Marketing and Designing

Let me share with you why I sell bra, No, not that my design project has been cold down but marketing world always appealing me in some way. I always tell my sisters that I want to try to be a marketing especially women and children products, just to try, to challenge myself.
Architectural world is a lot different with marketing world although in some aspects still the same ' selling'. In designing, we listen to client's demand and create their dream into reality, sometime, we guide them a.k.a influence to create a good design but mostly we met clueless client who really didn't know what they want. This type of client is the one make me headache, they've money and just want to show off, they want their house to stand out but still demand: kitchen like Helena's or living room like Ellen's etc. and we, as architect, if just heading their command.... the result will be chaos.

In designing, we must have a theme, a story-line to create a type. Then from a type, we create detail which show off the owner character and needs. These process rarely applied in Medan, the houses just lack of process, don't have story lines and most of them just look similar, lack of character.

I can truthfully admitted that I'm not very enjoying myself as an architect in Medan. Maybe because mostly my client didn't give me a space to create a really good one but instead they're busy dragging me to their friend's houses and ask similar design which mostly collided each other. Usually I'd try to consult them but mostly they are stubborn.
Have you seen a house with Classic Design with all the sculptures and details but with modern minimalist interior in black and white? They just a goner, so mismatching even DECONSTRUCTION Architect Pioneers will give out a cried. BUT these are favorite here, in Medan. And I dislike them although I also design them for money (can't be too idealist, right?)

The second reason, In Medan, there is no rules in designer, almost all designer just copy the design from magazine to present to the owner and worse, just copycat others designer's project. My design has been stolen over and over and being an idealist (was) It really depressed me. HAH, all the sleepless night result of thinking and designing just being copied by others and claimed to be their own design are really frustrating.

Third, client just pay cheap for designing fee, because there're so many copycat architect and designer out there, I can't really blame them. Who want to pay high price for your services if they're doubtful if their house design is genuine one?
I have bad experience in this case once, with my cousin. She paid me only 2.500.00 IDR for her whole house design (16mx 25m, three stories) because a contractor offer her RP 2.500.000 to draft my design into CAD (I used to design old fashionably with pencil and papers on drafting machine because I felt this way represent each architect character more, it show how an architect drew lines and more artful, what an idealist me) and when I told her my fee is cheap, I only charged her RP. 5.000.000 (too cheap, even my colleageu blame me for offering too low for standard price, but she is my cousin and her father a.k.a my uncle has help my parent a lot when my DF business was down, for me it was a thank you project and I even offered her free charges but she's the one who demand me to give her the price) I tried to explain that the fee was for my painstaking design idea, not for buying pencils, erasers and papers but she just can't accept it and kept accusing me for charging her too expensive (just info, she is very very rich and has very successful husband, even her boys PS cost more than RP.5.000.000 and she bought them several). So I said ' Okay, just don't pay, I'll give you for free.'
Later, she asked her driver to give me Rp. 2.500.000 in cash. At that time I was so tempted to reject the money but DM told me not, just accepted them and let go. I donated all of them for charities, for 'kuat' or buang sial hehe.
What until now I can't understand is, she is an educated professional herself and why act so unprofessional? and also her husband is an Aussie educated, General Manager of a wooden frame company . I really really don't understand.

From that moment, I never ever accept a design project unless I also construct them ( I built a partnership with local contractor and gain fee from there). Much less fussy and gain much more money. What an experience.

In marketing, we promote the goods, educated and influence people to buy them and to satisfied with them and although just in one month, I met many characters of buyers not to mention many shape of breasts hehehe... for me, selling is much much more easy but less less money.
Before decide to be sole distributor of Elling Bra in Medan, I was tempted to set up e-store to sell cloth diapers and pads instead (inspired from www.miabambina.com and several others) but after long survey, I decided the time is not right yet, and people here just don't care about trash, hygiene, environment like us, they didn't bother at all. And the capital is huge and all the importing goods procedure make me headache.

Finding Elling Bra was really a pure coincident. I just looking for good bra for myself to reconstruct my sagging breast after nursing Megan for 1 year. I found them very interesting, promising and giving a fresh head start in Medan is also challenging. So, I and my cousin decided to become sole distributor in Medan.
So, do I selling bra for money? Yes! But mostly I do sell them for experiences and for building friendships.
Applause for me *plok..plok..plok* hehehe