Hero Supermarket operational director Roy Soeradji explained why the company had chosen the aforementioned location. “It’s a strategic place in West Bekasi with lots of potential,” Roy said during the grand opening of the new outlet on Friday.

“It’s surrounded by residential areas as well, and it has 13,000 to 15,000 households suitable as our target market, meaning they care about a healthy lifestyle.”

The only Hero Supermarket in Bekasi for now, the outlet offers more than 10,000 products, comprising around 95 percent local and 5 percent imported items.

Read also: Retailer Hero Supermarket records spike in profit

While several retailers in Indonesia have teamed up with online grocery shopping services that allow customers to have their groceries delivered to their door, Hero Supermarket stresses the continued necessity for brick-and-mortar outlets. “We’re still analyzing it, but based on our customers’ behavior, many of them still prefer to come to our stores and experience it by themselves,” said Roy. “But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to collaborate with online [platforms].”

Furthermore, Tony Mampuk, the company’s general manager of corporate affairs, said Hero Supermarket still focused on providing outlets and had a strategy to face e-commerce retailers: “Our staff has been trained to give our customers knowledge on products, especially those related to a healthy lifestyle. They can share knowledge about what seasoning matches a particular ingredient,” said Tony at the same occasion. (mut)

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