Here’s Go-Jek’s massive plan for an everything-on-demand empire

Windy Natriavi (L) and Dayu Dara Permata (R), the two women in charge of Go-Life

Go-Jek is well established in Indonesia as an app to flag a motorcycle ride or get a courier for instant deliveries. In early October, the app came out with new features: bundled under the name Go-Life, you can now order a house cleaner, or beauty salon services such as a manicurist and a masseuse, right to your doorstep.

If you thought of Go-Jek as a transportation and logistics company, it’s time to re-assess the situation. The startup is branching out, slowly turning itself into an everything-on-demand empire.

It starts with two

Go-Jek founder Nadiem Makarim put two young women in charge of forging Go-Jek’s path into lifestyle services beyond transportation: Dayu Dara Permata and Windy Natriavi. The pair now directs a team of about 40 employees – 70, if you count the freelancers – at the Go-Life department within Go-Jek. It’s their first position after stints at consulting firm McKinsey.

Nadiem, who also spent time at McKinsey, plucked several talents from his former employer. (Raditya Wibowo, who leads Go-Box, is another former McKinseyan). First Nadiem wanted to put Windy and Dara to work at separate positions, but the two insisted on working together at Go-Life. “We knew each other from university, and we knew we work well together,” Dara explains.

That much is obvious. Dara and Windy call each other “hun,” and our conversation is sprinkled with laughter. But in this light-hearted atmosphere, a clear picture took form. Go-Life’s ambitions within Go-Jek are huge and involve upgrading Indonesia’s entire informal labor sector.

Standardizing quality

Dara and Windy have been working on Go-Life behind the scenes since about May. The first three services were rolled out in October without a huge marketing campaign. They wanted to test the demand first and make sure they could deliver consistently.

“In the on-demand model, it’s about standardizing the quality of the service,” Dara explains. No matter which masseuse or make-up artist comes to your house, customers need to be sure that the experience meets their expectations.

Go-Life achieves this by having all service providers go through an assessment and training center. They are coached by professionals and equipped with the tools and materials to perform their service well.

A streetside foot massage parlor in Indonesia. Photo credit: Zaini Abdullah

“In the beginning, new service providers will get a set of equipment for free. Later, once they have a steady number of bookings, they will buy the utensils they need from the Go-Life store. They will pay for it in installments,” Windy explains.

Go-Life chooses the cosmetics, cleaning products, and tools it wants its service providers to work with. This is also an opportunity for the company to enter partnership deals with brands.

Massages do best

Unlike Nadiem, who can be tight-lipped when it comes to sharing figures on Go-Jek’s performance, Dana and Windy are generous with facts about Go-Life’s early progress.

New costs and risks

Is Indonesia ready?