This Indonesian startup is targeting an untapped ecommerce market

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Hello readers,

Everyone’s shopping online these days. Even my dad, who has become savvy with China’s online shopping website Taobao, has been receiving way more parcels than me. That’s good news for many of our ecommerce friends out there, but not so much for offline retailers.

A number of startups that aim to help these stores go digital have sprung up in Asia. One of them is Ula, which is solving inventory and supply chain issues for warungs, the traditional family-owned convenience stores that are popular across Indonesia. In turn, investors are paying attention and are pouring funds into these fledgling businesses.

Today we look at:

• Why investors have taken notice of Ula
• The state of Southeast Asia’s tech startups in 2020
• Other newsy highlights such as Hmlet’s CEO steps down and Byju’s plan to raise more funds

PREMIUM SUMMARY

The youngest entrant in Indonesia’s B2B ecommerce space

Ula, a business-to-business ecommerce startup working to digitalize Indonesia’s neighborhood stores, raised US$20 million earlier this year. The investment comes at a time when ecommerce is exploding worldwide. But what exactly makes Ula stand out from a sea of players that includes Bukalapak, GrabKios, and Sequoia-backed GudangAda?

• Launched in January 2020, Ula is targeting Indonesia’s US$377 billion retail market by providing retailers a solution for sourcing, supply chain, and inventory. And despite being the youngest entrant to the B2B ecommerce space, the company is already working with about 20,000 stores in the country.
• Splash the cash: The startup’s achievement is not the only reason why investors are interested; they’re also attracted to the strong ecommerce background of Ula’s four co-founders, who have worked at giants like Flipkart, Amazon and Lazada.
• Customers first: Ula’s services are not the cheapest and it also doesn’t do same-day deliveries, so why are its customers staying loyal? Perhaps it’s because the team is focused on building relationships with store owners. For instance, Ula’s team often handholds customers as they learn to use the app and checks in on them to ask how they and their businesses are doing.

Read more: Behind Ula’s striking takeoff in Indonesia

NEWS SPOTLIGHT

Southeast Asian tech startups raised US$8.2 billion in 2020

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