Secondhand toilet bowl business is slow but growing

JAKARTA (JP): The business of secondhand toilet bowls in the capital is slow but growing, according to a vendor who sells his wares on state property under the Slipi flyover in Central Jakarta.

Soleh Sinaga, 38, said that since the economic crisis hit the country in mid 1997, more people had come to buy used toilet bowls from him.

"I can earn an average of Rp 300,000 a month. That's not much, but better than it was before the crisis," Sinaga told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday, explaining that the figure was his net income.

When the Post arrived at his business site, one of his employees was seen scrapping stains from a used toilet bowl, using simple equipments, such as sponge, sandpaper, soap, and water.

"Sometimes I sell one bowl in a week, sometimes more or none at all," Sinaga said, adding that he also sold used sinks.

He said that he gets the used toilets from contractors hired to replace toilet bowls at hotels and other buildings.

"Sometimes they (contractors) come to me, and sometimes I look for them," he said.

Sinaga said the price for the used toilet bowls he buys depended on their brand.

"Toto (a toilet bowl's brand) is the most expensive. I usually buy one for Rp 300,000 and resell it for Rp 500,000," he said.

He added that he bought a used KIA brand toilet bowl for Rp 100,000 and resold it for Rp 225,000, while a used KIA Standard toilet bowl was Rp 250,000 and he resold it for Rp 350,000.

New toilet bowls are usually priced as low as Rp 750,000 each.

Sinaga said that he had to compete with other vendors in Manggarai, Taman Puring, and Pasar Rumput markets in South Jakarta, and Jati Bening market in East Jakarta.

Sinaga, who lives with his wife and her brother, but with no children, said that he started the business in 1992.

"I was a Colt (pickup truck) driver delivering building materials for a shop before I saw someone selling used toilet bowls in Pasar Rumput. I then decided to do the same," he said.

He said that he started his business with three used toilets that year. "And the business had been growing since then".

Sinaga said that his customers include people from Bandung and Bogor in West Java.

"I am thinking of opening a branch shop (for his business) but I haven't found a location yet," he said. (08)