Studi dari Deskmag’s 2nd Annual Co-working Survey menyatakan bahwa co-working memberikan pengaruh positif terhadap cara kerja orang-orang di dalamnya. Responden survei menyatakan bahwa lingkungan co-working membuat produktivitas mereka meningkat hingga 75% dan menambah network bisnis sebanyak 80%.

Kondisi kerja co-working memberikan solusi bagi kamu para entrepreneur yang baru saja mulai membangun produk. Kamu dapat bertemu entrepreneur lain untuk memperluas networking serta dapat mendapatkan masukan atas produk yang kamu buat.

Selain co-working space, inkubator juga menyediakan tempat kerja berbasis sharing. Kedua tempat ini sangat cocok bagi pelaku startup yang berada pada tahap awal. Meskipun sama-sama menyediakan tempat untuk bekerja, co-working space dan inkubator memiliki tujuan dan cara kerja yang berbeda.

Berikut adalah enam perbedaan mendasar antara co-working space dan inkubator.

1. Harga

Co-working space merupakan tempat kerja berbasis rental yang dapat disewa per jam / bulan / tahun. Harga sewa co-working space di Jakarta beragam, mulai dari Rp 50.000 per hari dan Rp 500.000 per bulan. Berbeda dengan co-working space, kebanyakan inkubator memberikan harga sangat rendah atau bahkan gratis. Startup mendapatkan tempat kerja gratis dan sebagai gantinya memberikan sekian persen saham mereka.

Beberapa inkubator memberikan harga subsidi — jauh lebih murah dibandingkan dengan co-working space, namun tidak mengambil persentase saham sama sekali.

2. Komitmen dan waktu

Co-working space pada dasarnya tidak menuntut apa-apa dari sisi bisnis yang kamu kembangkan. Kamu juga dapat menyewa tempatnya sampai kapan pun kamu mau.

Inkubator sangat berbeda dalam hal ini. Mereka memberikan banyak tenaga, waktu dan kadang uang ke bisnis yang kamu buat sehingga mereka mengharapkan hasil nyata. Kamu dituntut untuk menunjukkan perkembangan dalam kurun waktu tertentu. Biasanya akan ada review setiap kuartal untuk melihat bagaimana perkembangan startup kamu. Sebagian inkubator juga memiliki program dengan periode pasti dan kamu harus berkomitmen untuk mengikuti programnya hingga selesai.

3. Bimbingan

Co-working space tidak memiliki program bimbingan yang khusus dibuat untuk para startup. Jika pun ada, kamu harus bayar untuk dapat bergabung.

Salah satu manfaat utama inkubator adalah mereka menyediakan bimbingan dan pelatihan yang dirancang khusus untuk startup. Inkubator biasanya memiliki para mentor yang siap memberikan bimbingan seputar membangun startup. Baik co-working space maupun inkubator juga mengadakan sesi sharing dari entrepreneur yang lebih berpengalaman. Kamu juga dapat belajar dari entrepreneur lain yang bekerja di sana.

4. Pendanaan

Co-working space tidak memberikan pendanaan kepada startup di dalamnya. Namun co-working space yang bagus biasanya mengundang banyak investor yang mencari startup untuk diberikan investasi. Beberapa co-working space di Jakarta dikelola oleh venture capital (VC). Jadi, masuk ke dalam co-working space tersebut adalah salah satu cara untuk mendapatkan akses ke pendanaan.

Beberapa program inkubator langsung memberikan seed funding bagi startup yang terpilih untuk ikut program mereka. Selain itu, banyak perusahaan besar yang memang tertarik untuk berinvestasi di startup yang mengelola inkubator. Sama halnya dengan co-working space, hal ini dapat membuka kesempatan untuk mendapatkan pendanaan dari perusahaan-perusahaan tersebut.

5. Network

Baik inkubator ataupun co-working space memiliki network yang luas dan dapat memperkenalkan orang yang tepat kepada kamu. Namun, inkubator memiliki komitmen lebih untuk melakukan hal ini dikarenakan tujuan mereka adalah agar startup binaan mereka sukses.

Kesuksesan sebuah inkubator dapat dilihat dari seberapa sukses startup yang mengikuti programnya. Karena itu, inkubator akan fokus membantu para startup di dalamnya.

6. Staff dan layanan

Co-working space memiliki staf yang dapat membantu segala hal yang berkaitan dengan tempat yang kamu sewa, tapi mereka tidak dilatih khusus untuk membantu menyelesaikan masalah startup kamu. Pada dasarnya, co-working space tidak terlalu peduli dengan apa yang sedang kamu bangun dan sejauh apa perkembangannya.

Inkubator pada umumnya memiliki staf berpengalaman untuk membantu kamu menyelesaikan berbagai persoalan baik yang berhubungan dengan layanan di tempat kerja maupun yang berkaitan dengan membangun startup.

Tahun 2016 lalu pemerintah meluncurkan program Gerakan Nasional 1.000 Startup Digital. Bekerja sama dengan community builder lokal, program ini berambisi untuk menciptakan 1.000 startup hingga tahun 2020, dengan total valuasi yang mencapai US$10 miliar (sekitar Rp133 triliun).

Salah satu dari lima strategi yang dipakai pemerintah adalah tahap inkubasi. Mengapa pemerintah menggunakan inkubasi untuk mewujudkan program tersebut?

Pertama-tama, pengertian inkubasi sendiri adalah proses membantu startup ketika masih dalam tahap awal atau belum mendapatkan pendanaan dari pihak luar. Bantuan yang diberikan biasanya berupa mentoring, arahan, co-working space, dan terkadang juga memberikan pendanaan. Pihak yang melakukan aktifitas inkubasi disebut sebagai inkubator. Secara singkat, tujuan utama dari inkubator adalah membantu startup untuk dapat berkembang dengan lebih cepat.

Berikut adalah lima peran inkubator untuk membantu startup dan mengembangkan ekosistem startup di Indonesia.

1. Akses ke komunitas dan network bisnis

Inkubator adalah tempat dimana banyak entrepreneur berkumpul. Banyak dari mereka telah mengalami permasalahan yang sama sebelumnya dan dapat memberikan saran atas masalah tersebut. Bertemu dengan para entrepreneur di dalam program inkubasi dapat menciptakan diskusi yang produktif, selain memperluas network juga mendapatkan ide untuk solusi permasalahan yang ada.

Startup pada tahap awal biasanya memiliki kesulitan untuk mendapatkan partner bisnis yang pas. Jika bukan karena harga yang mahal, mereka biasanya enggan untuk bekerja sama dengan startup yang umurnya masih relatif muda. Inkubator memiliki akses ke key player yang berpotensi untuk membuka kesempatan besar. Inkubator yang didukung oleh perusahaan besar di belakangnya juga dapat menjadi partner yang potensial. Bantuan yang diberikan inkubator biasanya berupa perkenalan langsung atau pengadaan acara untuk mendatangkan para pemain penting di komunitas startup.

2. Dukungan dari mentor yang berpengalaman

Membangun startup menuntut seorang entrepreneur untuk dapat mengerjakan semua hal sekaligus, khususnya pada tahap awal ketika startup masih belum memiliki dana untuk mempekerjakan orang yang berpengalaman. Di luar dari produk yang hendak dibangun, pengetahuan akan aspek utama bisnis seperti marketing, sales, business development, operation, dan finance harus mumpuni.

Mentor yang memiliki pengalaman sebagai entrepreneur dapat berbagi pengalaman mereka dalam membangun startup. Mereka dapat memberikan arahan yang tepat serta menstimulasi ide untuk memecahkan persoalan yang ada. Di dalam sebuah inkubator biasanya ada beberapa mentor yang memang berdedikasi untuk membantu startup di dalamnya. Tak jarang inkubator juga mengadakan workshop dengan topik yang biasanya paling dibutuhkan oleh para startup.

