Hazia’s Reflections

So we met last night, it had been a loooong time…We had a lot to catch up on. I have to say that I am very impressed:)

It started with a drink at the kopitiam nearby. His younger sister who was managing the boutique full time joined us then. I could see that she was as passionate about the business as he was. They started with selling a cheaper collection with a capital of only RM2000 at expos before upgrading to higher quality products.

After that, we adjourned to his boutique across the road. We sat on the French love seat and chatted away about business, old time, personal milestones, etc. Both of us were genuinely interested in what the other had been doing that we ended up sharing a lot.

I like the bungalow colour scheme : maroon, very classy and rich. The place specialised in a unique high-end Kebaya, they are the sole provider in the country. Alright! They had quite a selection from a huge range of colours, very intricate and elegant pieces. Soon, he will change the brand of his ready made Kebaya and upgrade even further.

His partner is an Indonesian designer with an attractive personality and good at talking to customers and the media. So, the guy is the talent and he is the brain; he plans and strategises & manages finance & administrative matters.

He said for the first 2 years, he had focused mainly on creating awareness of the brand. They had good contacts with partners, celebrities, etc. They had done TV coverage too. Now the time has come to focus on the actual ’selling.’ That would be the obvious thing to me, but bear in mind that this guy is an accountant. How did he devise a communications strategy like that?

I asked him the magic question - why boutique? He gave me a totally non-gay answer. LOL! It just came to mind when he was window shopping in Indonesia. He thought that as a man, he would do better selling women items, the opposite attracts rule. That’s why his partner is also a man. He learned about the Kebaya, fabric, textile, etc on his own. He visited outlets and asked a lot of questions.

I have to admit that the thought that he was gay did cross my mind, a single boutique owner at 35, hehe… An article on an interview with him and  a few other guys on being single in their 30s came out in a newspaper in May.

I did a quick research beforehand, so I knew about his company suing the authority for raiding his premise 3 weeks ago. It came out in all newspapers, he called them, so his media contacts were good. It was the first time anyone had ever sued this particular body, LOL! He said many of our old friends and his acquaintances were shock that he was capable of doing something like that.

He said doing his own business had changed him. The reason he started was because someone made fun of him and said he was too lenient (betul bendul) for that, he took that as a challenge. He is still as gentle and soft-spoken as he used to be. Only that now, he is more gutsy and forthright, a risk taker.

He wanted to seek my expertise to do PR. I told him I would do it for fun as a favour to an old friend, but not for work. Firstly, my company charges a bomb and I don’t want any of my friends paying for that. Secondly, if I do this for work, that would take out the fun out of it. He would become my client and that would spoil our relationship. Though he protested at first, his sister and he finally saw my point and agreed.

I almost forgot that the next day was a working day, not a weekend and excused myself at 11.15pm. We are meeting again on Sunday, after my book project discussion. The venue is so convenient:)