Tasikmalaya embroidery during the COVID-19 pandemic: Local entrepreneurs and their wisdom-based resilience

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many local industries went into bankruptcy while trying to adapt to new conditions. Such downfalls were marked by a decline in sales and the disruption of production processes due to a decrease in the availability of raw materials. To limit the spread of Covid-19, the Indonesian government implemented the Large-Scale Social Restrictions (Pembatasan Sosial Berskala Besar/PSBB) and, later, the Enforcement of Restrictions on Community Activities (Pemberlakuan Pembatasan Kegiatan Masyarakat/PPKM), leading to a major decline in local economic activity. However, these circumstances also led to the emergence of many entrepreneurs who survived the crisis only to encounter greater demand for embroidery products. This study assesses the resilience of entrepreneurs in the embroidery industry in Tasikmalaya during the COVID-19 pandemic with a particular focus on the impacts of the pandemic through the end of 2022. This study employs both qualitative and quantitative methods to produce an observation-based historiography. Through a comprehensive literature review, direct observation, and in-depth interviews with embroidery entrepreneurs in Kawalu District of Tasikmalaya in West Java, this study identifies various forms of resilience as a method of adaptation in a time of crisis. This resilience stemmed from multiple determining factors: (1) strong local adaptive capacity and creativity; (2) the production of manual embroidery (handmade) products targeting upper-middle class consumers; (3) the forecasting ability of entrepreneurs in differentiating markets; and (4) the attachment between local (Sundanese) and religious (Islam) values guiding the social and economic actions of entrepreneurs.