3. Validasi ide

Bagi sebuah startup, membangun solusi yang diinginkan orang adalah harga mutlak. Entrepreneur biasanya memiliki ide yang inovatif, namun belum tentu dapat bekerja. Oleh karena itu mereka membutuhkan pendapat orang lain atas produk yang dibangun. Inkubator merupakan tempat yang tepat untuk memberikan masukan atas produk yang dibuat, apakah memenuhi kebutuhan pasar, memecahkan persoalan yang ada, serta memiliki model bisnis yang masuk akal untuk jangka panjang.

Selain itu, untuk mengetahui apa yang dibutuhkan orang, entrepreneur juga harus mau keluar dari zona nyaman dengan berbicara kepada sebanyak mungkin calon pengguna. Karena apa yang kita pikir orang butuhkan kadang tidak selalu benar, satu-satunya cara untuk mengetahui hal tersebut adalah dengan berbicara secara langsung kepada mereka. Inkubator merupakan tempat yang tepat untuk bertemu dengan banyak calon pengguna dan mendapatkan masukan.

4. Bantuan infrastruktur

Di pusat bisnis Jakarta, harga sewa kantor sangat mahal khususnya bagi startup yang belum memiliki dana besar. Inkubator menyediakan co-working space yang dapat digunakan secara gratis atau dengan biaya sangat murah. Startup mendapatkan akses ke ruang kantor yang lengkap dengan internet cepat, meja kerja, ruang rapat, pantry, serta kebutuhan kantor lainnya dengan desain kantor menarik untuk menunjang kreativitas.

Dengan tersedianya semua kebutuhan kantor, startup dapat fokus membangun produk mereka tanpa terganggu dengan kegiatan administratif. Co-working space juga merupakan tempat berkumpulnya para entrepreneur dan ide kreatif. Karena memulai bisnis secara bersama-sama, orang di dalam inkubator cenderung mendukung satu sama lain dan membantu ketika dibutuhkan. Inkubator sering memunculkan hubungan bisnis dan persahabatan yang bertahan lama bahkan hingga startup yang dibangun telah sukses.

5. Akses ke investor

Inkubator adalah tempat investor mencari startup menarik untuk diberikan pendanaan. Startup dengan ide yang telah divalidasi dan menunjukkan perkembangan signifikan umumnya menarik perhatian investor. Inkubator juga memiliki program demo day untuk memperkenalkan startup binaan mereka.

Investor pada umumnya memiliki kepercayaan terhadap startup di bawah naungan inkubator yang telah terbukti menghasilkan startup yang bagus. Tak jarang ada perusahaan besar yang berada di belakang program inkubator. Perusahaan besar ini biasanya memiliki inisiatif untuk mendukung perkembangan startup di Indonesia dan memberikan pendanaan bagi startup yang relevan dengan bisnis mereka ataupun memiliki potensi bisnis yang besar.

Since we opened our space to startups community in March 2017, we have received many applications and hosted 21 startups to date. We are grateful for the tremendous enthusiasm and support from the community.

Here we would like to share with you the 21 startups currently based in BLOCK71 Jakarta. Send us a note at [email protected] if you want to find out more about us. Interested in joining BLOCK71 Jakarta community and get access to our coworking space? Fill in this application form.

 

1. 8villages

Founder: Sanny Gaddafi | Industry: agritech

8villages builds cloud-based messaging platform, allowing real-time communication between rural farmers and customers.

 

2. AC Calls

Founder: Ketut Sudarmawan, Sidiq Hisam and Mustafa | Industry: on-demand, hardware

AC Calls is an on-demand mobile application providing installation and servicing for air conditioners. The startup is currently building a smart device to track air conditioner performances.

 

3. Airfrov

Founder: Cai Li and Robi | Industry: travel, marketplace

Airfrov is a peer-to-peer marketplace that connects individual to traveler for product shopping overseas.

 

4. Artawana

Founder: Robert and Rocky Stephanus  | Industry: fintech

Artawana is a peer-to-peer lending marketplace.

 

5. AsianParent

Founder: Roshni Mahtani | Industry: digital media

AsianParent is an online parenting publishers with an ultimate mission to be mum's best friend and to support mums through her motherhood journey.

 

6. Bildeco

Founder: Errika Ferdinata | Industry: construction, e-commerce

Bildeco builds material e-commerce to help construction companies get the best deals from the principal.

 

7. Carro

Founder: Aaron Tan and Aditya Lesmana | Industry: automotive, marketplace

Carro is a used car marketplace that cuts the middleman in between thus creating a better customer experience.

 

8. CashShield

Founder: Justin Lie, Junxian Lee and Irene Brime | Industry: data security

CashShield is a fraud management solution aimed at optimising the profits of merchants through the use of passive biometric analysis, big data and machine learning.

 

9. CastKo

Founder: Chun Dong Yoon and Sung Bin Park | Industry: digital media

Castko is a Korean news aggregator with present in Southeast Asian countries.

 

10. Codigo

Founder: Adrian Ng | Industry: software development

Codigo is a Singapore-based mobile app development company.

 

11. eFishery

Founder: Gibran Huzaifah, Muhammad Ihsan Akhirulsyah and Chrisna Aditya | Industry: aquaculture tech

eFishery makes a smart feeding system aimed at the fish and shrimp farming industries.

 

12. Financial Wisdom

Founder: Adjie Wicaksana, Dira Illanoor and Nicky | Industry: fintech, edtech

Financial Wisdom is an education portal for financial literature.

 

13. Glints

Founder: Ying Cong Seah, Oswald Yeo and Qin En Looi | Industry: recruitment

Glints is a career discovery and development platform and graduate recruitment network in Asia.

 

14. Grya

Founder: Ferry Sutanto | Industry: interior and home design, e-commerce

Grya is a platform of the most comprehensive ecosystem helping users in designing their perfect dream home.

 

15. HelloBill

Founder: Ponky Sutanto and William Suryawijaya | Industry: fintech, POS

HelloBill HelloBill builds POS system for small and medium businesses.

 

16. Holistics

Founder: Vincent Woon, Thanh Dinh Khac and Huy Nguyen | Industry: Software as a Service, business intelligence

Holistics is a cloud business intelligence software that automates the preparation of raw data and visualize them into business insights.

 

17. KliknKlin

Founder: Raka Destama and Irfan Fadhila | Industry: on-demand

KliknKlin builds an on-demand laundry app and runs laundry business network.

 

18. Pinjam

Founder: Teguh Ariwibowo and Sofian Hadiwijaya | Industry: fintech

Pinjam is a pawn shop and peer-to-peer lending platform.

 

19. Popbox

Founder: Adrian Lim and Greta Bunawan | Industry: logistics

Popbox is an automated parcel locker that allows people to send, receive and return a parcel conveniently.

 

20. Skyshi

Founder: Rizqinofa Putra Muliawan | Industry: software development

Skyshi is a software development company.

 

21. Viddsee

Founder: Ho Jia Jian and Derek Tan | Industry: video

Viddsee is an entertainment channel and technology platform that distributes and markets short movies from Asia through targeted communities. 

If you have read financial news in the past couple of years, you've probably come across some people using the word "unbanked". But few of these articles clearly define who exactly the term refers to.

Those classified as "unbanked", tend to include people and businesses who don't have access to bank accounts or other similar facilities, such as the ability to take out loans and manage their money. In most cases, people who are classified as unbanked are those who have lower levels of educations, or work in sectors with limited access to banks. This could be virtually anyone, from street vendors selling knock-off football jerseys or the warung down the street selling the city’s best nasi goreng.  

Many financial analysts and others in the sector believe unbanked users could be the next big thing in banking and financial tech. A report from global consultancy firm Accenture claims that "bringing unbanked adults and businesses into the formal banking sector could generate about US$380 billion in new revenue for banks".

In a report titled "Financial Inclusion in Asia", the Asian Development Bank found that 78 percent of the Indonesian population — around 199 million people — are considered unbanked, making Indonesia one of the largest unbanked countries in Asia.

