Islamic fashion: A Billion rupiah Business

There is no indication that the off-white house on Jalan Granting, Surabaya, generates Rp250 million per month in business earnings. Its iron fence is rusty. There is peeling paint on the building's front wall. "This is my house for garment production," said Farida Basamalah, owner of Familita Muslim garment workshop, last week.

The house bearing no nameplate is the hub of the Familita operation. Some 20 men and women go there to work every day. In the living room stands a long table, where workers cut reams of fabric. Iron shelves stacked with yarn line the room, with mannequins standing on guard. Two rooms have been transformed into a single sewing room. "We have neighbors working in their own homes to fold the garments we produce," said Mega Dwi Haryati, Farida's second offspring.

January 19, 2016