Look at the photo, just take a good look at it. That's the first
Micromart. Literally the beginning of something big. Today Cik Farid brought me
to Paragon seeing that I didn't exactly have the opportunity to explore the
landmarks in Semarang. It was a lively place, attached to Crown Plaza Hotel and
clearly a popular place to hang out. International brand names like Starbucks,
J.Co and Haagen Dazs could be found there. It was certainly what one would
expect from a supermall.
"Ismail, you want to see the first Micromart?" asked
Cik Farid with this smile that suggested I wouldn't expect to see what I saw.
Impressive, I thought. First Micromart outlet in a place like
Paragon. This is a man who certainly starts off with a bang. So we went up a
few levels... past the top floor of Paragon. I was starting to wonder what to
expect. Is this Micromart crowning the top of Paragon? Well, then we even ended
up on the carpark level. Something must be wrong I thought what kind of
building planning is this.
We entered the carpark and he pointed ahead with a proud smile
on his face. My first reaction was honestly a laugh. I couldn't believe it.
That was more kedai runcit (mama shop) than the Micromart I knew. I mean look
at it, that is a Micromart before it was even decided that Micromart's colors
was the iconic red-white. I could even accuse him of not having any originality
in deciding the color scheme.
He told me that was his first Micromart, and he had a team of 7
people crammed in a small space that only had a printer. "Humble
beginnings" was what I could say of it. To look at that particular outlet
and the 30 chains that exist today, I cannot even begin to comprehend the
journey that a person and his team must have undertook to make Micromart into
what it is today, with an office in Simpang Lima and 30 outlets to his name.
The expression on my face was laughter, but so many things were going through
my mind I couldn't express an amazement in any other way than to laugh.
We had dinner at a rather upmarket place to fill a fancy for
steamboat. That exposed me to yet a different perspective. The demographic of
the people dining there were certainly different than one would expect to find
at a regular eatery or warung in Semarang. It was different, yet it felt very
familiar. That was actually what I can expect to see in my home country. Cik
Farid was apparently aware of this as well, and we discussed into the various
factors that actually can determine why is there a similar trend throughout
Southeast Asia. What sets one group of people apart from the other people?
Somehow, in my experiences working in the social sector, I had some answers of
my own.
In the discussion, we discussed the various problems that seem
to hinder a community from progress. Frankly speaking, these are still big
questions left unanswered and academic discourse on the issue is far and wide -
dating back to colonial periods even. However, right now - it seems that there
are certain factors that Cik Farid has come to be aware of in his many years
experiencing the world.
Firstly, there are tendencies to experience subtle
discrimination. It surprised me to even learn that Cik Farid himself has
struggled with discrimination. However this is human nature, it is harder to
trust what we are not familiar with - and to make things worse there are
tendencies to typecast certain negative aspects onto a whole group of people.
Certainly we are moving toward a different world today - but such mentalities
are bound to persist over time and are hard to change.
In response to that, there is a lack of hunger; of ambition. I
suspected that this could be due to the fact that as a community, we do not
place an emphasis on the culture of status or "face". We tend to be
easily thankful with what we have, but the problem is that we do not strive to
change our circumstances, preferring to leave it as what we are given. However
that shouldn't be the approach, we may be dealt a certain hand, but it does not
mean that we do not make the most out of it. Cik Farid said it is certainly no
impossible task, we have to work hard for it. Double, Triple what others might
have to do to even be acknowledged for our efforts. I believe that's what he
also meant by the need to have hunger rather than accept circumstance.
In my time in Semarang, I have also met people who have
benefited from the aid provided by Cik Farid and Micromart. It can be as simple
as being given a grant for education. Higher Education in Semarang by local
standards is expensive, but Cik Farid told me of the drive they possess, of how
hard they work to break free of their own circumstance, to pursue big dreams. I
am here wondering what I will do following my education - and it embarrassed me
to admit that at times even I have not paid much thought to the opportunities I
have back home that they might not. It's a hard truth to take in - but it
expanded my world view. When we give aid, we don't want to give a fish. We want
to teach them how to fish. They take the aid they have and make the most out of
it. Sometimes I wonder if we do the same. It was a humbling truth to be exposed
to, but even from the perspective of a donor, even I do believe it makes better
sense to know how you're impacting someone's life. Someday I would want to be
in that position, to be able to directly change a person's life too, even in
doing the small things.
"One of the ways to reach out to your employees is to take
care of them, and their families" - Cik Farid.
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