A micro-business, a term for businesses so small that are not considered a Small to Medium Business, such as street vendors, make up around 90 percent of Indonesia’s workforce. The businesses, while making a large contribution to the economy, are largely unbanked. The inability to put up collateral or provide banks with other assurances prevents them from entering the market.

This puts unbanked microbusiness in a unique position; in a market in which traditional banks and providers are clearly not catering to demand or delivering creative solutions, it has become an underserved market. These businesses experience significant problems which could be solved by appropriate technology and innovation, but are ignored in favor of more ‘consumer friendly’ markets and products. So, are there any startups attending to the needs of these underserved businesses?

  

Just what the market needs: fintech and wealth of knowledge

Pinjam is an online platform providing services for individuals and micro-businesses ignored by bigger banks and institutions. In addition to providing loans, Pinjam provides a service connecting users to online pawnbrokers and refinancers, where they can use an appraisal feature to estimate the value of belongings which could be used as collateral.

“With easy requirements and affordable rates, prospective borrowers can receive their loans within 3 hours after the file submissions. If needed, Pinjam team can directly come to the borrowers and finish the entire process on the spot,” says Pinjam chief executive and co-founder Teguh Ariwibowo, who was recently featured on Forbes Asia’s 30 under 30 list.

“We have served over 2,500 individual borrowers, with average loan size of Rp 3 million (US$225). We have also served more than 250 SMEs, providing them an average loan of Rp 35 million (US$2,600),” explains Ariwibowo.

By providing loans of small denominations, Pinjam gives opportunities to individuals and businesses who may well have been laughed out of a bank.

Pinjam operates both online and offline. It has three outlets and 20 partners in Jakarta. The startup uses its industry partnership and collaboration with Pos Indonesia, Indonesia's national postal service, to reach users who would have never been given the opportunity to reach out to refinancers before.

Having experienced first-hand the troubles and difficulties of gaining access to financing, Ariwibowo is determined to fight the injustice and provide services to those who wouldn’t have access to it otherwise.

Pinjam makes up just a percentage of the innovative startups providing for the underserved, with 8Villages focusing on agribusiness. 

As of 2017, over 1 billion farmers reside in Southeast Asia, China and India, according to the United Nations FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization). 8Villages, a startup aiming to connect farmers and agribusinesses, estimates that 77 percent of these farmers own mobile phones, but 68 percent have difficulties in accessing accurate and timely information.

“Information and education are power. The more farmers can receive information easily, the more powerful and smarter they become,” says Sanny Gaddafi, CEO of 8Villages. He continues, “8Villages is an education and communication app to help farmers stay updated with the latest information, which will help them increase their overall productivity and income.”

Through its services, 8Villages not only brings forward a more transparent flow of information within the agriculture value chain, but also provides farmers and agriculturists with market intelligence information such as crop pricing, details regarding the harvest seasons and local offers on seeds, crops and harvests.

By providing farmers with important and timely information that they wouldn’t have had access to before and by connecting them with others in the field, 8Villages is contributing to the nation by fostering the sharing of information and best practices, leading to a more standardized and sustainable agriculture sector.  

Currently, over 80,000 of farmers in Indonesia are connected via 8Villages, and are sharing knowledge and learning new things daily. Those are farmers that before 8Villages, were underserved and had no method of connecting with each other and who have all been given the opportunity to learn new things and take their business to the next level.

We still have a long way to go and the number of individuals and businesses in Indonesia that are unbanked and underserved remain high, but with the help of startups such as Pinjam and 8Villages — who work tirelessly to provide for those who have spent so long being ignored — it can be said that there is a much brighter future ahead of us.

---

 

Pinjam and 8villages are both startup tenants at BLOCK71 Jakarta, a community centre for tech startups in Jakarta, a partnership between NUS Enterprise and Salim Group.

They may once have been considered a fad, but coworking facilities are proving to be a lasting trend, and demonstrate to be one of the biggest changes in the work market today across the world. Coworking has taken off globally and has recently gripped China and Southeast Asia – offering an alternative for people working from home or in the traditional office space. Literally translated as relationship, ‘guanxi’ is the Chinese concept of social networks and personal connections facilitating business dealings. Coworking spaces, depending on the variety and size of their membership, are in an optimal position to offer ‘guanxi’ – and are already proving this, with rising popularity in China and Southeast Asia. It appears more people are finding that coworking is becoming a viable alternative to the traditional office.

 

Coworking in China

The coworking sector has taken off in China over the past three years. However, just five years ago, it was a very different situation. Very few of these spaces existed in China. Freelancers, entrepreneurs and start-ups were forced to find cheaper alternatives – such as cafes with plug outlets, or small apartments to rent with like-minded people. There was little sense of community for these groups of individuals and innovators.

More recently, the country’s efforts to promote entrepreneurship has allowed for growth in this sector, which originated in the US, Europe and other western societies - gradually moving into eastern societies. These spaces are usually shared, open-plan, work environments specifically designed to encourage collaboration and knowledge-sharing with like-minded individuals. They are beginning to challenge the traditional workspace, which typically consists of designated desks, less flexible start and stop times and separated departments. Competition among China’s coworking market is steadily intensifying, with global brands expanding fast into the market and local rivals developing apace.

With this recent growth of competition in the market, many coworking spaces also provide a variety of creative perks, such as pet friendliness, on-site gyms, free flow beer and saunas. Typically, these spaces have attracted tech startups, freelancers and entrepreneurs, however, with these developments, there is a growing appeal for small businesses and multi-national corporations to move into these spaces, which can potentially offer more flexibility and autonomy to employees.

 

Coworking in Southeast Asia

The coworking sector in Southeast Asia is still in its infancy, but on the rise. The rise of these spaces is down to various reasons. With its low cost of living, its young tech savvy workforce and digital infrastructure, Southeast Asia is fast becoming a hub for start-ups and digital nomads. The startup ecosystem is younger than the rise of coworking spaces in the U.S., many of the more successful startups in the region started out in coworking spaces. The high growth rate of the economy in Southeast Asia has paved the way for a community of start-ups and freelancers to flourish. As a result, the demand for affordable workspaces have increased. Also, the heterogeneous nature of these markets make coworking spaces and the communities around them essential for startups looking to quickly expand internationally and plug into local communities. As such, Southeast Asian governments are increasingly viewing the coworking movement as a new strategic tool that can encourage entrepreneurship within the population. For example, in Vietnam, policy makers are setting up coworking spaces for startup companies with initiatives in place with the goal of transforming Vietnam into a startup nation by 2020 and in Indonesia, the Global Entrepreneurship Program Indonesia (GEPI) offer coworking spaces for early-stage startups, as part of a wider global initiative formed to promote entrepreneurship among developing countries.

 

Why businesses and individuals are choosing coworking spaces

As workers become increasingly mobile, the importance of having a conventional office decreases - and that’s where coworking spaces come in to meet the needs of a new breed of workforce. The advancements in technology has allowed people to work from anywhere in the world. Technology has also increasingly blurred the lines between work-life balance. This is leading to a growing number of workers looking for more control over their work-life balance and flexibility in the working schedules. Unlike in the traditional office, workers can come and go as they please and work to their own schedule. They are also becoming popular with larger corporations too. With property and rental prices on the rise in most cities, it makes good business sense for many organisations. It also provides a way of networking with others in similar or same industries in different organisations. Coworking spaces don’t just provide the bare basics like office amenities - these facilities also serve as a touchpoint for startups and investors seeking to connect with each other.

 

The future of coworking spaces in China and Southeast Asia

The growing trend looks set to continue, particularly as younger generations, with a different outlook, join the workforce. In the China market, coworking spaces have seen intense demand, particularly as the working culture has shifted to allow for more creative and innovative work environments. Although the concept of coworking is still in its infancy in Southeast Asia, the high growth rate of the economy and growing number of expat and local entrepreneurs is fuelling the startup scene, giving significant contribution to future coworking growth. With rising rental and property prices, coworking appears to offer an appealing solution to the rising challenges many freelancers and businesses face. As the markets grow, coworking spaces do look set to continue playing a vital role in creating a stronger businesses ecosystem within the region, which may eventually see the demise of the traditional office workspace.

