive, and not those which are very 'primitive.' Their favorite colors are also unique, ranging around blue, white and brown," he said.

The proof is that 70 percent of the products under the trademark of Garis Prajudi (Prajudi's Line), specially designated for expatriates and foreign tourists, have gone to this market.

Although all components are imported -- from thread to textile coloring stuffs -- Prajudi's boutique has found an opportunity for expansion. "It's true that the profit margin is less now, although in this case we have raised our prices by 20 percent to 30 percent. However, we won't sit idle," Ari said. He adding that they imported silk from China and process it into batik in Pekalongan, Central Java.

"At the moment we are experimenting on producing our own women's cloth. The result is not as we expected yet but at least we've started."

Another expansion plan is related to silver and leather crafts for bags and shoes and household products. "As soon as the sales of dresses are down, we have an emergency meeting to turn our attention to products such as blankets and ceramics. Now we have even launched Prajudi Furniture, a collection of antique Javanese furniture."

In short, Ari said the key to the success of Rumah Mode Prajudi is that their well-thought-out concept. "Take, for example, the concept of blue and white colors. We can also adopt this concept for the entire bedroom. So now you can find Prajudi's dresses, pillow cases, soap and ceramics in the same colors and styles."

Ari, originally Prajudi's assistant designer, admitted that he no longer felt burdened by the reputation of his late boss.

"I'm deeply involved in this business now and I have all the freedom to exist. Besides, I also maintain the image of Mas Prajudi which is strongly linked to the 'Indonesian' element. I have supplemented this with my own development, which emphasizes wearability and salability."

Ari has proved that he is capable of continuing Prajudi's work. He and Chossy Latu, who introduced the collection under his own name but also designs for Iwan Tirta -- the batik maestro and graduate of Yale Law School -- make up a few success stories of regeneration in Indonesia.

Another case is Didi Budiardjo, 28, who is now considered capable of continuing the success of his teacher Susan Budihardjo, who is no relation. "Before knowing Susan I didn't understand the proper technique of sewing," he said. Didi, a winner of the 1989 Fashion Designers' Contest here, was selected to represent the country in the Asia Fashion Connection 1989 in Singapore.

After being Susan's apprentice for a year, Didi has now set up his own boutique. He stresses that newcomers must discover the opportunities for regeneration.

"New designers are more welcomed now compared to seven or eight years ago," Didi said. "And becoming a designer here is easier than overseas where one must have a workshop, a concept and clear target presented through fashion shows."

But he points out that newcomers have lacked the ability to maintain their own existence and thus cannot work with seniors.

Besides, Didi added, fashion is a very individual field and young designers have opted to go on their own, which is also influenced by consumers looking for a wider choice.

"People now look for funky or even avant garde styles, so (designers') market can reach out to many directions," he said.

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