Project News

Demand for the rattan furniture products in Palu City comes from village communities who buy the products before the Lebaran holiday or Christmas, thus being regarded as seasonal demand, continuing and stable production throughout a year has not been taken place. In light of this situation, Local Working Group (LWG) with rattan furniture producers undertook a market survey of modern segment (hotel, restaurant/ café, office, public facilities such as hospital and school) in Palu as one of the fastest-growing region in Indonesia to explore its potential demands and prospects and constraints to market development, and disseminated the survey result at the seminar in March 2014. The seminar was attended by almost 90 participants from those visited buyers/ users during the survey, Ministry of Industry (MoI), concerned local governments, and target producers. The mayor of Palu City also attended the seminar as a key speaker.

The survey revealed that, i) majority of visited buyers/ users are not familiar with locally made rattan furniture, ii) many of them have a willingness to purchase furniture and a high interest in using local rattan furniture, iii) there exist a demand for handicraft besides furniture (such as small fixtures for hotel room/ office), on the other hand, iv) some buyers/ users indicated inferior points of local products (caused by poorly processed materials, poor craftsman skills on finishing). Those findings were shared among participants including rattan furniture producers, then, the producers in response to the survey stated their problems/ constraints and comments on supports delivered so far by the government. Then the participants confirmed "the producers shall conduct marketing visits to the potential buyers/ users by own initiatives, and the government shall further facilitate those marketing action of target producers by providing the necessary supports". The mayor also expressed commitment to placing the available support resources intensively onto rattan industry and strengthening coordination among related agencies. Support letters by the mayor for marketing action were already issued after the seminar.

Eight producers showed their willingness to involve in marketing action to local modern segments, and are supposed to prepare a pamphlet for promotion and start marketing visits to potential buyers/ users such as hotels and government offices. In parallel, LWG has launched a discussion on establishment of quality assurance system in view of dispelling a negative perception held on locally made rattan furniture. Both provincial and city Dinas Industry & Trade together with National Innovation Center for Rattan (PIRNaS) under MoI have agreed to form the quality assurance team and procedure of quality/ performance tests for rattan furniture, thus to encourage marketing action by the willing producers.

Market Survey