You may be interested in starting a business in the fashion sector. More specifically, fashion for men.
Don't let the simplicity of men's fashion make your ideas come to a halt, okay? Because there is always something that can be explored with creativity, for example Direz. He uses traditional Indigo dye for the premium shirts he produces. Direz also utilizes the community it has built from scratch to increase awareness. Not only as marketing media, but Direz's initiative also educates people about values and culture.
Making the Community a Marketing Media
To find out the story behind Direz's success today, we should go back a decade to find out how Direz started his business. To be precise, in 2009, Direz saw that the denim trend had a crowd that might not be visible. Slowly, because he also has an interest in denim, Direz gathered people who had the same interest. The forum that Direz chose to gather his community at that time was Kaskus, with the name My Blue Blood.
From time to time, the community members formed by Direz continue to grow. Once a month, Direz regularly holds the My Blue Blood exhibition event. Apart from providing a special denim exhibition, Direz also held a talk show by inviting several people who had already created businesses using denim. One of the topics most frequently discussed on forums is, for example, how to prevent jeans that have been worn for years from emitting an unobtrusive aroma. With the existence of My Blue Blood, denim fans have managed to get a lot of useful information. From there, Direz realized that this person chose to join a certain community to define himself.
From My Blood is Blue, Direz met the owner of Old Blue Co, Americana vintage jeans. They are one of the pioneers who first sold self-produced denim. The products they make have succeeded in attracting buyers because they have a strong heritage impression.
One time, when he was making merchandise for My Blue Blood, one of Direz's colleagues suggested starting a business at the same time. Remembering the success of Old Blue Co, Direz was finally moved to start his own business too. But, because he thought denim gave him limits, Direz finally expanded his business by moving into Men's Fashion, which is denim based. The marketing media that first came to Direz's mind to promote his business was the community he formed, My Blue Blood.
Apart from the community, Direz also uses his experience working at a digital agency in Amsterdam. Direz looks for blogs that have good traffic as a platform for advertising his business in online content. Now, Direz's business, which he named Bluesville, has managed to appear on one of The Goods Dept. shelves.
Has Direz forgotten his community, My Blood is Blue? No, bro. Today, its members have reached 30,000 people, although not all of them are active users. Since 2016, the monthly events held by Direz have also succeeded in generating their own profits. From there, Direz became more active in inviting other brands to collaborate to create campaigns. We are now making the event itself profitable.
Finally, My Blue Blood has now become a business entity.
The first marketing media used by Direz was to create a community in Kaskus, My Blue Blood.
Increasing the Value of Indigo Dye Through Bluesville
Is anyone still unfamiliar with indigo dye? It is an organic compound with a distinctive blue color, extracted from the indigo plant. Apart from being difficult to obtain, the indigo dyeing process is also quite difficult and takes a lot of time. However, this actually made Direz appreciate the quality of the colors produced even more. Direz saw an opportunity for him to increase public awareness about indigo dye. So, through its products, Direz not only presents quality and aesthetics, but also cultural value.
Direz's struggle to get indigo dye first required him to travel all the way to Ambarawa, Central Java. Fate brings Direz together with Saiful, the manager of an indigo plantation. Saiful said that at that time there was not much demand for indigo dye, mostly from batik makers in Pekalongan. Bluesville is one of the clients who submitted quite a lot of requests, for two months, it could reach 200 kg. After Direz's products became known to the public, Saiful found that people's demand for indigo dye also increased. That means, people are starting to follow the coloring technique that Direz had previously chosen.
What makes indigo dye attractive? Apparently, in the 16th century, when the VOC was trading in Indonesia, indigo was one of the plants most often sent and sold to Europe. At that time, only nobles wore blue clothes, because they were expensive. That was also only in Constantinople, because trade was closest to Türkiye and Arabia.
Direz's hard work finding indigo, Saiful's process of processing and blending the color, the shirts Direz sells are priced at 1 to 1.5 million and above. Direz wants people to appreciate the value, to appreciate the complicated processes that are all done manually by hand. The process of making 1 shirt can take 1 week.
Because there was an indigo crisis due to bad weather, Direz took the initiative to create a small garden to plant indigo on one of the Javanese plantations. From the garden, Direz can use the results of his indigo planting, but it is not enough for the entire production. Direz still needs Saiful's help as the main supplier of indigo dye.
In Japan, where people's appreciation for culture is very high, indigo is considered a national treasure. Direz is confident that his efforts will one day be able to bring Indonesia to the same stage.
Direz hopes that one day indigo can become something of high value.
“Indigo dye is an organic compound with a distinctive blue color, extracted from the indigo plant.”
The Importance of a Plan, Not Just 'Do It'
As a celebration of Direz's 10th anniversary of running his business, Direz plans to make a special exhibition whose concept is still a secret. When asked if he could be persistent in business for 10 years, Direz admitted that he reflected on indigo in Japan which can last hundreds of years and is something to be proud of.
Direz also believes that the business sector he is currently involved in promises bright opportunities in the future. Growth in men's e-commerce continues to increase today, while growth in women's fashion is stagnant there. Because according to Direz, the monthly income these men earn makes them start to think about caring for their appearance too, not just fulfilling basic needs. It has been proven that Direz's products, which are marketed through e-commerce, can sell out in a matter of seconds.
What has kept Bluesville going for a decade? Direz's answer is innovation. From time to time, Direz continues to improve the quality of its products; starting from the quality of the buttons, the quality of the materials. Color quality too. Direz challenged Saiful to process indigo color using another technique. Direz always tries to follow trends with his own style.
Talking about inspiration, Direz also looked at Voyage as young people who have a strong belief in doing something. Direz is always amazed by people who work because they want to develop themselves, not just for a salary. That's also Direz's advice for anyone who is thinking about running their own business or working with other people. As long as the goal is work to develop yourself, it means you are on the right track.
Especially for those of you who are interested in doing business in the fashion sector, Direz reminds us that every time we make 1 product, it means we add 1 waste to the world. If it's no use, why make it? Make sure we know that our products are sustainable. Direz has his own way of dealing with this matter. After years of use, the color quality of the products made by Direz will decline and Direz provides retouching services to make them look new. What has been torn can also be made new again. In this way, Direz hopes that people will cherish the products they buy forever.
Looking at the details that Direz puts into his products, it really looks like he has prepared a really mature concept, not just made a product. Direz also added that in-depth research is important in business. If possible, create a sustainable business. Let say for the next 10-20 years. Don't just follow trends. For Direz, a good business is a business that we can pass on to our children and grandchildren.
So, how is it? Are you ready to start a business in the fashion sector? Find other inspiring articles on KARENA.ID, OK?