Bagman meets Rebel Co-founder of Laga Handbags is invited to meet with former rebel-turned governor of Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia in San Francisco during his Business Development Tour of U.S.
Irvine, California – October 6, 2007
Roy van Broekhuizen, a.k.a. “The Bagman,” and CEO of Laga Designs International Inc. of Irvine was asked to speak about his involvement in Aceh, presenting “Post-Tsunami US Marketing of Aceh Handicrafts: A Case Study” at a Business Roundtable on Aceh Trade.
Van Broekhuizen received an unexpected telephone call from Thomas Fricke, Co-Founder of ForesTrade, requesting his presence at Business Roundtable discussions on Aceh Trade, Investment and Tourism, held in San Francisco in an effort to glean much needed information to promote better trade relations and marketing, after recognizing the significance of his work both in Aceh and in the US.
This invitation led to meeting the current governor of Aceh, Irwandi Yusuf, the former rebel leader of the G.A.M. (Aceh Freedom Movement) and the man who holds in his hands the future hope of the Acehnese people. Yusuf commended Van Broekhuizen for his contribution to the people of Aceh and, together with some of the Aceh delegates, they hope to form a union to develop a long-term strategy for trade promotion.
Originally commissioned by Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, (Rick Warren, Sr. Pastor and author of best seller “The Purpose Driven Life”) to help in the hard-core relief work immediately following the 2004 tsunami and the largest natural disaster of our lifetime, Roy and his wife Louise, as a direct result of having read and put into practice the principles in the book written by their pastor, formed Laga Designs International Inc. Their personal commitment led them to an endeavor to provide continuing employment and income for survivors in Aceh province, the area most devastatingly affected by the tsunami.
They launched their company by taking out a 4-year lease on a building, hiring a manager/trainer and staff of 12 tsunami survivors, and partnering with an established local business team to open a training center and workshop to make handmade embroidered handbags, and importing them to the United States in hopes to create a consistent cash-flow system that would support their vision of helping 1200 survivors. As of August 2006, the date of its incorporation, Laga has thus far expanded to include help for approximately 130 survivors. In order to develop a consistent sales base here in the United States, Laga has developed a philanthropic home parties business which currently consists of 28 Laga Consultants throughout the country who show Laga bags in the home; this adding another dimension to a united effort to join hands across the globe toward restoration and hope.
After having spent the past three years dedicated to renewing hope and creating tangible solutions for its survivors, this invitation for Van Broekhuizen to be included in this government roundtable discussion officially substantiates their recognition of his value to the trade relation process.
The importance of Van Broekhuizen’s contribution to the economic redevelopment in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami, which took the lives of about 170,000 people in Aceh, has distinguished him before its local government as well as those involved in intercontinental commerce here in the United States.
A successful cooperation between government officials in Aceh and the US is sure to be a stepping stone toward the bigger vision Laga was formed to accomplish. And the work which Roy has pioneered has set in motion a contagious excitement for change that is proving to be just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to economic relief for victims of disaster.
Extending far beyond just the victims of the tsunami, as if that isn’t enough, Laga ultimately touches generations of families and the entire communities. And, when you consider the network of Consultants Laga is seeking to build in the United States, many more lives are affected for the betterment of humanity at large.
Tsunami Mortality Estimates and Vulnerability Mapping in Aceh, Indonesia -- Doocy et al. 97 (1): S146 -- American Journal of Public Health
