Branded second-hand clothes flood Indonesia

Straits Times ^ | By Devi Asmarani

[DeaconBenjamin]

JAKARTA - Used garments smuggled in from all over the world are flooding the Indonesian market, riling local producers who are unable to compete with the extremely low-priced goods.

For less than the price of a pack of clove cigarettes, shoppers can pick up a pair of Calvin Klein jeans and a Versace shirt that look fairly new at any of the numerous vendors and stores in the capital.

And for those with an entrepreneurial bent, the clothes can be bought in bulk as well.

A large sack of clothes sells for 500,000 (S$99) to a million rupiah.

While they do not look brand-new, the garments have no visible damage and are said to be sterilised at their place of origin.

These include China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, the United States and some European countries.

Said 28-year-old Boni Sylviani, who bought a blazer for 15,000 rupiah: 'I would have to pay at least 300,000 rupiah for this at a regular store.'

'I don't mind the idea of wearing second-hand clothes, as long as they don't smell.'

Shoppers like her have abandoned their favourite malls and department stores to queue up for 'bargains' at the 'seken' (second-hand) stores or vendors in shopping areas like Pasar Baru, Pasar Senen and Tanah Abang.

They are as popular with shoppers in other major cities like Bandung, Medan, Banjarmasin and Pontianak.

The volume of the imports, which began four years ago, is especially large this year due to the high demand.

Although the government imposed a ban on the imports of second-hand garments to protect the local market, it has been unable to stop their inflow due to poor law enforcement and corruption.

The smugglers reportedly bypass checks at the sea port by bribing Customs officers, or they produce fake documents categorising the content of the containers as 'waste'.

Customs chief Permana Agung was recently replaced as part of attempts to crack down on the rampant smuggling.

According to the Indonesian Textile Association (API), some 1,500 containers carrying garments were smuggled into the country in the last three months.

At least 480 million pieces of used garments are shipped into the country every year, it said.

The fortunes of the local textiles and garments industry - once a top foreign exchange earner - have gone downhill in the last few years.

Already, 40 per cent of the 2,700 factories in the country have been forced to fold up or stop operations because of competition posed by cheaper products from China, Vietnam and India.

Now, the industry is confronted with the possibility of used clothes traders cornering a large section of the market.

API chairman Benny Sutrisno said: 'The government must do something because the livelihood of thousands of workers is at stake.'

'Before we sink and die, we are going to fight the smuggling.'

[marktwain]

Same old protectionist nonsense. I *will* force others to buy my stuff at high prices, so I won't have to change to be more productive. While it is difficult, change is how progress is made. These manufacturers *must* be allowed to fail so that everyone can live better. If all the time, energy and money that goes into making clothes can be done more efficiently by having a market in used clothes, so be it. That money and energy can be redirected into more productive venues. That is why Capitalism works as well as it does. Capital and labor are not wasted on fossilised productions systems and markets. Change is allowed.

The most important part of Capitalism is keeping the freedom to fail and succeed, alive.

[riverrunner]

I buy second-hand when ever I can find something I like the price is right.

[Black Agnes]

See, even Indonesians like thrift stores! :)