 

This a guest post by Fiona Murray of Urban Serviced Offices.

Fiona Murray is a MSc Digital Marketing graduate and writer based in Scotland. An enthusiast for all things digital and travel related, Fiona has experience living and working in the UK, USA and Asia, and has travelled extensively in order to further her experiences of other cultures. Found out more about her on LinkedIn.

Meskipun pertumbuhan ekonomi di Indonesia sangat pesat, 87 juta orang Indonesia tetap rentan terhadap kerawanan pangan.

Indonesia memiliki jumlah anak-anak yang mengalami stunting (kerdil) tertinggi kelima di dunia. 8,4 juta anak-anak yang bertubuh terlalu kecil untuk usia mereka dan menderita malnutrisi kronis. Kerdil dapat mengurangi produktivitas seseorang dan meningkatkan risiko penyakit tidak menular seperti diabetes dan penyakit jantung.

Malnutrisi membebani Indonesia lebih dari US$ 5 miliar setiap tahun karena hilangnya produktivitas sebagai akibat dari stkamur pendidikan yang buruk dan berkurangnya kemampuan fisik.

Indofood, BLOCK71 Jakarta, dan Scaling Up Nutrition Business Network (SBN) dengan senang hati mengundang kamu untuk mendaftar di kompetisi pitch startup pertama di Indonesia yang berfokus pada gizi.
 

INDOFOOD LOCAL PITCH COMPETITION

Kami menyambut baik startup yang bekerja di sektor gizi, terutama yang menangani masalah-masalah ini:

1. Obesitas pada anak
2. Kerdil pada anak dibawah umur 5 tahun (balita)
3. Anemia pada Remaja

 

SOLUSI YANG KAMI CARI

Kami mencari startup yang menyelesaikan tiga area utama tersebut

1. Meningkatkan ketersediaan makanan bergizi (tinggi di 5 mikro-nutrien penting Yodium, Vitamin A, Besi, Folat, Seng)
2. Produksi dan pelestarian
3. Membuat pilihan makanan bergizi menarik
4. Teknik meningkatkan kesadaran terhadap gizi buruk
5. Meningkatkan akses makanan bergizi di daerah yang sulit dijangkau / pengiriman
6. Mendorong gaya hidup aktif
7. Solusi lainnya untuk mengatasi masalah yang disebutkan di atas

Bergabung dalam kompetisi ini akan memberi kamu eksposur ke korporasi dan investor yang bekerja pada permasalahan yang sama dengan kamu - yaitu memecahkan masalah gizi di Indonesia. kamu juga akan mendapatkan paparan media yang ekstensif, sesi mentoring, dan feedback dari para ahli mengenai bisnis kamu.

 

AWARDS

Mendapatkan mentoring dan saran teknis selama seminggu dari Indofood dan SBN:

• Mentoring dari Mr. Axton Salim, Direktur Eksekutif Salim Group
• Nasihat dari R&D, pemasaran, urusan regulasi, dan tim media sosial Indofood
• Tim SBN Global akan menawarkan pemenang platform untuk melibatkan platform global perusahaan multinasional untuk meminta saran kepada para startup

Menghadiri acara Nutrition Africa Investor Forum di Nairobi pada 16-17 Oktober, kami akan membahas penerbangan dan akomodasi yang terkait dengan acara ini.

 

Siap mempertunjukkan produk kamu dan bekerja dengan orang-orang dengan misi yang sama? Daftarkan startup kamu di sini: http://bit.ly/nutritionpitchcompetition

Acara ini diselenggarakan oleh Indofood dan BLOCK71 Jakarta, didukung oleh Sun Business Network.

 

TENTANG INDOFOOD

PT Indofood CBP Sukses Makmur Tbk (ICBP) adalah perusahaan yang berkedudukan kuat dan salah satu pemain terkemuka di sektor produk bermerek bagi konsumen. Kami terlibat dalam beragam kategori bisnis, termasuk mie, produk susu, makanan ringan, bumbu makanan, gizi dan makanan khusus, dan minuman. Selain itu, ICBP juga mengoperasikan bisnis pengemasan, memproduksi kemasan fleksibel dan berkerut untuk mendukung bisnis utama kami.
Kami menyediakan solusi sehari-hari bagi konsumen dari segala usia di seluruh segmen pasar, dengan sekitar 40 merek produk terkemuka. Banyak dari merek-merek ini menempati posisi pasar yang signifikan di Indonesia, yang didukung oleh kepercayaan dan kesetiaan puluhan tahun dari jutaan konsumen

Sebagian besar produk kami tersedia di seluruh nusantara. Didukung oleh jaringan distribusi perusahaan induk kami yang luas, kami dapat memenuhi permintaan pasar secara tepat waktu dan efisien.

Operasi bisnis kami didukung oleh lebih dari 50 pabrik yang berlokasi di area utama di seluruh Indonesia. Ini memungkinkan kami untuk lebih dekat dengan permintaan pasar dan memastikan kesegaran produk. Selain Indonesia, produk ICBP juga hadir di lebih dari 60 negara di seluruh dunia.
 

TENTANG SCALING UP NUTRITION BUSINESS NETWORK (SBN)

SBN adalah satu-satunya platform global yang didedikasikan untuk bisnis dan gizi, dengan tujuan untuk mengurangi malnutrisi dalam segala bentuk - melalui keterlibatan dan mendukung bisnis untuk bertindak, berinvestasi, dan berinovasi dalam tindakan dan beroperasi bertanggung jawab dan berkelanjutan untuk meningkatkan gizi. Untuk melakukan ini, SBN menyediakan sebuah platform untuk menjembatani kemitraan dan kolaborasi antara bisnis dan semua pelaku gizi di tingkat nasional, regional dan global dalam mendukung Negara-negara SUN. SBN ini diselenggarakan oleh Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) dan Program Pangan Dunia (SBN). SBN didukung oleh sekretariat global yang berbasis di London, Inggris.

 

TENTANG BLOCK71 JAKARTA

BLOCK71 Jakarta, program kemitraan antara NUS Enterprise dan Salim Group, untuk pembangun ekosistem dan penghubung global yang mengkatalisasi dan menggabungkan komunitas startup, memberikan peluang untuk pertumbuhan dan akses ke pasar baru.

To Jia Jian, entrepreneurship was not something that he dove into immediately upon his graduation from the National University of Singapore. Believing in the importance of timing and the right idea, it would be only 2 years later that he, together with his co-founder, Derek, started Viddsee.

With his degree in Mechanical Engineering, Jia Jian first worked at one of Singapore’s largest TV operator, Starhub, where he was actively involved in product development. The nature of his job made him keenly aware of the numerous opportunities that would change the way people seek entertainment – future generations would jump straight to smartphones and mobile phones, skipping television and computers.

He found himself facing two choices – to help Starhub manage the above mentioned changes by building products or to drop everything and throw himself in the middle of the change. His decision to take the leap of faith eventually led to the birth of Viddsee.

 

Lights, Camera, Action! – The Start of Viddsee

Joining his university’s film club sparked his passion for filmmaking and gave him the opportunity to meet his future co-founder, Derek. Together, they created films that were showcased at various film festivals, organised film workshops and even ran a small production house.

His involvement in filmmaking shed light on the numerous difficulties faced by content creators. Firstly, it was hard for filmmakers to get the traction and outreach their films deserved. While there was YouTube, the pressure to constantly upload videos meant there was no space for storytellers to produce premium content and moreover, the overcrowding of the billions of people made it difficult for filmmakers to reach their intended audience. Hence, spurred by the desire to empower storytellers, Jia Jian and Derek decided to create a mobile-centric platform that would allow filmmakers to produce short, premium content that would reach their intended audiences. Thus, the start of Viddsee.  

What sets Viddsee apart can be summed up neatly in one word – authenticity. Anyone who scrolls through the videos uploaded on Viddsee would realise it’s deliberate focus on Asian-centric stories. The marrying of entertainment and local culture stems from Jia Jian’s belief that people would only truly be impacted when they can see themselves in the content and this focus on relatability is one of the many reasons why Viddsee has quickly amassed a loyal and engaged audience.

