Indonesian designer creates a marketplace for cat fashion
It might not be high fashion. However, former Indonesian faculty trainer turned tailor Fredi Lugina Priadi has discovered a profitable marketplace for his cat fashions, creating distinctive costumes and cosplay outfits for cats.
After quitting his job as a trainer, he tried his hand at some companies, together with working a motorcycle restore store, earlier than stumbling upon cat fashions, a concept from one in every one of his cat-loving cousins.
The 39-year-old now provides outfits to choosy pet house owners seeking to costume their felines in all the things from superhero outfits for figures like Thor and Superman to cosplay characters, nurse uniforms, and even conventional Islamic put on.
“At first, my cousins who love cats gave me the thought to make these costumes, and I assumed it was bizarre,” mentioned Fredi.
“But it surely turned out to be humorous to see them with costumes,” he mentioned, talking from his rustic workshop with a stitching machine in Bogor simply south of the capital Jakarta.
Since organizing his on-line enterprise three years in the past, he now generates as much as three million rupiahs ($210) a month if he sells not less than 4 items a day. Every outfit is priced at between $6 to $10.
Buyer Risma Sandra Irwan has purchased not less than 30 outfits for her cat Sogan and places in orders for particular events, just like the Muslim pageant of Eid al-Fitr or Christmas.
“It is for enjoyable solely…it could actually relieve our stress,” mentioned Risma, who created an account on social media platform TikTok exhibiting off Sogan’s outfits that have greater than 50,000 followers.
Whereas many discover it cute, Fredi has obtained some detrimental feedback on social media from those who consider it merciless to decorate up a cat. He advises patrons not to make their pet put on an outfit for too lengthy.
Certainly, within the wake of an increase in social media postings of pets dressed up, typically in more and more weird poses or outfits, some animal welfare teams have issued tips to make house owners extra conscious of any indicators that it could be inflicting their pet misery.