Staking out the city for hot year-end sales
People can be divided into two groups: those who love a good sale, and those who pass them by, says one wise shopper dedicated to hunting out the best bargains this city has to offer.
And anyone who has spent time in the capital knows Jakarta is one of the best cities in Asia offering bargains with optimum product quality, selection and best of all -- good value.
December promises to be full of bargains, even more so than at other times of the year.
Malls and stores across Jakarta are gearing up for a shopping frenzy as three major holidays all come within the last week of December.
Christmas starts off the week of holidays on Dec. 25, followed by Idul Fitri on Dec. 27 and Dec. 28, ending the month-long fasting of Ramadhan, and last but not least, comes New Year's Eve.
Henny Udy, the tenants relation manager at Plaza Indonesia, said this year would be extremely busy for the mall, and all the tenants were anticipating a lot of shoppers, more than last year.
"The tenants are really optimistic, and there are promotional sales which started at the end of November and will run until the end of December with reduced sales from 50 percent to 70 percent off," she said. "We hope this will be the best year yet."
With the anticipated hecticness accompanying shoppers' quests to fulfill their loved ones' wish lists, Heddy said the mall was keeping in step to accommodate everyone.
"One of the problems (with all the holidays coming at once) is that there will be such a large amount of activity seen at this time, that it was a major decision for us on how to decorate the plaza."
In the end, the mall management decided to allot one holiday to each of the plaza's floors.
"The first floor is dedicated to Idul Fitri, the second floor to Christmas and the third to New Year's. So shoppers can experience the ambience of those holidays on each floor."
Henny told The Jakarta Post that some special events would also be held to celebrate the holidays.
"For Christmas, we will have a choir, Anak Indonesia, singing carols at Lamoda Cafe on Dec. 10 and Dec. 17 at 2 p.m."
For women needing a special dress for the Christmas and Lebaran holidays this year, two fashion shows at Lamoda Cafe, Dec. 8 and Dec. 16 from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m., will spark everyone's interest with the latest variety of styles that are hot to wear this season.
She also said Santa was coming to town, or specifically, the Kids Club on Dec. 9 and Dec. 10, to talk to children and find out who was being naughty and nice.
"Children can have a picture taken with him, and there will also be some activities for them."
A fortuneteller will be on hand from Dec. 15 to Dec. 17 to give shoppers their prognosis for 2001, and in the mall's corridors shoppers can browse over the Christmas and Lebaran cards and accessories on offer from Dec. 8 to Dec. 24.
Upstairs in the Cira Food Court on the third level is a festival of special food, running from Dec. 1 to Dec. 26, for breaking daily fasts.
Shoppers at the mall may not be just another face in the crowd; they may be seeing themselves on TV later. Taking place at Lamoda Cafe and through the corridors of Plaza Indonesia, shoppers have the chance to watch Metro TV's live taping of The Plaza, with host Becky Tumewu. The show will be shot at various times on Dec. 2, Dec. 9, Dec. 16, Dec. 23 and Dec. 30.
If entertainment is needed in between all the shopping, shoppers can rest their feet at Lamoda Cafe and take in the cultural show of Banten from West Java on Dec. 9 and Dec. 16 from 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Not to be missed is the trio Bimbo, which will be performing live, singing Ramadhan songs as those who are fasting await buka puasa on Dec. 10 from 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
And onstage on Dec. 17 also from 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. is the Ruth Sahanaya, Harvey Malaiholo and Glenn show, singing Christmas songs for shoppers facing the time crunch as they seek out the ultimate presents.
Rounding off all the happenings at Plaza Indonesia are sales promotions where shoppers can get an exclusive free gift for making a purchase of Rp 1 million. The offer runs from Dec. 12 to Dec. 18. And following that is an opportunity to win one of 24 Philips cell phones after making a purchase of Rp 500,000.
Henny said there were a lot of things going on that shoppers should take note of at this time as well.
"Versace's renovation will be complete the first week of December and the concept of the window display is a real must- see. It's the first one in Asia. The other display is in their New York boutique, but why bother to go there, when you can just wander down this way to see it," she said.
Mango fashion center, the first one in Jakarta, had a grand opening of its new 500-square-meter boutique on the first floor of the plaza on Nov. 23.
Over at Taman Anggrek Mall, Rico Paula, the advertising and public relations assistant, said all the tenants there were excited about the three major holidays rolled up in one week.
"We're getting all prepared for the holidays, with a combination of events to help everyone get in that holiday mood," he said.
And a shopper cannot help but be in the mood as soon as they enter the front atrium and see the tallest Christmas tree in Indonesia, which was set up on Nov. 17.
Brightly decorated with candles, lights, pine cones, icicle lights and snowflakes, the tree will be standing all through the holidays for shoppers to enjoy.
Rico said the only challenge the mall faced with the major holidays falling so close together was how to integrate the different decorations.
"We tried to combine them in the best possible way. However, it wasn't that easy. Our first plan was to put ketupat (rice packaged in woven leaves) on the Christmas tree, but others suggested not to do that, so we hung them from the doves' beaks instead."
Running until January 1 is Taman Anggrek's Warnai Impianmu (Color your Dreams) event, which will feature onstage entertainment, a visit with Santa and a large contest with huge prizes up for grabs.
"We have a variety of musical shows, acoustic and chamber choir shows and of course fashion shows on schedule for December in the Grand Atrium," said Rico.
Bina Fokalia, a well-known children's quartet, will highlight the agenda with songs for Christmas and Lebaran.
For jazz aficionados, female artist Andien, an up-and-coming jazz singer will appear onstage on Dec. 13.
"And all the way from Japan, making their first appearance in Indonesia, will be the Digimon musical show, where children can meet and greet two of the characters of the famous TV cartoon series, Mimi and Tokeimon, who will be on hand every day from Dec. 15 to Dec. 24," he said.
And Santa will also be dropping by the mall to chat with all the children and photograph opportunity who come to visit him.
Parents are invited to bring a wrapped present that Santa can present to the child once he elicits his or her promise of good behavior.
Rico said children could also have their photo taken as Aladdin beside a genie.
But the most exciting event shoppers will find is a contest with incredible prizes of a house in Taman Victoria, Bukit Sentul, a Hyundai Trajep, a trip to Europe, Japan, America or China, or one of 10 wristwatches from Ebel.
Running from Nov. 24 to Jan. 28, the contest is a repeat of last year's successful millennium draw, where shoppers show receipts totaling Rp 500,000 to get an entry form. The draw date is Jan. 29, 2001, and participants should be present in the mall to claim their prize.
This promotion has had a significant impact on traffic in the mall, Rico noted.
"We had an increase (in foot traffic) of 30 percent during last year's event from the same time in 1998.
"Other malls are offering other promotions but ours is the greatest -- what we offer is the best," he said.
At Kidz Station's, the festival sale period is from Nov. 29 to Dec. 24 in all outlets. Division Manager Ria NH said Kidz Station usually has sale programs for school holidays, back to school and at the end of the year. Since the crisis, sale programs have become the most waited-for programs by customers, because they know they will get high-quality products at cheaper prices, especially when people start preparing for Christmas and Idul Fitri.
Nautica's year-end sale program is from Nov. 24 to Dec. 10 in all outlets. It sells international-quality standard casual wear and apparel. This company usually has sale programs at midyear and year-end. Considering its experience, Operation Manager Austino said, Nautica believes its sale program will get a good response from customers, because they will get high quality products at cheaper price. Besides sales, Nautica also does some marketing strategies to face the tight competition among fashion companies, such as keeping their brand products image through advertising. It is optimistic with its prospects in 2001, considering its brand is already established.