 

What Drives Him

Amidst the hustle, Jia Jian cites two values that keeps him grounded – focus and humility.

While we often hear of stories of entrepreneurs working late into the night, he believes that the key to balancing the different facets of his life is focus. While in his office space at BLOCK71 Jakarta, he will give his 100% to work. Yet, the moment he is home, the focus would be on his family and with a laugh, he quips that it means there will not be “answering of emails at the dinner table”. The importance of family is not lost on Jia Jian. After all, they were the ones who provided him the immense emotional support when he left his corporate job, and allowed him to focus on growing Viddsee.

While many would not hesitate to see his startup as a success, being humble allows him to constantly seek self-improvement. The importance of humility can be seen in his management of Viddsee as well, where there are numerous processes in place to ensure each and every employee does not rest on their laurels and is constantly growing alongside the company.

 

Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

“You are here on a marathon, not a sprint.” To sustain oneself in the long path ahead, he believes that it is important for future entrepreneurs to dig deep and find their motivations that would serve as their fuel. To him, being an entrepreneur is not just about starting a business. Instead, entrepreneurship is about the possession of the right mindset and the desire to bring value to the lives of the people around you.

 

Written by: Merilynn Seng

 

Jakarta, 11 September 2018 -- BLOCK71 Jakarta are pleased to announced the Finalists of Indofood Local Pitch Competition, a nationwide competition focused on nutrition held by  Indofood, Scaling Up Nutrition Business Network, and BLOCK71 Jakarta.

The Finalists have been selected from the 95 applicants in the first stage of evaluation.

We would like thank all applicants for your participation in the competition. Keep building your ideas to solve the nutrition issues in Indonesia!

Without further adieu, here are the 10 shortlisted finalists in no particular order.

1. Trashfarm (http://www.trashfarm.asia/)

2. GorryWell (https://gorrywell.com/)

3. Rumah Kelor (http://www.rumahkelor.com)

4. Garda Pangan (http://gardapangan.org)

5. PrimaKU (https://www.primaku.com)

6. ATM Sehat (https://www.telehealthindonesia.com)

7. YANT Sorghum (http://yantsorghum.com)

8. Simbah Food (https://www.simbah.co.id/)

9. Growpal (https://www.growpal.co.id/)

10. Nyayur (http://nyayur.id/)

All finalists will now participate in the mentoring session with our talented mentors:

1. Nazier Ariffin, Head of Investments at Telkomsel

2. Riaz Bhardwaj, Senior Consultant at ANGIN

3. Valencia Dea, Principal at ANGIN

The independent panel of judges will now focus their attention on the challenging task of selecting the ultimate award winners during the pitch day at the Indofood Local Pitch Competition on 19 September 2018 in BLOCK71 Jakarta.
The event is free for the public, so you’re welcome to see the pitch. Please RSVP here: http://bit.ly/ILPC-Final

We are happy to announce the 10 shortlisted finalists for the Asia Hardware Battle! Congratulations!

We would also like to thank all the applicants for taking the time to fill out the application and participate in the competition.

Here are the top 10 finalists:

1. Amren (http://amren.id/)
2. ARSA (https://arsa.tech)
3. CV Indobot (https://www.indobot.co.id/)
4. DycodeX (https://dycodex.com/)
5. ICHIBOT (www.team-ichibot.id)
6. Neurabot (https://neurabot.io)
7. Orbleaf (http://orbleaf.com/)
8. PT Atnic (https://jala.tech/)
9. PT Wira energy (http://www.wiraenergi.co.id/)
10. Tanibox (https://tanibox.com/)

The finalists will now compete to win a grand prize of IDR 100 million, and the top three teams will get seven free workstations from NodeSpace for 6 months. In addition, the final 15 teams will all have a free booth at Techcrunch Shenzhen 2018, surely a wonderful opportunity to showcase their products in a global stage!

Happening in BLOCK71 Jakarta on Sept 24th, the finalists will pitch in front of the estemeed judges:

1. Setiaji, Head Jakarta Smart City 
2. Chirayu Wadke, Partner, IoT and Connected Devices, SEEDPLUS
3. Gary P. Khoeng, Vertex Ventures
4. Irsan Suryadi Saputra, Ecosystem Partner & ISV Buss. Development, IBM
5. Tony Hariman, Co- Founder and CEO at CBN Cloud 

You are invited to see the pitch! Register now while the seats are still available: http://bit.ly/ahbjkt2018

 

Cheers,

The BLOCK71 Jakarta Team

The 2018 Asia Hardware Battle in Jakarta was a huge success.

After several rounds of fierce competition, we finally selected one startup to represent Indonesia at the grand final round of Asia Hardware Battle in Shanghai.

In this competition, one startup rose above all the others, and proved extraordinary through a series of stringent evaluation and step-by-step screening by several prominent judges: Mr. Chirayu Wadke (Partner at SeedPlus), Mr. Gary P. Khoeng (Executive Director at Vertex Ventures), Mr. Ignatius Irsan Suryadi Saputra (Ecosystem Partner & ISV Business Development at IBM), Mr. Setia (Head of Jakarta Smart City), and Mr. Tony Hariman (CEO of CBNCloud).

 

Winner: Neurabot – Neurabot X Optilab

Neurabot (Neural Robotics) is the #1 Digital Laboratory Platform in the field of image processing (Pathology, Microbiology, Parasitology, etc.). Neurabot also helps with object identification and data training with AI, uses smart image screening (AI Scan) solutions supported by algorithm AI, develops robotics (Hardware Integration, OptiLab), and uses cloud computing to improve accuracy, speed of research, and competitive prices. Neurabot’s vision is to build an Image Analysis Algorithm that is able to extract information from digital image media, such as using microscopes to extract data from videos. Neurabot’s expertise and solutions in the selection of identification and classification with AI are the result of problems in the world of Healthcare and BioTech. Neurabot helps pathology doctors, inventors, and academics.

In addition to Neurabot, here are the other 9 qualified startups that appeared on the field:

 

DycodeX–SMARTernak

SMARTernak is Indonesia’s first home-grown IoT and AI solution for Precision Livestock Farming. SMARTernak consists of a cattle-wearable device, drone, in-field sensors and base station, as well as cloud and apps via web or iOS and Android smartphones. These systems work together seamlessly to monitor cattle’s whereabouts or well-being. The data is then digested by AI to provide cattle-farmers insights and suggest actionable recommendations. SMARTernak comes in two variants: SMARTernak Tracking and SMARTernak Health & Productivity. “Tracking” features include tracking cattle location and behavior; apply virtual fencing; herd counting and monitor grazing area. “Health & Productivity” features include monitoring cattle’s health parameters, check approximate weight, predict behavior, and monitor environmental conditions. Both variants cover thousands of devices in an area up to 5km radius; low-power management with solar-energy harvesting; and an anti-theft system.

 

PT. Atnic Ekotekno Wicaksana–JALA

JALA is transforming the shrimp industry by offering a vastly improved management system. With data-driven farming in mind, its goal is to get farmers to make decisions based on actual data. For that reason, its system provides real-time water quality monitoring, and planning and reporting tools, complete with a decision support system so farmers can initiate the right treatment at the right time, based on data which has been collected and analyzed. All the data from every farm using the system is automatically sent in for collation and review in order to gain valuable insight into the industry as a whole. This data can be broken down into farm performance, production levels, and disease patterns across regions, species, and managers.

 

Amren.id–AMGO BLUE

Amren is a vehicle-sharing technology company. It developed 3 pillars of vehicle sharing technology which are consumer interface, in-vehicle telematics, and cloud management software. Its proprietary in-vehicle telematics is called AMGO BLUE. Amren gives away free telematics hardware to vehicle rental and sharing operators, believing that by giving away free hardware it can accelerate vehicle sharing development. Amren’s revenue comes from revenue sharing from rental operators.

