Defying the trend in which the younger generations of influential families are groomed to enter the political arena, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s sons have decided to try their luck in business instead.

Over the weekend, Jokowi’s two sons, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, 30, and Kaesang Pangarep, 23, took to the stage to promote their brands at a jam-packed parking lot of a budget hotel in Cikini, Central Jakarta. A light rain failed to put off the curious crowd attending the event.

Kaesang, dressed in a denim jacket, sprinkled red velvet wafer and Oreo cookie crumbs, green tea and chocolate on plain martabak (pancakes), while next to him, Gibran, in a varsity jacket, plated banana nuggets with chocolate sauce and cashews.

The two brothers subsequently gave away small portions of the snacks to the visitors, who jostled to get the samples.

In the same compound, a long line of online food delivery service riders were already queueing at a food truck, painted black and yellow, which sold the martabak and banana nuggets.

While Markobar, Gibran’s martabak brand, has been around for two years now, Kaesang only launched his banana nugget brand, Sang Pisang, recently. The younger son, who has gained celebrity status on social media thanks to his quirky blogging style, launched a new outlet during the event, merging with a Markobar kiosk.

Gibran said they had decided to merge their businesses into one outlet in Cikini hoping to expand their markets.

“I expect to see a new, wider market through this collaboration,” he said. Kaesang added that the merger was also part of a cost-cutting strategy.

Kaesang revealed that it cost at least Rp 60 million (US$ 4,353) to open a new food truck-style outlet.

Since its launch in November 2017, Sang Pisang has opened a total of 11 outlets in Jakarta; Bandung, West Java; Makassar, North Sulawesi; Palembang, South Sumatra and Pare-Pare, South Sulawesi. Sang Pisang’s Instagram account is followed by more than 28,900 users.

Markobar, launched around three years ago in Surakarta, Central Java, has 33 outlets in Jakarta and other cities across the country and has more than 113,000 followers on Instagram.

“I look forward to beating Gibran by opening 300 branches this year,” Kaesang told The Jakarta Post after the event.

He cited his father, who was a furniture entrepreneur before entering politics as mayor of Surakarta in 2005, as well as his brother, as his role models in business.

“But I’m running this by my own effort. My father barely knew about this as we haven’t really talked much lately because he is so busy,” he said.

According to a senior business consultant and small and medium enterprises expert, Djoko Kurniawan, the rapid growth of Gibran and Kaesang’s businesses was not due solely to their status as the President’s sons.

“It may help to attract customers, but I have to honestly say that they are also creative in innovating the old-school type of business,” Djoko said.

Djoko pointed out that martabak and fried banana had long been popular as Indonesian snacks. But the two brothers managed to upgrade the classics by creating pop flavor options such as chocolate hazelnut, red velvet, green tea or Oreo cookies, to cater to youngsters’ taste buds.

They had set relatively high prices for their products, but the added value made them worthwhile, Djoko said.

Dewi Cecilia, 37, a radio announcer said she was initially skeptical that the brands were selling for any reason other than their images and buzz on social media.

“But it turns out the taste is worth the price,” she said.

The price of a pop-flavor martabak starts at Rp 90,000 (US$6.54), while the banana nuggets start at Rp 25,000 per box. (sha)

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