The French Paper
Susie Harvey
Susie Harvey is a Brit who started life as an expat in the beautiful beach area of Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, as a newlywed of four days. Four years and two children later, her and her family moved to Lombok, Indonesia, where she and a friend started her business Kampung Club in 1998. In 2000, Susie moved to Perak in West Malaysia, moving on to Kuala Lumpur in 2002 - moving her business with her. In Susie's own words, "I still really do not consider myself as a business woman, just a mother who can sew!"
Expat Women's Interview with Susie
Expat Women: Susie, you are living in a city well-known for its shopping options. When you moved to Kuala Lumpur, what made you confident that you could bring your clothing brand here successfully?
Susie: When we arrived in Kuala Lumpur the shopping was not actually that great. All the children's clothes were synthetic fabrics, mass-produced and usually with cartoon characters printed on them. I was never overly confident in my brand's potential here, just hopeful. I knew that I did not want to go back to teaching full time, but I also knew that I needed to do something for myself here. Given that I had been doing the clothes for a couple of years on a very small scale (at school fairs and so on) in Lombok and Perak, I knew there was a market, so I thought I would give it a go.
Expat Women: Looking back, what motivated you to start Kampung Club in the first place?
Susie: I set up Kampung Club after discovering the beautiful local batik fabric produced in Bali. I wanted to provide ethically-made, comfortable, machine washable, easy-wear, bright, exotic batik kids' clothes and nursery goods. So, I started Kampung Club as a part-time endeavour with a friend, while I was still teaching in an international school in Lombok, Indonesia.
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Expat Women: Did you have any experience running a kids' clothing business prior to expat life? |
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Susie: No, I had no previous experience at all in business or running a children's clothing business. But I do have three children who have lived in the tropics all their lives so I know what they need! My degree was in Education with fine art. I taught for five years in the UK before coming to Asia, where I taught in three different international schools before coming to Kuala Lumpur (KL). I wanted to do something that would fit around children and school runs and being a corporate wife (my husband is general manager of a large Australian construction company here).
In terms of running a business, the biggest surprise for me has been the amount of administration - doing accounts and so on, which I have never had to do before. I thought I would be designing and sewing, not filling in spreadsheets and sending invoices for most of my day! |
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Expat Women: Tell us more about the business: Where do you get the inspiration for your designs? Who actually makes the clothes? Where/how do you sell your clothes? |
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Susie: I started sewing the clothes initially myself for my own girls. My mother had got me interested in sewing at a young age so when I discovered the beautiful cotton batik in Bali, I was convinced that it was ideal for little, loose-fitting, children's dresses that were perfect for hot climates.
When I could not sew it all myself (remember, I was still teaching in Lombok at this time), I discovered a women's cooperative in Lombok where the women work at home on their own sewing machines. This was perfect for me!
The fabric is printed in a tiny little 'factory' in Bali by hand and I can do any design or colour that I want. The clothes are still made following this format, although some are now made in Malaysia. However, because of the ethical side of things, I have kept away from China as I like to know who is sewing the fabric and in what conditions they are working. I also have a loyalty to Indonesia and Malaysia as I have lived in these countries for so long.
The clothes are sold online and I supply shops in Malaysia. We also supply shops in the UK and sell from our kampungclub.co.uk website.
My range now also includes children's costumes, which are mainly made in Bali and some at a small workshop I have here in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur. We also do bespoke costumes when we are asked. I have even actually done an adult sized Elvis! But mostly, the costumes are for school shows and assemblies. This end of the business is quite time consuming and does not make me much money, but it does get my name out there, so I get people coming back for my clothes and costumes that I have in stock. |
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Expat Women: What difficulties have you faced in setting up and/or running your business, and how have you overcome them? |
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Susie: You have to be prepared to do a lot of street walking here in Malaysia to find services and materials. A lot of it is 'word of mouth' so you need to be prepared to ask a lot of people before you find what you are looking for. In KL, I initially started selling the clothes at a kiosk in a shopping centre. Sales were very good and the kiosk was very successful, but I struggled with local staff and their work ethics and this eventually forced me to hand over the running of the kiosk to someone else. I also discovered that it was too much on my own to do all of the designing, manufacturing and retailing.
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Expat Women: What top five tips can you share with expat women in our audience who would like to start a business abroad? |
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Susie: |
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Learn the language! You will be more respected and get better service. |
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Be prepared for a lot of leg work. |
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Do something you really enjoy and believe in. |
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Network with other expats who are running businesses in your area, and |
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Make sure your life is balanced and you still get to enjoy the country with your family. |
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Expat Women: If you moved countries again, could you run your business from elsewhere? If not, do you have a positive exit strategy? |
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Susie: Yes, I think I could run the business from another country, although I have no plans as we would like to stay here for as long as we can! The business is very small and manufacturing is already happening in a different country, so my location is flexible. |
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Expat Women: Susie, thank you most sincerely for sharing with us your expat entrepreneurial experiences. We applaud your courage, creativity and commitment and we wish you all the very best for a truly successful business year! |
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| January 2010 |
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