Sarik dealers hunt for best buys
JAKARTA (JP): "We buy junk from you and sell antiques to you" is the life motto of the Sarik antique dealers on Jl. Ciputat Raya, not only in serving customers but also in surviving tough business times.
These natives of a tiny village in West Sumatra have literally cornered the local market in selling antiques. Much of their success can be tied to their willingness to go in search of mementos and knickknacks for their shops.
Most dealers travel far and wide to find goods at bargain prices, restoring them to sell as rare, expensive antiques to buyers in Jakarta.
"I go to villages in West, Central and East Java to hunt for antiques. I can spend up Rp 12 million (US$4,800) a time," said Pepen, a manager at Limo Lapan art shop.
He named Purbolinggo, Kudus, Solo and Klaten in Central Java, Blora and Cirebon in West Java and Surabaya and Madura in East Java among his favorite hunting grounds.
Antique furniture can also be found closer to home.
Pepen said dealers can still find antiques among dilapidated old Dutch buildings in Kebon Jeruk, South Jakarta, and Kota, Central Jakarta.
In the villages, Pepen said there were always people willing to help him find what he wants.
He said he could obtain oak cupboards at between Rp 250,000 and Rp 400,000, wooden chairs costing Rp 30,000 to Rp 40,000 each, and couches ranging from Rp 100,000 to Rp 150,000.
"After repairs and providing a good finishing, an oak cupboard can sell for as much as Rp 7 million ($2,700). It all depends on the quality of the wood," Pepen said.
He had no guilt about reaping huge profits.
"I don't consider it cheating," he said.
"We always give fair prices for every item. We could give good prices for reproduction items, but never for original products made from good wood," the 28-year-old said.
Limo Lapan's big seller is its dining table sets.
Every week at least four sets are sold, and every two months the firm exports a container full of furniture to Spain, Italy and the Netherlands.
Another antique dealer, Hari Dharma of Madura art shop, said even dealers get cheated at times.
"People come here pretending to be owners of an old house loaded with antiques to sell," said the 10-year business veteran. "But actually they rented the house, and the stuff they offer is all made of new wood painted dark brown and deliberately covered with dust."
Trust, he said philosophically, underlies the antique business.
"You have to trust your dealers. We've become experts through experience. Sure we got cheated once or twice. But after that, we learned how to identify real antiques."
Some shops have diversified amid the fierce antique furniture competition.
A glance at the shops' wares shows a potpourri of products -- old silver and gold jewelry collections, furniture and stylish suspended lamps are featured along with traditional weapons and wooden primitive and tribal art sculptures.
There are also traditional paintings, sarongs and textiles from almost every corner of Indonesia, including Palembang, West Sumatra, Lampung, Flores, Timor, Kalimantan and Irian Jaya.
Lukman, owner of Pat-limo art shop, says the public's appreciation of traditional clothes and fabrics grew in the 1970s following several textile exhibitions.
Traditional fabrics are now common adornments for walls of offices and other public buildings, he added. (07)