Indonesian coffee firm pulls in funding from Openspace, Capsquare

Jiwa Group, an Indonesian startup focusing on grab-and-go snacks and drinks, has received an undisclosed amount of funding from Openspace Ventures and Capsquare Asia Partners.

The fresh capital will be used to fuel the food and beverage (F&B) firm’s expansion and strengthen its tech infrastructure.

Food and beverages from Jiwa Group / Photo credit: Jiwa Group

Since being founded in 2018, Jiwa has launched three brands, namely Kopi Janji Jiwa, Jiwa Toast, and Jiwa Tea, with over 50 products available in nearly 1,000 outlets across Indonesia.

In 2021 alone, the company has served over 40 million products, which is more than double what it sold last year.

“We believe Jiwa’s strong brand, unique product offerings, almost 1,000-strong offline locations coupled with increasing use of technology across all elements of the business will continue to solidify its leading position, serving a large and increasingly sophisticated market of Indonesian consumers,” said Jessica Huang Pouleur, executive director at Openspace.

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Jiwa noted that demand was underpinned by a consumer shift from instant coffee to higher quality coffees. Nearly 40% of Indonesian customers now buy their coffee in a grab-and-go outlet, it underlines.

Starting off as a coffee business, Jiwa later expanded into other specialties. In 2019, it launched the Jiwa Toast brand, which offers a variety of sandwiches. The toast market is estimated to be worth around US$50 million per annum, with a 25% year-on-year growth over the next five years, the group said.

“Innovation and customer satisfaction have always been a part of Jiwa Group’s DNA, ensuring we stay relevant and sustainable in the dynamic food and beverage industry,” says Jiwa Group founder Billy Kurniawan.

The company also attributes its growth to its social media engagement and integrations with other platforms like GoFood and GrabFood, acknowledging that Jiwa has one of the largest Instagram followings for a local grab-and-go coffee chain.

In Indonesia, direct-to-consumer (D2C) startups, including those in the F&B industry, have gathered momentum during the pandemic as more and more people rely on delivery services for daily needs.

VC investment into D2C firms shot sharply in the first year of the pandemic, as shown by the following chart.