 

ARSA Technology–ARSA SIJI & ARSA Phoenix

ARSA is an open-source prototyping platform hardware and software for engineering students, electronics hobbyist, researchers, and IoT Industry. Consisting of a programmable circuit board and a software to program the board, it is very compact yet easy to use, feature-rich, but affordably priced. ARSA Siji is based on Atmega2560-16AU. It is a very powerful and versatile board with lots of pins and features. The board is designed for complex projects such as robotics, 3D printer, research, etc. ARSA PHOENIX is based on ESP32 SoC. It contains a very powerful 240MHz 32-Bit CPU from Xtensa and a co-processor for ultra-low power application. Designed for IoT projects, ARSA PHOENIX has both WiFi and Bluetooth for its connectivity.

 

CV Indobot–Anami Robot

Anami Robot is a basic multi-functional robot to reduce the level of game addiction in children and can perform line follower tasks, transporter, Bluetooth control via Android, and an avoider robot. Anami Robot has 5 functions in 1 robot. It has a complex algorithm and a powerful system. Anami Robot uses Arduino Uno for manual control and a PID System to control the robot automatically. For its next update, CV Indobot will insert a new program like maze solving for Anami Robot’s line follower mode, which applies simple artificial intelligence.

 

ICHIBOT–Ultimate 4s

Ultimate 4s is robot line tracer with 14 Sensor and Atmega 1284p chip. This robot uses a micro-usb socket for communication that supports Arduino ide software. For actuator, this robot uses flying motor DC geared and rotary encoder sensor. It is controlled with compact H-bridge MOSFET on the top of the robot. Main display in this robot uses OLED LC 0.96″ and has a 6 button navigation. Main voltage regulator uses Buck Converter DC to DC LM2596 5v. Ultimate 4s is already using the CHIOS 5 operating system.

 

OrbLeaf–OrbWeaver

OrbWeaver is a combination of several hardware platforms and development kits that enable developers to develop, distribute, and maintain their IoT application. It currently has an IoT node (which also acts as a card terminal) and an apps card hardware platform (can be programmed and installed with different types of card apps). Both developments can be done using a single development kit (and programming language) without understanding the low-level hardware architecture (just use the APIs embedded within devkit).

 

PT. Wira Energy–Smart Energy and Water Meter

Wira Energy is a private utility company that is focusing on gas supply. It encounters internal difficulties by using traditional utility meter from manual reading, manual billing, payment collection, and manual controlling. To address this current problem, Wira Energy innovates a solution in the form of an IoT prepaid utility (gas, water, electricity) meter system. The IoT meter system uses LoraWan technology. This technology helps with remote monitoring, remote top-up, analyzing, controlling, automated billing, and payment collection. Many companies, including PGN (government gas company) are interested in this solution, so that now Wira Energy is focused on rolling out this solution all over the world.

 

Tanibox–Terra

Tanibox is an agriculture technology company that combines sensors-based hardware with software to help farmers running their farm operations. Terra, its sensors-based hardware, consists of weather stations, water and soil sensors, and automated irrigation valves, and can be controlled via specific software named Tania, from wherever the farmers or operators are and whenever they need it. This software also functions as a farm management system where farmers can keep their farm operational records such as crop production cycles, costs and budgeting, employees’ tasks management, resource and pest control management and farm control and monitoring. By using Terra, farmers can have current and precise weather, water and soil data of their farm, such as evapotranspiration on the field to dramatically improve their irrigation decision making. It will bring them not only efficiency in water and fertilizers usage but also assurance on their crop yields. This will allow farm business owners to increase their productivity towards an efficient and sustainable farm operation.

 

Next stop!

We would like to extend a big thanks to all participants, judges, and partner organizers. We couldn’t have had such a successful outcome without the help of BLOCK71 Jakarta for putting this together. BLOCK71 Jakarta is a one-stop hub to support entrepreneurs on their journey, a supportive vibrant incubator community, and a global startup network. Building on the success of BLOCK71 in Singapore, NUS Enterprise has collaborated with local and overseas partners to set up similar business hubs to help startups penetrate into different economies. Startups can leverage the co-working space and incubation services like mentoring, networking sessions, hot-desking facilities, as well as overseas grant support or startup funding to kick-start their expansion plans.

Neurabot is getting ready to battle it out at the Grand Finals in Shanghai. See you soon!

 

This article first appeared in Technode.

In the past years, we’ve seen a growing number of eco-sustainable businesses in the local startup scene. Not only do these businesses aim to develop a successful business but also find ways to minimize negative impact on the global or local environment, community, society, or economy. Here at BLOCK71 Jakarta, our goal has always been helping startups and providing them with a platform to learn, connect and grow. Recently we hosted SEED (https://seed.uno/), a global partnership initiative by UN Environment, UNDP and IUCN, to hold 3-day intensive workshop session targeting startup enthusiasts who want to apply eco-friendly approach to their product or service.

From defining value proposition to funding an eco-friendly business, here are some essential takeaways that you can take from this event!

To provide some background, SEED was founded at the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg by UN Environment, UNDP and IUCN as a global partnership for action on sustainable development and the green economy. It promotes the idea that social and environmental entrepreneurship is crucial for environmentally friendly and socially inclusive development and poverty reduction.

“I really enjoyed the program. The facilitators were very engaging and it was fun to get to know other local startups, while at the same time learning more about SEED BDS+ (Business Development Service+) and its’ Enterprise Toolkit,” said Fuad, one of the participants.

The SEED Enterprise Toolkit covers all the essential steps and key areas of business development support for eco inclusive small and medium enterprises. For instance, one of the Toolkit's chapters talks about the importance in defining your business value proposition. In order to do so, you can ask these questions: Is your product or service solving a problem? How does the solution overcome the problems it aims to solve? Does the solution bring an innovative approach into existing processes?

Taking into consideration these questions, now you can make your first draft by putting your value proposition in one simple sentence. Continue this step with “4C” approach, to make sure that your value proposition is crucial for customers, compelling, concrete and credible. During the workshop, our participants came up with a simple value proposition for an existing eco business: provide an affordable, tech advanced, non-harmful cooking solution. By defining a clear proposition, you become more aware of your business and set a clearer direction for your business to pursue. Simple, yet necessary step in the starting phase of your business.

The starting phase then continues to analyze the Target Market and determine your enterprise’s marketing priorities. For example, types of marketing properties can be: to increase sales by acquiring new customers or boost customer engagement. Since your different target market segments can have different preferences, priorities can change over time, and your business should not shy away from readjusting them, if necessary!

Another interesting session provided through this workshop is how to identify potential financiers for your business. First, analyze your options carefully between three main types of capital sources available: equity, debt and grants. Talk to VCs or international investor network to decide on equity financing, traditional banks for debt financing and do not forget that you also have the option of getting funding from government agencies through grant capital. Each comes with its own advantages and risks, so make sure to select accordingly.

In addition to the Enterprise Toolkit, SEED provides expertise through its Policy Advocacy and Financing programs. They can provide extensive insight from their vast networks of public, private and social stakeholders to advocate for policies to maximise your businesses capacities to deliver social, environmental and economic benefits. While SEED financing program provides grants that can help with scaling up your business activities.

Are you convinced to find out more about the program? To join the upcoming SEED workshop at your local city, do not forget to check their updates at https://seed.uno/ and BLOCK71 Jakarta’s media channels at Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn.

The day our participants eagerly waited for has finally come: The Innovation Challenge Final Demo Day, a chance to get up to IDR 100 million funding and an exclusive invitation to AVPN Conference in Singapore. Taking place right at BLOCK71 Jakarta, our panel of six highly accomplished judges, such as Hasanuddin Yasni (Chairman of Cold Chain Association), Ravi Menon (Country Manager of GAIN), Eko Irianto (Head Research for Cultivation and Biotechnology KP), Flora Chrisantine (IPLAN ARPI), Lucky Esa (Coach at Asia Entrepreneurship Training Program) and Sanny Gadaffy (CEO of 8 Villages) gathered up to give the last assessment to the last pitch of the startups on June 24, 2019.

