Hi Sisters!

My name is Nasta Rofika, founder of ULUR WIJI. A Engineer in the environmental sector who are involved in the field fashion . This note is a piece of my story in developing Social Entrepreneurship in the field of eco-fashion Batik (hand-drawn, stamped, and jumputan) with environmentally friendly natural dyes in Pandankrajan Village, Mojokerto Regency. I named this business ULUR WIJI, which has a dream "FROM THE VILLAGE CAN BE EMPOWERED" . The story is quite long, because finding the name Ulur Wiji for me was a spiritual journey in finding a path in life.

At the beginning of 2019 I decided to stop my business in the field fashion which I started five years ago when I was still working as a A teller at a state-owned bank. I felt uncertain as I continued to pursue this field. Because my production wasn't yet large, the waste generated from the remaining production was quite large, and it bothered me. My business was producing trendy hijabs, which were popular at the time and starting to grow. I labeled my business "NASTA," hoping that one day it would become as big as Jenahara and several other brands. designer Another famous Indonesian business. But it turns out that growing it wasn't as easy as imagined. You could say that at that time, my hijab business stuck And that's it. While continuing to evaluate where else I should develop this business, I finally gave up and decided to stop production.

Pic: My first business is producing hijabs ready to wear “NASTA” Brand

While continuing to ponder the failure of my business, I began to reflect. Rethink the meaning and purpose of life. I am a environmental engineer , while on the other hand I have also received education Fashion design . I thought about how to combine these two competencies I had mastered. At that time, I looked at some of my unsold hijabs, as well as the piles of waste left over from their production. I just realized that the fabrics I had been using were mostly made of polyester, which takes a very long time to decompose naturally. I had never thought about it this deeply before. For about half a year, I was in turmoil. While continuing to search, the idea for a new business venture, called ULUR WIJI. Taken from the Javanese language, "ULUR" means to plant, and "WIJI" means seed. For me, the philosophy is to plant the seeds of goodness. Unlike the previous name, which used my name, this time I want people to buy my products because of the work, without needing to know who the person behind it is. Honestly, I still feel... insecure From that first failed attempt, I was in that anxious and semi-conscious phase. I had a new name, but I didn't know what product I was going to make. After reflecting, I just thought this product was a combination of fashion and environment or eco-fashion.

Initially the product eco-fashion what I learned is Ecoprint , a technique for transferring color from leaves onto fabric. I taught myself and even participated in... workshop . After trying for three months, I felt that ecoprint This doesn't suit my character. I started looking for alternative products. eco-fashion others. From that process, I discovered the potential of batik using natural dyes. I started reading articles about batik and natural dyes and watching videos on YouTube. The process was a bit more complicated, until I finally decided I needed to learn directly from an expert to truly understand the process.

There was a slight obstacle at the time because it turned out that learning batik tulis and natural dyes was quite expensive. I didn't have enough savings, and my husband hadn't received his salary yet. I called Lisa, my best friend from college. She was my hero. Armed with a loan of Rp. 2,500,000 from her, my husband and I took the train from Bekasi to Semarang to learn more about batik and natural dyes. There, I divided the tasks: I learned batik, and my husband learned the natural dye process from plants. Three days and two nights in Semarang was enough for me to get started on learning batik. After that, I diligently tried it at home until I became proficient. Even though we were in the same field, Fashion , but compared to my previous endeavors, I've never felt as confident and happy as I did when I encountered batik and these natural dyes. Why? For one reason, the batik process is similar to drawing, which is my hobby. Since childhood, I've loved hand-drawing, and even participated in and won several competitions at school and district level.

Pic: My departure to Semarang to learn batik & natural dyes.

In early 2020, I moved to East Kalimantan, following my husband's job transfer. Specifically, I moved to Labangka Village, in the regency that was rumored to be the new capital. This is where Ulur Wiji truly began. I recruited a young local artisan to teach me batik. Her name was Mbak Irna, and she went from knowing nothing about batik to becoming a proficient artist . This is where I do research while the production process is going on, how nyanting Correct, color with good natural dyes, last long and don't fade. My job is to create design batik patterns, then with Mbak Irna nyanting My husband and I worked in the natural dyeing department. There, in addition to my usual dyes like indigofera, mahogany, and others, I also explored dyes from oil palm plants, which I found around the house.

For the first six months, I struggled with uneven colors, easy fading, and unsaleable colors. I experienced... stress It was hard at that time. The lowest phase when I was trying this product was that I burned all the fabric I made. trial This is behind the house. While crying, I scolded myself, that I couldn't and wasn't capable of doing all this.

