Gabriel Bayu: Richen Yourself With All the References
Gabriel Bayu
Co-founder SOLEVACATION
Gabriel Bayu is a creativepreneur. The businesses that he is currently involved in are in the field of sneakers & local brand festivals, Creative Agency, and Collective Music. Bayu’s business journey began when he often handled party events for various brands until finally Bayu met Dr. Tirta and formed an event called Sole Vacation. His expertise in running event parties and various other events has yielded positive results with the establishment of other businesses that Bayu has founded
Check out Gabriel Bayu’s inspirational story below,
Tell me, how did you first form Solvac (and the history of Solvac)
His love for sneakers has been formed since high school, namely in 2014, this is supported by many sneakers communities such as Vanshead Indonesia, Indonesia Sneakers team, Converse Head Indonesia. Bayu’s initial goal of liking sneakers was based on his fondness for the world of music along with the role models who are involved in that world. According to Bayu, Sneakers, music, and subculture are very closely related. Bayu continued to pursue the world and then Bayu entered the world of the electronic music scene until finally Bayu joined a music collective called Restless and became famous in the collective music scene. The impact of the famous collective music he founded has resulted in many friendships that Bayu gets and many brands or event productions who trust Bayu to handle an event party.
After handling many event parties, Bayu also met Dr. tirta who was Bayu’s friend for a long time. Dr. Tirta is also a very active figure holding fashion events, he is also an entrepreneur and a doctor who actively voices the importance of maintaining health procedures during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Thanks to the expertise and success of the events launched by Bayu, Dr. Tirta finally got Agum as a partner to hold a Fashion event called Sole Vacation which was held in the city of Yogyakarta. Initially Bayu was only hired to develop Sole Vacation to be successful and apparently that success was reflected in the first Sole Vacation event until finally Bayu and Dr. Tirta became permanent partners for the Sole Vacation event.
According to Bayu, what is the current world of fashion and shoes, especially local, like?
Bayu thinks that sneakers are something that we adopt from the outside, there are slices of related sub-cultures such as music and other subcultures. There is a noteworthy lack of commercial media publications where they only expose the buying and selling process of the “hypne” of a sneaker without revealing the essence and deep value of the sneakers. The massive coverage by the media has created a new culture that causes many people to use certain sneakers because many people wear them without knowing the value and essence of wearing sneakers. Bayu’s goal to be in the world of sneakers is also based on the goal of giving knowledge about sneakers.
What is the superior concept of Solvac so that it becomes a differentiation from other fashion events?
Bayu believes that the potential of local brands is something that deserves attention. The growth of local brands that began to develop in 2018 made Bayu and his team want to collaborate together in the Sole Vacation event. This is what makes a differentiator between Sole Vacation and other fashion events. Bayu said that Sole vacation is a sneaker festival that provides as much space as possible for local brands, which in the end this approach was followed by many sneakers festivals out there.
The initial strategy that Bayu and the Solvac team did to develop the business and provide awareness to the audience about the existence of Solvac?
Bayu said that his strategy so far is to be as relevant as possible to the market. Bayu also learns a lot from people who are nomads to the city of Jogja. Studying any trends from audiences from various regions is a very valuable insight and learning for Bayu. This is also Bayu’s strategy in making refreshment and adaptive in all lines of business that he founded.
How is Bayu able to embrace the community and local fashion business actors to take part in the Solvac event?
Bayu believes that the highest stakeholder hierarchy in an event or festival is the tenants which include sneakers dealers and local brands. Bayu has established many good relationships with many tenants, like a good friend. Community Based is the only concept promoted by Bayu and his team. Good communication with tenants, local brands and existing communities makes many of them support and take part in the Sole Vacation event that Bayu has launched.
Solvac has succeeded in making the first event during a pandemic with various patterns of change, how is Bayu able to adapt to the new world and what is Bayu’s main key to making Solvac events remain in demand during a pandemic like this?
This success was achieved by Bayu and his team thanks to the narrative that Bayu made. Bayu clearly stated that the event he created was an event aimed at the local industry. Bayu believes that when he stands for the local industry, the support will come organically by itself without him asking for special help. There are so many local brands that cannot participate in the Sole Vac event for financial reasons due to the pandemic, but they can still provide any support according to their respective abilities. Bayu’s good relationship with various elements of the community and local brands has made Bayu get a lot of support which has made Sole vacation a success for creating events during the Pandemic. Another strength comes from local government stakeholders. Bayu also maintains good relations with stakeholders in the local government so that licensing, security and socialization issues regarding the process and all operational standards during the pandemic can be fulfilled to the fullest.
What are the main challenges in running events during this pandemic?
According to Bayu, a lot of event actors or creative businesses are waiting for each other to start creating an event during a pandemic. Every movement needs a face and Bayu feels that with the capital of good relations and communication with the parties, Sole Vacation must be started first to become a new face for the creative industry sector. Sole Vacation has finally become a model for other event actors who want to hold events during the current pandemic. In conclusion, the challenge is whether creative industry players dare to start and form new movements so that during this pandemic the creative industry in Indonesia remains alive and productive.
I heard that you also made an event production called plus62, can you explain a little about your business, is there a correlation with Solvac or not?
Plus 62 is a long-term project that aims to embrace and empower the local creative industry with a wide scope. His meeting with two owners of a sneaker and fashion e-commerce called Kick Avenue in 2020. The meeting finally made them both consider that local brands in Indonesia are emerging and need attention. They concluded that many festivals in Jakarta had not been considered or aware of this problem. One of the problems is that new brands cannot reach the event. From there, Plus 62 was finally established with the aim of being able to reach all elements of local brands in Indonesia from new and old ones so that they can also be equally facilitated so that their industry or business can develop. The Plus 62 name is made so as not to seem focused on sneakers only. There is no naming of sneakers in it, so that this event can reach all industries and business aspects whose scope is not only sneakers.
What projects will plus 62 do in the near future?
Starting in 2022, Plus 62 will start trying to make events outside of Jakarta. The targets are Yogyakarta, Bali, Surabaya, Bandung. The emergence of the new Omicron variant makes Plus 62 have to be careful and with the aim of keeping each other safe in the aspect of Health.
What is Bayu’s hope for Solvac and other businesses in the future?
Hope that Solvac and Plus 62 can provide total support for all creative industry players without exception. Bayu feels that everything from the beginning of this culture is interrelated, this is also followed by Bayu’s other businesses to be able to provide connections and collaborate with each other.
Bayu’s message to people who are in the event world so they can stay productive and still exist to run their business
Educate yourself by finding as many references as possible. Make something