What is the Challenge About?

IPLAN Innovation challenge is an initiative to find solutions to reduce fresh fish post harvest loss in Indonesia. It is organized by GAIN through I-PLAN program, working together with the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of Indonesia. Their partners include BLOCK71 Jakarta who provides mentoring session from Innovation Factory itself and the innovation and enterprise company of Nanyang Technological University, NTUitive. After the first challenge, Innovation Factory, GAIN and NTU together, organized another series of programme called NTUit Programme. This program convened for 8 weeks started from 15 January - 26 March for all the selected finalists.

The program started with a visit to Probolinggo in January and mentoring session on customer segmentation, interviewing skills and anything related to the business and personal development of the finalists, which was held by BLOCK71 Jakarta. It soon followed by a second visit to Surabaya on 11 February and several webinar and boot camp sessions that lasted until 28 February. 

The Innovation Factory mentors include several accomplished experts in their industries, such as Bonnie Susilo, founder of FOODLAB Indonesia, Karyana Hutomo, Industry Relations Specialist for Employability & Entrepreneurship, Iwan Murty, CEO of PT Tristar Service and Stephanie Arifin, Director of PLUS Platform Usaha Sosial. The finalists even got a chance to visit one of the biggest fish markets in East Java, during their trip, along with the mentors and guests. 

Getting to Know the Winners and Their Inventions

GAIN provided grant to all the four finalists (Maslaha, Prominator, Co-Fresh and CoolLar) IDR 400 million each to develop, pilot and market their product. They were given eight weeks to test and sell their product in the selected locations in Probolinggo and Surabaya. 

On the Final Demo Day, the overall winner was announced based on the reports made by the finalists and the overall observations throughout the program. Maslaha, the first winner, had impressed all of the judges with their innovation of a safe, chemical based ‘ice’ that is available up to 24 hours with temperature below 27 celsius to maintain the quality of fish; Co-Fresh provides display facilities for fresh fish. Prominator, on the other hand, has a mobile cold storage box with three wheels and solar panels. While CoolLar came up with the idea of a cold storage box that uses NaCL as a cooling ingredient. 

Coming out as the first winner, Maslaha is hoping to get more funds in the future. With a plan to seal a future investing agreement with Mr. Inderjit Singh Dhaliwal (CEO of Ntuitive), this can be seen as a good sign for more funding opportunities to come. For more detailed updates from the winners innovation and progress, you can contact GAIN and BLOCK71 Jakarta. 

Looking for other exciting opportunities for you business? Make sure to stay updated with BLOCK71 Jakarta’s media channels at Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. 

It is a common rule of branding 101, that branding drives the company’s value and equity. Having a strong brand creates a competitive edge that can help businesses stand out among competitors. With a strong image that sets them apart, their customers are more likely to recommend that particular brand to their friends and relatives, which in turn can bring more revenue for the business. However, according to the lead consultant of Equus Singapore, Andrew Thomas, there is a lack of intensive branding research and little investment made by most of Asian businesses, compared to western companies - with increasing businesses and innovations in Asia, it leads us to reflect more and take a lead in addressing the question: If branding holds that much importance, why aren’t more Asian businesses ready to invest in it?

Asia VS West: Industry Trends

Here’s the fact: the majority of today’s global brands do not originate from Asia. Why is that? Global brands such as Coca Cola, Apple, Google all have gone multiple experimentations with their branding strategies, including of what seems to be a minor thing: various design changes in their corporate logos. These companies are constantly investing enormous capital in research, resources, and employing high skilled experts in order to build a winning brand. As a result, they managed to deliver a consistent brand value and message over the years, while still embracing change and innovation, and gained people’s loyalty across the globe. 

However, there are a lot of factors that lead to lack of ‘readiness’ in businesses to pursue a specific, sustainable branding strategy, particularly in Asia. First of all, the majority of Asian businesses only focus on short term goals; bringing in more revenue as quickly as possible without much thoughts put into a strategy to build a sustainable business. In other words, quick sales come first. This can be seen with majority of Asian businesses that are in the category of commodity providers, or goods that can not be easily differentiated and do not need ‘personality’ or branding. 

Despite these factors, we can argue that Asia is still home to several successful global brands such as Tencent, Samsung, Toyota. The Asian market industry is rapidly changing, with free trade agreements and more ease in doing business transactions across Asian nations; along with the fact that more people are realizing the importance of leveraging advanced technology to bring more convenient in everyday lives. New ideas and innovations have surfaced and youths all over Asia are pursuing their entrepreneurship ideas with more confidence, facilitated by government support and increasing number of startup communities. Asian businesses should embrace long terms goals, change and innovation, in order to take the next step to brand themselves for the global customers.

A Winning Brand: Insights with Equus Singapore

In order to build the right image, we have to manage the experiences shared by our customers through our brand. If they have good experiences and like the service/product that we have to offer, they will surely come back for more. They want to be associated with valuable brands that fit most to their values and lifestyle. Therefore, we need to be consistent in the kind of values that we want to provide. it is also important to remember that it is impossible to target every type of customer. If we try to impress everyone with what we have to offer, we will end up being nothing. There’s the right type of customers for our business, and we need to brand ourselves in such a way that makes them want to try out our products and be proud to be associated with our brand. 

When asked about Indonesia’s favorite brands, Andrew and his partner, Colin Anderson, strategy director of Equus, mentioned, “Gojek,” As it is one example of successful Indonesian brand with services in diverse fields, that manages to resonate well to a lot of Indonesians. With this, Indonesia seems to be heading in the right direction to build more winning brands.

Looking for other exciting workshops? Make sure to stay updated with BLOCK71 Jakarta’s media channels at Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Together with TechStorm, BLOCK71 Jakarta officially held Indonesia’s First Shark Tank Media Launch event this Monday. The event is overpacked with startup enthusiasts from diverse industries joining the discussion with special guests:  Adrian Lim (Director of BLOCK71 Jakarta), Willy Foo (Tech Celebrity Influencer), Nicko Widjaja (President of MDI Ventures) and Fajrin Rasyid (Co-founder of Bukalapak), hosted by Debbie Lee (Founder of TechStorm).

Our host opened the discussion with Southeast Asia startup investment industry, that has reached hundreds of billions USD these past few years. This has come as no surprise, as currently, Indonesia is home for four unicorn companies, expecting to reach more than ten by 2024, followed by growing startups in its neighboring countries, such as Singapore, Vietnam and more. Investment industry is expecting to grow even bigger, thus the next questions arise for the aspiring entrepreneurs, what are the hot industries worth pursuing for next years to come? And what are the Sharks looking for in the Indonesia startup scene? Here are the takeaways!

Fintech and Logistics

All guest speakers agree that the hottest industry worth pursuing right now, would be fintech. To exemplify, Gojek has its own payment service, GoPay, Grab has OVO, Telkomsel is catching up with LinkAja (formerly T-Cash), and more companies are venturing to its own payment services. Fintech and logistics are vital backbones of a lot of industries, including e-commerce, as Rasyid mentioned, which is why Bukalapak also commits to develop its fintech service. 

Mobile First Approach

Nowadays, consumers are doing more transactions on their own smartphones compared to desktops. It is a more convenient and less time consuming option for majority of people, and companies are implementing a ‘Mobile First Approach’ for new features they want to add to their application or service. Bukalapak, for instance, has a lot of features that are only available for mobile users. 

“Investment has to yield returns,” Widjaja explained. That is the most important point that early entrepreneurs tend to forget; not potential ideas, not promises, but proof that it can give returns for the investors. In other words, know your numbers! “Keep hustling,” as Lim encouraged our local entrepreneurs.

The first Shark Tank premiere will be aired on July 15 on First Media. Make sure to tune in for exciting tech and entrepreneurial ideas! For more related contents, make sure to stay in touch at BLOCK71’s social media channels on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. 