Pic: Artisans Ulur Wiji in Labangka Village, East Kalimantan

From various failures in the phase product development That, I slowly began to find various solutions to fix it. With a bit of courage, I dared to launching My first product was released through Instagram. I named it "Senja Labangka." Scarf Beautiful, made from hand-drawn batik and natural dye extracted from mahogany bark, which produces a dusk orange color. The motif at that time took the silhouette of The deer head is a characteristic of North Penajam Paser Regency. I felt touched after struggling for so long to create this product. fashion environmentally friendly can finally be realized.

However, my happiness did not last long. Until the third day after launching not even a single person bought my greatest work. Product fashion which I think can change the world because it is environmentally friendly. We know that in fact the second largest source of waste in the world comes from industry. fashion , and I have the solution. But why doesn't anyone even want to buy Ulur Wiji's products? I'm beating myself up again, saying I'm incompetent, I have no talent for selling, and I'm cursing myself for this failure.

Pic: Ulur Wiji's first product - Senja Labangka

After a week, I started to be more diligent. upload batik process on Instagram story and also Whatsapp . Whether it was by coincidence or what, I don't know, suddenly a friend of mine asked:
"Nasta, what are you doing? What are you doing?"

My eyes widened and I felt like I was being slapped, so this was the problem. Even my closest friends didn't know what I was doing, let alone anyone else. From then on, I focused on develop next product and education. I spent the Labangka Twilight edition for endorse, give away, to educate prospective candidates customer through Instagram media and also website .

In my second edition, I launched the Orchid and Petals motifs, and in the third edition, the Forest, Ocean, and so on. All of these collections can be seen in my Instagram catalog. Slowly but surely, Ulur Wiji began to gain recognition among consumers and generated quite satisfactory sales.

As I watched Ulur Wiji begin to grow, something unexpected happened. My parents in Mojokerto called me and said, " Nasta!" "Please go home and do batik here. Many of your neighbors and relatives are unemployed due to this pandemic. God willing, your business will thrive and be successful. I will help you with my prayers." I immediately thought hard about my parents' request. Finally, my husband decided. resign from his job and returned to Mojokerto in March 2021.

I restarted Ulur Wiji with renewed enthusiasm, confidence, and the blessing of my parents. I recruited artisans from among the youth, relatives, and neighbors in Pandankrajan Village, Mojokerto. Along the way, Ulur Wiji established itself as a more... concern towards three main values, namely Preserving Culture through batik, Eco-friendly Product by using only natural fabrics and dyes from plants, and Youth Empowerment or empowering youth, especially women. Ulur Wiji's dream is FROM THE VILLAGE CAN BE EMPOWERED, with the belief that young people in the village also have the same opportunities, and can create products that can reach the world.

Pic: Artisans Ulur Wiji at the workshop in Pandankrajan Village, Mojokerto

Now I'm trying to manage Ulur Wiji better. I can reach out customer who are mostly millennial lovers culture and the environment throughout Indonesia. Not only that, Ulur Wiji products have also begun to be exported to international markets such as Canada, Hawaii, Japan, and Singapore. All of my sales are made entirely through on line Through Instagram and marketplaces. I plan to improve several things over the next year to further develop. Among other things, I need a more suitable production facility, especially for dyeing, as it requires a lot of work. space broader. I also need to provide more extensive product education to potential customers so that they become more aware about the importance of using the product fashion which does not damage the surrounding environment, either through websites or social media. Apart from that, I also want to add channel sales through offline store at Alun-Alun Indonesia in Bali and Sarinah Jakarta.

Pic: Ulur Wiji products used by Mrs. Angela Tanoe, Deputy Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy

I'm participating in the #KMP2023 Sisternet Smart Capital Competition program to further #DareToAdvanceClass and hope to become the champion. Ulur Wiji must be able to have a greater impact by empowering more young people. If I can qualify and be selected to participate in the series, webinar class And Telegram discussions , then this knowledge will certainly be very useful in growing Ulur Wiji. With the capital I obtain, I will realize Ulur Wiji's development needs, including:

- Rent of vacant land Rp. 3,000,000,- (for the coloring process)

- Production stock ready to wear Rp. 18,000,000,- (12 pieces each at Sarinah Jakarta, Alun - alun Indonesia Jakarta & Bali)

- Build website Professional Rp. 5,000,000 (One-year Shopify package)

- Endorse influencer Rp. 6,000,000,- (per two months with a budget of 1 million per two months)

- IG Ads Rp. 6,000,000,- (Rp. 500 thousand per month for one year)

The total cost I need for one year is: Rp. 38,000,000,-

I believe that the seeds of goodness I planted through Ulur Wiji will have a positive impact on Pandankrajan Village. I currently work with eight young female artisans and partner with six tailors. I dream of empowering at least fifty more artisans in the next three years, so that dream... FROM THE VILLAGE CAN BE EMPOWERED can really be realized.

#KMP2023