26.9.12

An Antique Coins Seller

The 1998 financial crisis hit a lot of people hard. Many, such as Sofyan, lost their jobs and were forced out of their comfort zones. But as Sofyan discovered, sometimes you can learn from a catastrophe, or even from selling socks in the street.

Today, the former money changer explains how he bounced back from the crisis and found a new business selling antique currency in Pasar Baru, and just how he gets the Queen Wilhelmina gulden so clean.


‘The Circle of Expired and Current Money Goes Around’


First, tell us about the antique money that you sell here. 

Old and classic, isn’t it? These all are authentic currencies but they no longer have any value for buying things. The only value left in the antique currencies is what they’re worth to coin collectors and I have almost all the currencies those collectors are looking for. I have Indonesian money dating back to 1945, Dutch gulden, Chinese emperor’s currency, old US dollars and many more. 

Can you guarantee that all the money here is genuine? 

Of course! You can tell the difference from the paper. The real money has a rougher texture and it’s sturdier than ordinary paper. 

How did you get this stuff? 

When I first got started, I bought all the monies from an agent and it cost me about Rp 1 million ($113). Along the way, people not only would come to me to buy what I sell, but they also would offer to sell me what old money they had. If the money was in good condition, I would buy it. So the circle of expired and current money goes around just like that: someone sells it, someone buys it. 

How did you decide to get into this business? 

I used to work at a money changer until the 1998 financial crisis closed down the place where I worked. It went bankrupt and then I was unemployed. After that, I tried working as a vendor selling socks and handkerchiefs on the streets of Jakarta. Then, a friend suggested that I use my experience from my work at a money changer by selling antique money. There was a demand for the business, so here I am now. 

Have you ever had a customer come by who wanted to buy all of your old money? 

I haven’t so far. But if one day that happens, I’d love to sell everything I have here. I would even give her or him a big bonus — the suitcase I use to store all my old money. I may have nothing to sell afterward, but I could always go back to work as an agent again, just like I did in the beginning. 

You work here in Pasar Baru. Do you live nearby? 


Not really. I live in Citayam, a suburban area near Depok. Every day, I have to take a train to get here. I sell coins from noon to 5 p.m. I can’t stay longer than that because I’d miss the train. If the day is slow, I will have usually packed up and left by four in the afternoon. 

What is a busy day for you? 

A busy day for me is when I can make Rp 1 million in sales. The biggest amount that I’ve earned in a day was Rp 2.5 million. That was when a guy bought all the old 1 rupiah and 10 rupiah coins to use in his wedding’s mahar [dowry]. That was like my best day ever. On average, I can earn about Rp 2 million to Rp 2.5 million in a month. But today is pretty slow. If I am able to make Rp 10,000 I will thank God. 

Is there any special treatment for these coins? 


I regularly polish the Queen Wilhelmina gulden because it’s pretty popular among collectors. I also polish the other empire coins with a special metal cleaner. I don’t give any treatment to the one-cent coins. To some people, the rustier, the more antique. 

Have you ever been cheated with counterfeit money? 

One time there was a guy who sold me some dollars and I gave him Rp 700,000 for the exchange. Shortly afterward, I went to a money changer to resell it, but they said the money was fake, and I lost my Rp 700,000. I knew that the paper was somehow slightly different, but I ignored it. I never thought I would get cheated. 

What do you do when you get home at night? 

Well, I just live with my wife; all my children are grown up and married. But since my parents live close to us, we often visit them. Also, I have some ducks at home. It’s good to spend times with my ducks when I’m missing my children. 

You sound like you’ve done a lot of interviews. 
I’ve been interviewed many times, for television and newspapers, so I’m not clumsy anymore. My neighbor keeps telling me when I’m on TV or in the newspaper but I rarely see myself there. My friends have asked why don’t I just ask those television guys to make me a celebrity, but I tell them I already am a Shah Rukh Khan to my wife. 

Sofyan was talkingto Farah Fadillah Anjanie.


Posted on Jakarta Globe

0 comments:

Post a Comment

 

La Terrasse Copyright © 2012 Design by Antonia Sundrani Vinte e poucos