New Innovations for Flower Farmers

Dwi Lili Andayani\'s terrarium and urban garden markets have reached a number of major cities and regions in Indonesia, like Yogyakarta, Jakarta, Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara, Bali, as well as Berau in East Kalimantan.

KOMPAS/DOK CREATIVE COCODEMA

Dwi Lili Indayani

The innovations initiated by Dwi Lili Indayani, 34, in marketing flowers and plants have been rewarding. Now, she is at the helm of a village-owned enterprise association to assist flower farmers in their market expansion.

A kiosk of flowers and ornamental plants on the roadside of Jl. Patimura, Temas subdistrict, Batu city, East Java, is the display hut of Lili’s products. The decorative plant and flower entrepreneur operates out of over a dozen locations that serve as mini-showrooms. Some are at cafes or malls in Batu, Malang and Surabaya, also in East Java.

Displayed at the galleries are ornamental plants in glass containers (creative terrarium), dried flower decorations (labeled fragantia florist) and her “mascot” flowers in coconut fiber balls (creative kokedama). Besides the three products, Lili still has another, which is the urban garden.

Her terrarium and urban garden markets have reached a number of major cities and regions in Indonesia, like Yogyakarta, Jakarta, Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara, Bali, as well as Berau in East Kalimantan. Her kokedama has even penetrated several overseas markets, such as Malaysia, South

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Korea and Turkey Sadly, the exports, which started in 2018, were halted in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Her sales are carried out online and offline.

Despite the export standstill, Lili’s products are frequently exhibited abroad through relevant ministries. On 5-8 August, for instance, her kokedama decorated the pavilion of the 2021 Indonesia at Hand Art Korea: Summer in Korea. Before that, on 16-19 July 2021, Lili’s products were shown at AmericanHort Cultivate 21 in Ohio, the United States.

Lili claims to be the first in Malang, even Indonesia, to create kokedama combined with synthetic cords. Therefore, she has patented the product. Kokedama employs a planting technique from Japan, where moss is used. Lili applies the technique with another material.

“I use old coconut fiber. For the cords, initially, I used colorful knitting yarn. However, the Indonesian market likes buying it once for all, which should be durable. I utilized recycled rattan waste once, before finally using the synthetic cords as they are now,” she said on Friday (13/8/2021).

KOMPAS/DEFRI WERDIONO

Various cocodemas produced by Creative kokodema from Batu, East Java, Friday (13/8/2021) managed by Dwi Lili Indayani.

Farmers’ family

Lili comes from a conventional flower farmers’ family. Her parents set up a flower business in 1986 in the form of CV Bunga Melati. Lili later continued the business in 2012. She tried out several flower ventures, which turned out to be successful.

Lili’s engagement in the floral industry began in 2009 after graduating from the School of Agriculture, Brawijaya University, and following an agriculture internship program at Ohio State University, the US, for a year. Thereafter, she returned to Batu and lectured in agriculture (landscape architecture) for a year at Brawijaya University.

Lili pursued her master’s degree in agriculture for tourism at Della Calabria University, Italy, while also apprenticing with an ornamental plant company in Dosolo, Mantova.

“There was a special greenhouse for ornamental plants called Le Serre di Claudio,” she said.

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She tried to apply her knowledge and experience derived from her experience abroad to Indonesia on her return in 2016. She experimented with urban gardens, creative terrariums, creative kokedama products and the latest one in 2021, fragantia florist.

Lili showed one of her fragantia creations in the form of rearranged dry cut roses. This method serves as an attempt to rescue cut flower farmers who during the pandemic have lost a lot of income as flower sales to several cities are hampered.

At present, Lili is not only handling her own business, she is now also working for the public as chairperson of the village-owned enterprises (BUMDes) association of Sidomulyo in Bumiaji district. The BUMDes runs seven business units, including a rest area, a tourist village, a drinking water users’ union, a vehicle washing station and a flower mall.

KOMPAS/DEFRI WERDIONO

Dwi Lili Indayani

The flower mall was officially opened several months ago. It covers 20 hectares and utilizes the village’s land. This mall is managed to help local flower farmers’ marketing.

I was finally thinking of how by means of creativity and market breakthroughs, farmers could secure higher sales for their products.

“At first, I was asked to help. They considered my business profile and finally the BUMDes trusted in my capability to assist. The BUMDes has long existed but has been active from 2021,” said the recipient of the 2019 Independent Young Entrepreneur award.

Sidomulyo village is one of the flower and ornamental plant centers in Batu. Around 80 percent of the flowers and decorative plants in Batu are produced in Sidomulyo. Around 200 farmers are affiliated with the flower mall.

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In the current pandemic period, flower farmers’ offline sales have dropped drastically following the enforcement of public activity restrictions (PPKM), which has reduced tourist arrivals. Now, practically only middlemen are still buying flowers from farmers to be sold in other regions. Meanwhile, most of the farmers are not yet familiar with online sales.

“Eventually, I wasn’t just thinking of myself because this [her own business] is already running on autopilot. I was finally thinking of how by means of creativity and market breakthroughs, farmers could secure higher sales for their products,” Lili said.

She hopes to further help the local farmers by teaming up with Griya Flora, a digital start-up for the marketing of ornamental plants, flowers, vegetables and fruits that operates in cooperation with the National Creative Movement (Gekrafs) of Batu.

Lili is revolutionizing the decades of practice of her parents and other flower growers in Batu. In those days, they were selling flowers only in the simple form of ornamental plants and cut flowers.

Dwi Lili Indayani

Born: Batu, 22 October 1986

Education:

- First degree, Agriculture Faculty, Brawijaya University, Malang

- Master’s degree, Della Calabria University, Italy

Awards:

- Independent Young Entrepreneur 2019

- Millennial Farmer Envoy under Ministry of Agriculture

This article was translated by Aris Prawira