Mark Platt: Your sourcing expert in Bali

Mark Platt is 55 years old and is originally from New Jersey U.S.A. He lived and worked in Asia / Bali for the past 30 years dealing in antique furniture / tribal arts and crafts.

As a resident here he has knowledge and information about many special places. He has worked for many people from many different countries, small and large businesses, from 1 day shopping to container loads of goods.

His house is like a cultural anthropology exhibit with interesting items from all over the archipelago.

Mark’s customer list includes:

ABC Department Store, New York City
Gallery Of Great Things, Waimea Hawaii
The Art Gallery, Mauna Lani Hotel, Kona Hawaii
Rice’s Gallery, Honabua Hawaii
Honolulu Academy of Arts, Hawaii
De Young Museaum gift shop, San Francisco California
New Jersey State Museum gift shops
Sojourner Shop, Fambestville New Jersey
Three Cranes Gallery, New Hope Pennsylvania
Zen Antiques furniture store, Miami Florida

I wanted to learn more about his life and the services he offers. Here’s what he told me.

Nick: Mark when did you first come to Bali?
Mark: I first came over in 1975

Nick: What made you come over?
Mark: I had a t-shirt business in Bombay India. Our shirts were the first to have Tibetan motifs, now they’re all over the place. While I was living there I heard about Bali and came.

Nick: When you first came to Bali how was it?
Mark: Relaxed and beautiful. People didn’t bother you, they were relaxed and there were very few places to stay at that time. There was virtually no shops or hawkers etc. just the dirt road. The Balinese were out doing their ceremonies, they didn’t know what business was unlike today.

Nick: How did you get into the antique business?
Mark: I started buying antiques in India and when I came to Bali I started buying here almost immediately. I come here once or twice a year. Back then many lovely things were available. I used to buy and sell antiques so I could travel, not really to make a ton of money. I’ve been to different islands in Indonesia to get stuff. When I started out I was really more interested in the people and the culture than making a huge profit.

Nick: What happened after India?
Mark: From 1987-1994 I owned a business on the Big Island of Hawaii called Gamelan Gallery. Half my year was spent in Hawaii, half in Bali. I was divorced in 1995 and moved to Bali fulltime.

Nick: How has your career moved along since you’ve been living here in Bali?
Mark: I’ve worked for many overseas companies sourcing antiques, primitive art, masks, textiles etc. One of my employers was ABC Department Store in New York where I was a buyer for 3 years. Another company in Miami employed me for 4 years and I bought over � million dollars worth of goods for them. I’ve also worked for individuals and Indonesian buyers. One famous Indonesian customer had me locate 2 coffins for him.

Nick: So although you have worked for large companies you can also work with individuals?
Mark: Certainly. I can even take clients shopping for a day for a fixed fee of $125.

Nick: Besides being able to locate antiques what other special services can you offer?
Mark: I also deal with Balinese specialists who make large teakwood furniture out of antique wood. Bali has some antique stuff but the majority of the pieces come from all over the country.

Nick: Mark for someone reading this who is considering coming to Bali and filling a container with furniture, textiles or antiques, what are the pitfalls?
Mark: There are 4 main problems you are going to face:

1) You don’t know what you’re looking for.
2) You don’t know where to find it.
3) You don’t know the quality.
4) You don’t know the price.

Why waste your 2 week holiday searching for stuff? Bali is not like Thailand where you can go to a different part of Bangkok and locate a selection of things. Here in Bali its all spread out and unless you know where to find things you just won’t.

Nick: So Mark how did you get to know where the good deals are located?
Mark: By doing my homework, going round and asking questions and checking things out for myself, something that most people just won’t do.

Nick: Mark, I see a ton of artwork on sale in Kuta, the shops seem overflowing with items, why can’t a tourist just check things out for themselves?
Mark: In Kuta there’s a ton of stuff, mostly junk.

Nick: What about Ubud? I know its an art center and the villages around Ubud all specialize in a different product, carvings, beadwork, painting etc. why can’t a person hire a car and tour around that area?
Mark: Ubud produces modern Balinese handicrafts, I don’t do that I handle antiques. The galleries in Ubud are extremely expensive and are trying to sell to tourists who are on holiday.

Nick: If someone wants to hire you to take them shopping for a day or help them fill a container does that mean you’ll be taking them all over the island?
Mark: All my business is done in the Kuta, Legian, Seminyak, Kerobokan area and transport is by taxi. For the whole day transportation costs will be about $10. I take taxis because the object is that we can drive and talk in comfort and I can answer your questions.

Nick: So what kind of customers are you looking for?
Mark: I’m interested in customers who are interested in special things, not browsing handicraft shops.

Nick: Mark you mentioned the 4 main problems a visitor to Bali will have if they decide to search for items themselves and that having you along will be a guarantee of time well spent and quality. How about price?
Mark: When I take people to the places where I have relationships with the owners, they offer me a special ‘business price’. If you buy 1 piece its going to be one price, if you buy more pieces it will be less.

Nick: How does a client of yours pay for goods bought?
Mark: Its cash and carry. Rupiah or $US.

Nick: How does a client of yours get their goods shipped?
Mark: All the shipping companies are about the same price, I use the best one. I will call the shipping company and they will pick up the goods from the shop. If the items are small enough for us to carry we will take them straight to the shipping company.

Sea freight is charged according to the cubic meter, air freight by weight. Sea freight is obviously cheaper but takes longer.

The way the sea freight works is a shipping agent will calculate the price, pick up the fee, plus the packing fee, paperwork fee etc. The shipping fee has to be paid in Indonesia whereas the air freight can be paid overseas C.O.D.

Nick: If you take someone shopping for a day and they buy a ton of stuff, does the $125 they pay you include your time handling the shipping?
Mark: It depends on how much extra work there is. Payment for my services can be in rupiah or $US at the end of the day which is 10am � 4/5pm. Any part of a day is considered a day. I don’t want clients who decide they’ve had enough after 2 hours and don’t feel they need to pay me.

Nick: How can people contact you?
Mark: I’m usually only 20 minutes from Kuta and I can be contacted by e-mail.

mark@baliblog.com