Indonesia’s business-to-business (B2B) marketplace for fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) GudangAda announced on Monday that it has raised an eight-figure Indoesian rupiah seed funding round led by Alpha JWC Ventures and Wavemaker Partners. Singaporean private equity fund Pavilion Capital also participated in this round.
Indonesia’s FMCG market is valued at over USD 50 billion with an annual growth of 8%, according to a statement by the company.
GudangAda is a B2B marketplace for traders in the FMCG supply chain to meet and transact online.The platform connects various kinds of traders, from principals and distributors to small retailers like mom-and-pop shops. Every fulfillment is guaranteed, and payments are secured through third-party escrow accounts, the company said.
The firm was founded in 2018 by Stevensang, an industry expert with over 25 years of experience in the Indonesian and Southeast Asian FMCG and retail industries. It currently offers tens of thousands of stock-keeping units (SKUs) ranging from F&B, personal care, and cosmetics to cigarettes, and is broadening its product selection every week as new partners come on board.
The seed investment is the company’s first institutional fundraising round. The fresh cash will be used to speed up the company’s business expansion, obtaining new members, and expanding services and offerings. The firm will also enhance its leadership and operational talents to accelerate growth.
GudangAda today covers 500 cities in major Indonesian islands from Sumatra to Papua. This year, GudangAda plans to broaden its member coverage across the FMCG value chain and integrate new members into its existing supply chain networks.
“In the past year, we have successfully introduced our services and received positive responses from traders. Our numbers on both users’ acquired and gross merchandise value (GMV) transactions have broken records month after month. The retention rate has been great as well. That’s how we know that what we offer is what our members need, not only what they’re curious to try,” Stevensang said in a press statement.
“On the surface, FMCG distribution might seem like an old industry that can be easily disrupted by technology startups. In reality, it is still largely offline and relationship-driven with habits that may not be so easy to change. We are excited to back GudangAda which is guided by Stevensang’s insightful approach,” said Paul Santos, managing partner at Wavemaker Partners.