Blibli’s revenue surges, but profitability remains elusive

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Hi there,

If you live in Jakarta or have been there in the past year, you may have noticed how Blibli has put up stores that sell various smartphone brands and accessories in several malls across the city.

The company aggressively expanded its offline presence in 2022, but JD.com’s withdrawal from Indonesia could provide more momentum for Blibli to deepen its focus on this market.

But despite this expansion, Blibli’s financials were still in the red in 2022. Its loss from operations, for instance, widened by 33%.

In this week’s Big Story, I delve into the company’s financials during that period.

There are several highlights from Blibli’s earnings report, such as higher operating expenses and a 23% drop in the company’s total assets. The company also paid off its debts to banks and also sold all of its shares in GoTo.

At the same time, Blibli posted a 72% increase in net revenue, mostly due to its online retail presence and Tiket.com, its travel-booking subsidiary.

Another Indonesian ecommerce player also seems to be targeting the electronics market. Bukalapak seems intent on strengthening its used-smartphone venture with its recent acquisition of iPrice, the Malaysia-based price comparison firm.

In this week’s Hot Take, I look into the deal and how Bukalapak has quietly established a secondhand smartphone business through a platform called Goats.

— Jofie

THE BIG STORY

Blibli posts 72% revenue jump in 2022 but remains in the red

Image credit: Timmy Loen

The Indonesian ecommerce firm also saw a 23% drop in total assets after paying off its debts to banks and selling all of its GoTo shares.

THE HOT TAKE

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