He started in 1994, establishing the Intercom noodle stall in Panglima Polim in South Jakarta, which attracted young people to come and talk about issues.

Intercom stands for Indomie-Telor-Komplit, which literally means “complete noodle with eggs”.

He developed a rapport with them and later collaborated in conducting cultural and social activities like campus nights, photography clubs and fundraising for the poor.

The activities also served as an outlet for his hobby of singing and playing guitar.

After moving to the Netherlands in 1997, Heri’s new company, Java Enterprise, also helped conduct various cultural activities. Among them was Pasar Malam Indonesia in 2010 in The Hague, which attracted 30,000 visitors.

Pasar Malam Indonesia is a fair to promote trade and culture of Indonesia in the Netherlands,
mainly supported by the Indonesian Embassy.

“The second Pasar Malam Indonesia is planned for April this year,” Heri told The Jakarta Post during a recent interview.

Although a similar event, the Pasar Tong-Tong, was held annually in The Hague, some parts of the Indonesian community in the Netherlands — including the Indonesian Embassy — felt it had begun to lose its “Indonesian touch”, as its scope expanded to other Asian countries such as Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia, Heri said.

Pasar Tong-Tong or Pasar Malam Besar is supposed to be the largest annual festival in the world for European-Indonesian culture. Established in 1959, it is one of the oldest festivals and the fourth largest grand fair in the Netherlands.

The new Pasar Malam is designed simply to promote Indonesian culture and trade.

Heri said that in 2010 the new Pasar Malam took place one month before Pasar Tong-Tong, and he planned it the same way this year.

He said he learned business from his mother, who frequently joined the Pasar Tong-Tong fair.

Born on June 30, 1975, in Jakarta, Heri studied at the Trisakti Tourism Academy in Jakarta, but dropped out in 1996 because of frequent brawls with colleagues.

His family sent him to the Netherlands to study tourism, hoping the Dutch culture of discipline would help improve his life orientation.

He finally received a bachelor’s degree in international hospitality management from Stenden University in Leeuwarden in 2001.

During his time as a student, he was often involved in cultural activities such as staging musical performances among the local Indonesian community.

In 2003-2008 he was the manager of the Blue Pepper restaurant. He radically changed the rijsttafel method to a la carte, which improved its turnout 150% in just two years.

Rijsttafel is an Indonesian meal in which rice is served with a wide variety of foods and sauces in side dishes, a colonial style of service common in the Netherlands. A la carte refers to a menu in which items are priced and ordered separately or with an option to choose a side dish to accompany a main course item.

The increased revenue was shared proportionally by both employers and owners, which made everyone happy, and both Dutch and American restaurant guides recognized the Blue Pepper as the best restaurant in Amsterdam in 2006.

In the same year, Heri married Joanna Kessler, his Dutch college classmate who shared common interests. Today, they are blessed with a one-year-old daughter.

While managing the restaurant, Heri established his event planning company, Java Enterprise, which mainly provides services for music productions, culinary workshops and cultural activities with a strong Indonesian touch.

His company motto is “Bhinneka Tunggal Ika” or “Unity in Diversity”, reflecting the richness of culture in Indonesia.

The company also provides a platform for exploring cultural talents of Indonesians living in The Netherlands through its program called “Indonesia Underground”.

He held “Indonesia Underground” mini-festivals, which involved would-be Indonesian singers and artists currently residing in the Netherlands.

They performed on the famous Melkweg podium in Leidseplein and Jam Studio KNSM Laan in east Amsterdam.

Meanwhile he was also establishing a band of his own, Bebas Band, which performs regularly in cafes in Ledseplein in Amsterdam. The band is preparing its first album, which will be launched in the near future.

Heri also joined Jaringan Kerja Indonesia, an organization established by young Indonesians living in the Netherlands

“I am working to explore other talents while promoting Indonesian culture here,” he said, adding that the Indonesian diaspora has a lot of potential that has not been tapped yet.

He said he was quite optimistic that Indonesians could follow the steps of other ethnic groups in the Netherlands, which have been successful in promoting both their cultures and the trades of their home countries in the Netherlands.

Indonesians in the Netherlands should cut the frequent ideological disagreements in organizing their activities, bridging their differences with their shared culture, he said.

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