Viscose fiber producer, Asia Pacific Rayon (APR) is collaborating with partners to launch the "Melayu Merindu" campaign to advance Indonesian fashion, especially preserving the rich culture of Malay wastra. Melayu Merindu is a program initiated by the Indonesian Textile Association (API) BPD Riau, in collaboration with APR, Wiyasa TFA, Tokopedia and Swara Gembira in developing the potential of fashion SMEs by maximizing the potential of Riau's cultural heritage in their creations. Sandiaga Uno, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, said that Malay Merindu's collaborative efforts to advance the creative and fashion industries by maximizing the potential of Indonesian literature can become a tourist attraction for local and foreign consumers.

 "With the presence of collaborative products made by craftsmen and Riau fashion start-ups who are members of the Riau API, we hope that local Indonesian products, especially Wastra Melayu, can return to glory and transform into one of the pride of Indonesia, especially for the younger generation," he said. in an official statement, Monday (28/3/2022).

Sandiaga said this when giving a speech at the launching and press conference of Melayu Merindu, which was held in a hybrid manner at the Jakarta Fashion Hub. Consumers who buy Malay Merindu products also support sustainable fashion trends in Indonesia.

The Malay Merindu event was held at the Jakarta Fashion Hub, which is a collaborative space initiated by APR to connect the upstream (textile industry) and downstream (creative and fashion industries) sectors so as to encourage the development of new domestic fashionpreneurs and creativepreneurs.

In the Melayu Merindu campaign, as many as 9 fashion SMEs along with 12 batik and weaving craftsmen were involved in creating 12 fashion works which are expected to strengthen the #IndonesiaBerkain movement as well as introduce various Indonesian cultures to millennial and gen-Z generations.

In the process, fashion SMEs and batik and weaving craftsmen received training on product development and marketing strategies by Wiyasa TFA, the use of sustainable viscose raw materials from APR for free, training and access to digitization by Tokopedia and community forums from Swara Gembira.

Basrie Kamba, Head of BPD API Riau who is also Director of APR, said that the fashion market in Indonesia is very large which can be utilized by MSMEs, including MSMEs in Riau. Basrie said Melayu Merindu is a real action in support of APR2030's one-decade sustainability commitment, one of which is to develop a textile center in Riau Province.

He emphasized that API and APR will always support every effort and aspiration to advance MSMEs in the textile and fashion sector and introduce Riau Malay culture to the next generation.

"We see this as an opportunity for the Riau textile industry to develop and encourage Indonesia's economic growth," said Basrie.

Meanwhile, the 12 collaborations in Melayu Merindu consist of various women's fashion products combined with typical Malay wastra. Consumers can buy these products through the Tokopedia platform with various conveniences, one of which is free shipping and other promos. Products can be found here: https://tokopedia.link/KvhHREAVAob

In this collaboration, APR as a sustainable viscose fiber producer allocates viscose fabrics for start-ups and craftsmen who are created in this Malay Merindu collaboration collection.

For information, APR is the first integrated viscose-rayon fiber producer in Asia that produces 100 percent renewable and biodegradable rayon fiber to meet the needs of national and international textile raw materials.