EMPOWERMENT OF JAMBI’S SONGKET BUSINESSES THROUGH PRODUCT DIVERSIFICATION Margarettha,

Jambi is a part of Malay history and customs, therefore Songket fabrics become a common view during wedding or royal events. Over time, Songket cloth has become part of the social life used by all strata of the society. This condition makes Songket initiated the establishment of a group of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Jambi, dedicated for Songket manufacturing and selling. The effort to develop local culture as a national asset is a duty for all Indonesian people, including Jambi University through the “Darma of Dedication to the community”. Community service program initiated by the Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education through the scheme of Export Product Development Program (PPPE) aims at conducting guidance and assistance for Jambi’s Songket SMEs through product diversification in order to increase the business of SMEs. The methods of assistance used for SMEs include lectures, discussions, training, demonstrations, mentoring and program evaluation. Lectures, discussions, demonstrations and training were conducted to increase the knowledge about diversification of products made from Songket. Further assistance was done for all the discussions that had been given. To measure the success of the program, the team would conduct an evaluation from the beginning until the end of the program. The assistance provided by the PPPE of University of Jambi to SME partners of Jambi’s Songket business was able to produce wallets, ladies handbags, tracks, clothes, seat cushions, frames and sandals. The strategy of product diversification is able to increase the revenue for the SME involved.


INTRODUCTION
Songket cloth provides its own value that can address "greatness" for people who wear and make it. The series of threads that are neatly arranged in a symmetrical pattern show that Songket is made with skills requiring not only understanding of cloth making, but also instilled skill and precision. The development of Songket cloth occurs due to the intergenerational learning process. In addition, Songket is not just a piece of cloth wear, Songket is a cultural symbol that has been integral in the lives, traditions and value systems of society.
Sumatra is well-known for its Songket. Every region in this island even has its own woven characteristic. The interethnic and the unique mix of woven in Sumatra are possibly due to geographical locations that are close to each other. For instance, Palembang Songket has a cursory effect on cloth in Jambi, Riau and North Sumatra.
Songket is a lavish cloth that is usually worn during festivity, celebration or party. Over time, Songket cloth has become a part of social life used by all levels of society. According to Viatra and Triyanto (2014), the continuity and change of Songket is influenced by various factors, namely internal and external factors. The process of change is influenced by cultures, weavers, government institutions, academic institutions, and private companies or institutions. Changes in the art of Songket weaving craft occur in shape, motif, size, technique, color, material, and function.
Songket can be worn like a sarong, draped over the shoulder, or as a headdress or tanjak, or as a headband decoration. According to Marianti and Istiharini (2013), tanjak is a kind of headdress hat made of Songket which is commonly used by the Sultan and Prince, and the nobles of the Malay Sultanate.
The Jambi malay-esque Headband design is known as Lacak. Lacak is made of red velvet fabric dotted with thick paper inside to make it firm. This headband has two towering parts, with a higher fold on the front.
Over time, changes in art and craft of Songket cloth that exist today can affect people's lives, especially in Jambi. The change is accompanied by innovations that occur in accordance with people's needs today. Songket weaving has undergone through many innovations such as women's dresses, men's suits, handbags, wallets, shoes, frames, lampshades, seat cushions and many more.
Songket has become an important part of the social life used by all levels of society. This condition grows the home industries as well as small and medium enterprises (SMEs) group focusing on Songket production and trade, especially in Jambi city (Margarettha et al., 2017a).
The development of Songket business in Jambi is mostly located in "Seberang Kota Jambi". However, Jambi's city Songket crafters are mostly centered around Jelutung district. Susi Songket, for instance, is one of the Songket business that has been run for 10 years; nevertheless, it still requires coaching and assistance for its progress.
The effort to develop local culture as a national asset is a duty for all Indonesian people, including the University of Jambi through the "Darma of Dedication to the community". Community service program initiated by the Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education through the scheme of Export Product Development Program (PPPE) is established to conduct guidance and assistance for Jambi's Songket SMEs through product diversification in order to develop the business of SMEs.

METHODS
The methods of assistance included lectures, discussions, training, demonstrations, mentoring, and program evaluation.
Lectures, discussions, demonstrations and training were conducted to increase the knowledge about product diversification. Further assistance was done for all the discussions that had been given. To measure the success of the program, the team conducted an evaluation from the beginning until the end of the program.

Addition of Non-Machine Tools
The PPPE program gives new innovations for SMEs (especially our partner) to achieve low-cost Songket production in order to improve the production capacity in short space of time. The addition of Loom, a non-machine equipment for Songket sewing (ATBM) for our partner (Figure 1), is to shorten the production time within 5 to 7 days (Margarettha et al., 2017a).
Scaling-up production does not mean lowering the quality of Songkets, instead, it will create high-quality products with the right mixture of design and purpose.

Figure 1. ATBM or The Loom
Songket made from ATBM equipment becomes the focus for product diversification. Furthermore, the partners work closely with national level designers such as Barly Asmara and Sikie Purnomo along with other local fashion designers from Jambi (Margarettha et al., 2017b). They collaborated to produce high-quality fashion shirts (Figure 2). The existence of this cooperation further enlarges the marketing area of partners.

Products Made From Jambi's Songket
Products that were made by our partner, in addition to Songket cloth for women's kebaya and wedding dress, were also produced in the form of wallet, purse, track (tanjak), seat cushion, frames and sandals (Figure 3, 4, 5 and 6).   The high demand for goods made from Songket cloth, especially for women wallets, provides opportunities for our partners to collaborate with other craftsmen.

ARUS KAS SUSI SONGKET
This positive cooperation between our partners and other Songket craftsmen allow the incentives for the emergence of creative economy in Jambi especially in the byproduct of Songket.  Cash flow from January to September 2017 showed a sharp increase. The increase in revenue was also due to a variant of Songket products that had been produced by our partner, namely women's handbags, shoes, lacak (headband), cushions and wall hangings in the form of frames.
Our partner gain IDR 820,122,000 on revenue between January to September 2017. Our partner also achieved 46% increase in revenue compared to the previous year's revenue (2016). It is estimated that until the end of 2017 the revenue will continue to increase.

CONCLUSION
The assistance activity provided by the team of PPPE of University of Jambi was able to increase the revenue of our partners through the application of product diversification.