00:01An artisan carefully paints a tiny figurine, steady hands bringing a character to life.
00:07This kind of detailed work is the signature of Motmo Studio, a small business making handcrafted art toys inspired by
00:14Thai folklore.
00:15But inside this two-story workshop on the outskirts of Bangkok, the sharp smell of resin and paint thinner now
00:22mix with a feeling of pressure.
00:23Rising costs and a weaker demand are squeezing the business, as economic fallout from the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran
00:31ripples far beyond the region and into global markets.
00:35Founder Komkrit Teptyan says production costs have surged, especially for the plastics used in making the toys.
00:42Worse still, demand is not keeping up with those increases, with sales down over 30 percent this year as people
00:48pull back on spending as uncertainty grows.
00:51We have seen people stop spending. Pre-orders on our page have gone quiet or disappeared completely.
00:58I understand that everything is getting more expensive.
01:01At the same time, it is difficult to market when the news is all about crisis, which makes people anxious.
01:08They would rather save money for essentials like food than spend on products like this.
01:14Motmo Studio was founded in 2018 and managed to grow through the COVID-19 pandemic.
01:19It now employs 10 people and is relying on remaining funds and existing orders to keep cash flowing.
01:26It's one of many firms to see disruption to oil and petrochemical supplies as a result of Iran's move to
01:32close the key street of Hormuz shipping route.
01:34That has pushed up prices for plastics and polymers, materials used in everything from auto parts to toys.
01:41With limited options, Komkrit says he plans to hold on for a few more months before deciding what comes next.
01:48We are like small trees within a larger ecosystem.
01:52Before the big trees die, the small ones go first.
01:55At the same time, we are seedlings that could grow into businesses capable of generating income from overseas and supporting
02:03supply and demand in the domestic economy.
02:06So we need policies to support us.
02:09Even if we are small, we are still part of the same ecosystem.
02:12We are small, we are small, we are small, we are small, we are small, we are small , we
02:13can be tiny and small, we have small, we are small and small.
02:13But if we are nimble, don't look faster before㏠Stark Women, please we are small
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