Sunday September 14, 2008
Great demand for Hardy’s famed songkok
TUMPAT: Business during Hari Raya has always boomed for songkok manufacturer Hardy Shamie Arifin and this year’s demand has been tremendous due to the Umno general assembly in December.
The 42-year-old has received more than 13,000 bookings for his stylish, yet traditional Malay headgear.
He said this was almost a 100% increase compared to last year because of Hari Raya and the assembly where party elections would be held.
Family business: Hardy busy making songkok at his house in Tumpat. Hardy, who is of Indonesian descent from Padang in Sumatra, learned to design and produce the songkok from his father Shamie Arifin.
The family business has thrived at Kampung Baia in Pasir Pekan since the 1970s.
”The art of songkok making is a family trade secret for the past 90 years,” said Hardy when met at his outlet here.
He has been working round-the-clock with the help of his wife Norsuria Mohd Zam, 40, and seven assistants as he needs to finish the orders before the end of Ramadan,
Orders have also come from wholesalers in Kuala Lumpur, Kuantan and Johor.
Due to his reputation, Hardy also received calls from supermarket operators who are keen to market his product.
There are various designs and types of songkok. Some are reserved for occasions such as meeting royalty, festivals or weddings.
Prices for his songkok range from RM8 to RM75.
Hardy said he has three types of designs which differ based on the hand weaving of the threads and quality of the textile used.
He hopes to start a chain of songkok outlets in major shopping malls throughout the country, besides holding visits for tourists to see how the headgear is made.
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