Held every month, this time Kopi Chat led an exciting discussion on cybersecurity. With three guests speakers, such as Darryl Chuan, Country Manager of Horangi; Wildan Aliviayarda, from Division Head Security Solution of Indosat Ooredoo; Teddy Tee, Founder of Cashlez, together they answered our participants’ security concerns on data leakage, hacking and most importantly, how to protect our businesses from these cyber threats. 

Our moderator opened the discussion with an engaging question,”So how does everyone feel with the recent social media ban by our government?” which was followed by laughter across the room and encouraged everyone to share their opinions on the role of government, small to large businesses on the internet practice we witness today. During the ban, many people switched to use VPN providers, and it raised a question whether we put ourselves at risk of data leakage as majority of VPN providers are not well regulated. The guest speakers answered that as long as we make sure the service provider is from a reliable platform, we would definitely be safe. However, they mentioned that Indonesia still remains as one of the countries that are prone to cyber attacks. Specifically, the country has had more than 200 million cyber attacks in the first 10 months of 2018 alone, as told by Chief of BSSN, according to a research conducted by Ravenry.

Since a lot of businesses nowadays use the internet as the sole medium to market their product and make sales, the need for secure and accessible means of doing activities online is increasing more than ever. Cyberthreat becomes one of the biggest threats that businesses face; especially after businesses received big funds and got a lot of media exposure, they become more prone to the attacks. Along with this, there is a lot of cyber attacks done by internal employees inside a company, including former employees looking for ransoms or revenge. In the case of Indonesia, common cyberattack cases include getting through our passwords and relevant data by providing fake links for us to input our information, in an activity called phishing. Unfortunately, a lot of people have experienced this due to their own carelessness, therefore we have to make sure the link received does not seem suspicious and always make sure to check the sources from where we got the links. 

Ravenry also added that it in order to prevent cyber attacks, it is crucial to be aware of the most common types of cybersecurity, such as critical infrastructure security (examples would be police and military security services), application security (this includes antivirus software, secure coding, secure operating systems, secure by default and secure by design), network security (this is usually accomplished through a network penetration test to evaluate the network for vulnerabilities in servers, devices and network services), cloud security (such as firewalls, penetration testing, tokenization, using virtual networks, and avoiding public internet connection)  and (Internet of Things) IoT security. 

The most important lesson we can take away from this is to build a security-conscious culture in the work environment. Not only should we set proper company policies regarding online security, we need to educate our employees and remind them to be aware at all times, including setting their passwords periodically to lessen the chance of what is called a ‘Brute Force Attack’ into the company servers. Brute Force Attack, is one of the hacking methods used to gain access to a server, by guessing combination of passwords. After realizing this crucial problem, the next step is to consider hiring cybersecurity firms in order to prevent the attacks, or build an in house one; both carry their own pros and cons and should be carefully considered by the company.

For more cybersecurity related information, make sure to stay in touch at BLOCK71’s social media channels on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

“You can have three Southeast Asian countries before becoming a unicorn or conquer Indonesia and become one,” as told by Devina Halim, one of the Market Validation Program (MVP) host speakers from East Ventures, when asked about the benefits of market expansion to Indonesia. 

To help tech-driven companies from Singapore validate their expansion into the Indonesia market, a Market Validation Program (MVP) was developed by NUS Enterprise, BLOCK71 (Jakarta); as part of the In-Market Launchpad Programme, an initiative of the Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore, supported by Enterprise Singapore. The programme consists of three segments: Model in Singapore, Validate in Jakarta & Prospect Beyond. 

The programme kicked off with the Model segment in Singapore which saw companies going through the business model canvas framework and introduced to the market entry canvas which formed the baseline for the validation trip to Jakarta.

The validate segment in Jakarta then took place over three days, with 16 host speakers comprising companies/startups, corporates and government organisations invited to address topics on the Indonesian market landscape through talent and customer chase sessions as well as  business incorporation matters and Government initiatives and policies. There was also a trip to BSD City to visit the BINUS-Apple Developer Academy and 99.co as well as a full-house networking dinner with stakeholders in the startup ecosystem and local businesses. The MVP concluded with a structured validation session on the third day for companies to do a few rounds of 1-on-1 pitching of their market entry canvas for advice from a panel of market advisors on their expansion plan and market readiness. 

With a population size of almost 270 million and over 170 million internet users, it’s hard for anyone to dispute the massive market and sheer abundance of opportunities present. However, localising and finding that product market fit remains critical to the journey of any business expansion. Understanding what it really means to set up, do business and sell to Indonesians was the first step in this journey for the Singapore companies through this MVP. 

Interested in other market validation programmes for your business? Stay updated with BLOCK71 Jakarta’s media channels at Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Last week, BLOCK71 Jakarta hosted Singapore Airlines (SIA), the world’s leading airline, on their Southeast Asia roadshow to share about the Singapore Airlines AppChallenge 2019. After last year’s great turnout, we hosted SIA for the second time this year; right after an inaugural session in BLOCK71 Bandung the day before. The SIA AppChallenge is a corporate innovation challenge held annually with challenge statements culled from their internal business units, seeking solutions from around the world. Whether you’re a startup, programmer or student, each gets the opportunity to collaborate and co-innovate with SIA in solving their business challenges. 

Not only can you win attractive cash prizes of up to SGD12,000, you will also get exclusive mentoring by SIA industry experts, networking opportunities with renowned brands and exposure to the global aviation industry. Solutions with business potential will also be offered a proof of concept collaboration of up to SGD150,000. The AppChallenge is open to two tracks and categories of participants: 1. “Startup & Innovators” tracks (open to startups and innovators at a global scale) and “Singapore Students” tracks (Indonesian students may apply through “Startup & Innovators” track). 

Key dates to note for the SIA AppChallenge:

      23 August 2019: Submission deadline

      2 - 12 September 2019: Semi-finals

      18 October 2019: Finals

There are six challenge statements from four categories in this year’s AppChallenge: 

1. Customer experience: On-Ground

2. Customer experience: Passenger Lounge 

3. Customer experience: Passenger In-Flight

4. Travel Ecosystem: KrisShop

5. Engineering: Aircraft maintenance

6. Sustainability: Resource management  

For each of the above, there is a video and info brief detailing what participants need to know. Visit their official website for more. 

The event kicked off with Wilson Wong, SIA’s Digital Innovation Lab Business Technologist sharing on the AppChallenge followed by an exciting panel discussion with the Country Head of Zen Rooms (Sam Makhlouf) and Founder of Trabo (Rajeev Verma) on tech in the travel industry. 

Wilson explained that the aviation industry is a curated, competitive industry.  Big corporations try to meet customer demands for a more personalized, seamless holistic experience from flight search to booking experience. For that reason, SIA works with startups that can share fresh insights in solving their current problems. To improve the customers’ experience, SIA also has a huge team of data scientists working with big data and machine learning, to strategize everything from pricing to simplifying engine operations. 

In proportion to the ease of travel, online flight bookings and hotel bookings have both shot through the roof, Sam shared. Traditional hotel businesses often take more time to adjust to the increase in demand as they need to manage land and build rooms to accommodate. Budget hotel chains like Zen Rooms on the other hand, can successfully grow at a much faster rate by onboarding partners to expand their network. Both Sam and Rajeev strongly encouraged everyone to take part in the AppChallenge as it provides the opportunity to be exposed to problems faced by large corporations, like SIA. 

The panel also discussed traits and characteristics of individuals they look out for, whether for the AppChallenge or in building lean startup teams. The three key traits are: initiative, grit and fit - fit with the team and product market fit. Something practical for the audience of students and entrepreneurs to take note of! On the topic of travel tech, the audience had to ask the panellists what their favourite travel app is, excluding their respective company’s apps (of course). And surprise, surprise, Zomato, Google Flights and Google Map were the favourites! Google must be proud.

Do you have a solution or idea that solves any of the six challenge statements, or enhance a traveler’s experience? Submit your ideas before August, 23rd!

Interested in other exciting corporate innovation challenges? Stay updated with BLOCK71 Jakarta’s media channels at Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.