Startup Gringgo Wants to Help Facilitate the Waste Management System

Today many people do not pay attention to the problem of waste and the impact it can cause. More people are concerned with how to get rid of their own trash. However, Gringgo, a startup based in Bali, wants to try to change this habit, which wants to help facilitate waste management system.

Gringgo was established in November 2014, at the same time as the event Bali Startup Weekends who took a place in co-working space Hubud, with the name Cash For Trash. Its current founder full time there are two people, they are Olivier Pouillon as CEO and Febriadi Pratama (Febri) as CTO. Apart from Olivier and Febri, there are two more people who are part of the founders and work voluntarily to help Gringgo grow.

Febri told that the background of its establishment Gringo is that there are still many areas that do not have access to waste disposal. Denpasar, the city where Febri lives which is also the capital of the province of Bali, is one of them.

“Where I live, in Denpasar, there is no garbage collection service at home. So, every few days I bring trash to the office because there is a garbage collection service at the office. […] So, we wish that someday we could easily request garbage collection services," said Febri.

How Gringgo works

Febri describes Gringgo as a web based apps which can be used to facilitate the waste management system. Simply put, through the Gringgo service, users can request that their waste be transported and processed.

Febri said, “Yup, that's the idea [Gringgo facilitates users to request that their waste be transported]. So, later people can register and request [at Gringgo]. Then we find the nearest collector who will then pick it up and bring it to their facility for processing.”

“We are collaborating with government or private agencies engaged in waste collection and processing to build a network for waste collection. Later, everyone who has internet access can easily ask for garbage collection at their home or where they are doing activities,” he added.

Febri also emphasized that Gringgo will not touch the waste to be transported. Gringgo only facilitates and helps collectors to be able to work better and possibly earn more.

When asked about monetization, Febri said that it is difficult to explain the business model currently adopted by Gringgo. But as social enterprise, Gringgo can get funds not only from investments but also donations as initial operational funds. Febri also revealed that currently Gringgo is looking for investors who have the same interests and vision as them.

Gringgo operational focus going forward

In addition to the website, Griggo also has an application mobile devices which is currently only available for platformAndroid. The application itself is currently still in development and is only limited to providing information such as what items can be recycled and the estimated price of these items. As for its own operational focus, Gringgo will focus on the Seminyak and Denpasar areas in Bali.

Olivier said, “We are focused on implementing solutions for Bali, particularly Seminyak and Denpasar. The waste problem is a bigger problem in Bali which also affects the tourism [sector] negatively, not just the general public.”

“Bali has earned a dirty reputation and we are here to provide real, long-term solutions with our partners. This is only the first stage, we want to build and reach more people, as well as regions,” he continued.

Olivier himself has cross over with environmental issues since late 1993 in Indonesia. Starting from working with the Wisnu Foundation, the first Indonesian environmental organization to be established in Bali, to setting up his own waste management company in 2009 called Bali Recycling. Meanwhile, Febri has a background as an interior designer and has only entered the environmental world since joining Gringgo.

“We are not an e-commerce [company], chatting, or travel. We really use technology to solve a common problem that affects everyone [garbage]. […] Now, we are starting to live in an era of how torecover resources are wasted and in Gringgo we invite all parties to start it,” said Febri.