Startup Marketplace for Foodstuffs from TokoWahab Choose to Grow Organically

Establishing a startup, raising several series of funding, then developing the widest possible business is template the success of the majority of startups everywhere. But that path is not an option for William Sunito and his startup ShopWahab.

William is the third generation in his family who has owned a distribution business in the pastry and bakery sector since 1957. After returning from school in the United States in 2015, William developed the family business into a marketplace named TokoWahab which provides everything SME needs in the pastry and bakery sector.

Before marketplace When the company was founded, William admitted that his family business only supplies factories and bakery/pastry franchise companies that are spread out in shopping centers. However, from the research he found, William found that 70% of the total bakery and pastry businesses actually came from SMEs. After knowing that, he ventured to launch TokoWahab.

"To date there are more than 20 official brand national and international on our platform," said William.

Opt for organic growth

The man who recently received the title "30 Before 30" from Forbes It said the market potential for bakeries and pastries was around $2-3 billion, or around IDR30 trillion to IDR45 trillion. But what makes him more optimistic is that the growth, which he said is still in the range of 12%-13%, is higher than the growth in the value of other types of food.

Even during this pandemic, William admits that the cake business is still a public taste. The large-scale social restrictions in mid-March 2020 indeed made businesses drag on, but the situation is said to have improved since May during the Eid holiday season. In the last two months, William said that the public's interest in pastries and bakery products has actually strengthened, reflecting the increasing popularity of a number of types of bread lately.

Assuming you want to grow faster, seeking additional capital into a venture capital or similar entity should be a common option. But not for William. He admitted that so far there have been several VCs who are interested in putting their money in TokoWahab. However, in order to keep the company growing organically and ensuring sustainability, William admitted that he did not need to raise funds.

"We still I prefer that growth sustain because we can still grow of our profits. We haven't even thought about it growth significant, so far organic," he added.

TokoWahab uses a B2B business model. They strictly select their own products from quality suppliers and are licensed by the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM). Of the many types of products available in marketplace At that time, William called cheese, chocolate, and butter products as prima donna. Sales of the three types can reach 50% of their total sales.

TokoWahab's profit comes from the difference in product prices and marketing assistance costs for brands that work together. Of the two, William admitted that currently the company continues to grow without any money from any venture capital.

Big goal

William founded TokoWahab one of them because he intended to help inspire SMEs in related fields. However, as a company, he is determined to make TokoWahab a company marketplace number one in the field of pastry and bakery in Indonesia.

William claims that his party has become the choice for around 4000 SMEs. In the next few years, he targets TokoWahab to double that number. If that happens, William is pretty sure his company will probably never raise funding.

"In one or two years we are targeting to penetrate 10 thousand MSMEs shopping in us," concluded William.

To achieve this target, TokoWahab made a number of strategies and adjustments. Especially during this pandemic, the food and beverage business is experiencing difficult times. Thousands of restaurants closed and the supplying platform also experienced difficulties until it stopped operating. Capturing the boredom of people who are constantly at home, William chose to intensify marketing on how to make various types of cakes as well as tips & tricks for opening a business.

This method, he claims, helped them get through a difficult period in March and April. "In fact, our sales in June rose significantly to double compared to last year."