Bukalapak Backs Warteg Owners' Business Resilience amid Pandemic

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Bukalapak through one of its programs dubbed Mitra Bukalapak—owned by the firm’s subsidiary Buka Mitra Indonesia—announced its collaboration with Kowantara (Komunitas Warteg Nusantara) meant to help warteg (traditional food stall) survive the pandemic through the online marketplace’s digital platform. 

This is hoped to benefit members of Kowantara into being part of the 7 million Mitra Bukalapak members that consist of "mom-and-pop" kiosks or warung and individual agents from across Indonesin regions. The platform will also help accommodate warteg owners to purchase their needs for business and personal purposes. 

Citing the press release Tempo obtained on May 29, Kowantara chairperson Mukroni eagerly has welcomed the partnership between Mitra Bukalapak and Kowantara because it will help local culinary MSMEs in overcoming the economic challenge due to the pandemic. 

“According to the survey conducted by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 2020, more than 20.000 warteg or almost 50% out of the total of 50.000 warteg in Indonesia were forced to close down due to the pandemic. The collaboration with Mitra Bukalapak certainly gives hope because warteg owners will be able to gain knowledge on opportunities presented by digital platforms in earning main or additional income”, says the Kowantara chairperson. 

An equally eager response was also given by Buka Mitra Indonesia Howard Gani, who acknowledged the role of MSMEs such as warteg as the country’s economic backbone, is committed to continuously empowering Indonesian MSMEs through access to technology, capital and infrastructure, which are among the keys to consistent business improvements.

“We are hoping to help them gain business resilience, as well as contributing to social impact and economic inclusion in Indonesia,” said Howard Gani. 

He also claimed that the social impact from Mitra Bukalapak is reflected in the increase in transactions experienced by Mitra Bukalapak warung owners, despite the pandemic. This year, the number of wholesale, digital, and finance products sold through Mitra Bukalapak has successfully boosted the earnings of warung owners and individual agents.

Rudy, a Mitra Bukalapak from Bandung, West Java, sees a monthly increase in his income from virtual product transactions through the Mitra Bukalapak app. 

“I used to earn really small, only around Rp 50 thousand. After joining Mitra Bukalapak, I have been experiencing spikes in my income. I can earn around Rp 8 million per month from just selling phone credits, because I also continuously think of initiatives that I can come up with, in order to drive my income, one of them is working together with my brother to engage security staff at a housing complex as customers,” he said. 

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