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MSMEs take center stage at 3rd Mitra Tokopedia anniversary

Sheena Suparman (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Mon, November 8, 2021

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MSMEs take center stage at 3rd Mitra Tokopedia anniversary (Courtesy of Tokopedia)

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okopedia has marked the third anniversary of its merchant-oriented services platform, Mitra Tokopedia, by shining the spotlight on the small traditional businesses that comprise the bulk of its merchant partners.

At a virtual press conference held on Nov. 2, 2021 to celebrate its third year of operations, Mitra Tokopedia revealed that around 80 percent of traditional businesses credited the platform with helping them survive and thrive financially throughout the pandemic. These traditional businesses comprise warung (“mom and pop” shops), small grocers, wholesalers, suppliers, cafes and other micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Mitra Tokopedia has been deliberately designed to support MSME business owners to easily access and use Tokopedia’s gamut of digital services and products, including payment and direct-to-consumer delivery services. In doing so, Mitra Tokopedia has empowered merchants to maintain and grow their businesses, even amid the limitations of restricted social mobility and business activities.

“Nine out of 10 sellers saw their incomes increase more than 50 percent after joining Mitra Tokopedia,” said John Hadiwidjaja, Tokopedia’s assistant vice president (AVP) of new retail.

“They also said they were able to improve their [family’s] welfare through savings, paying for their children's schooling and paying off debt,” he added.

The platform’s contribution to the country’s MSME sector has not gone unnoticed by Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Minister Teten Masduki, who expressed his appreciation for Mitra Tokopedia at the virtual anniversary event.

Teten also expressed his hope that Mitra Tokopedia would continue to play a role in accelerating Indonesia’s MSME development in the coming years.

“MSME actors, especially micro enterprises including warung, have the potential to make a significant impact on improving the people's welfare and prosperity, and contributing to the recovery of the national economy,” the minister said.

"I hope to increase not only the number of [MSMEs] that are connected to the digital ecosystem, but also [their] digital literacy and the welfare of business owners who are members of Mitra Tokopedia," Teten added.

The Mitra Tokopedia survey also found that 60 percent of respondents used the application’s Wholesale feature for improved efficiency.

The feature allows business owners to take advantage of app-only promotions and thereby increase their income without having to close shop during stock-taking and inventory updates.

Elisa Pakpahan, a merchant based in Medan, says that her business has benefited significantly from being a Mitra Tokopedia partner.

“Buying wholesale products in bulk at offline stores is an obstacle for me as a person with disabilities,” said Elisa. “However, buying bulk stock of finished products has become much easier since joining Mitra Tokopedia because [it has] the Wholesale feature. My monthly turnover has also increased to tens of millions of rupiah.”

Ida Fitriani, a contract teacher who owns Barokah Cell in West Kutai, shared a similar experience.

“The ease of buying digital products through Mitra Tokopedia has brought in more customers,” she said, adding that Barokah Cell’s monthly transactions had more than doubled.

“Especially [because] during the pandemic, mobile phone credit and data packages have become a necessity for working or studying from home,” she explained.

Tokopedia has been collaborating with the government for three years to help grow Indonesian MSMEs, which contribute more than 60 percent to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP).

"In signing the cooperation agreement (PKS) on [the government’s] warung digitalization program with the Cooperatives and SMEs Ministry program on Nov. 3, 2021, for example, we hope to help traditional business actors contribute to the digital economy, particularly amid the pandemic,” said Tokopedia public policy and government relations director Astri Wahyuni.

Mitra Tokopedia is currently developing an MSME mentoring program that provides technical guidance on how to start a business on the Tokopedia online marketplace, including the registration process to obtain an online business identification number (NIB). Having a registered NIB provides legal certainty and protection for digital merchants, as well as gives them access to the government’s MSME assistance and incentive programs.

The platform also has a program that offers merchants real-time assistance through its network of trained representatives, or Sobat Mitra. The majority of survey respondents said they appreciated the help they received from members of Tokopedia’s Sobat Mitra crew, especially the ease at which they could obtain information and knowledge on how to use the Mitra Tokopedia application.

Eddy Satriya, the SOEs ministry’s deputy for micro businesses, emphasized the vital importance of technology for small businesses during this unprecedented time.

“Particularly amid the pandemic, it is very important for traditional businesses, such as warung and grocers, to transform through the use of technology,” said Eddy.

“Tokopedia's joint efforts [with the government] in digital training programs, [as well as] business licensing assistance and advocacy, are expected to make it easier for MSME actors to grow their businesses,” he underlined.

Mitra Tokopedia has also made it easy for consumers to meet their daily needs by enabling them to access the vast range of products offered by warung and small grocers. The survey results showed that nine out of 10 merchants had experienced sales growth and expanded their product range after joining Mitra Tokopedia.

Meanwhile, the transaction value of wholesale products had increased twelvefold compared to figures from the first year after Mitra Tokopedia was launched.

The survey also found that digital payments services for the Social Security Agency (BPJS) as well as water and electricity bills were among respondents’ most popular Mitra Tokopedia facilities.

"The initiatives introduced by Mitra Tokopedia over the past three years have been implemented to help not only traditional business owners, but also all Indonesian people so that they can #BangkitBersama [rise together] in restoring the country's economy that has been affected by the pandemic," John said.

Mitra Tokopedia is used by millions of traditional business entrepreneurs to serve millions of people in more than 500 cities and districts across the archipelago.



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