Indonesian ecommerce startup gets some help from the founder of its biggest rival

Jualo founder Chaim Fetter (left) and TokoBagus founder Remco Lupker both have Dutch roots.

Indonesian ecommerce startup Jualo is often portrayed as a rival to OLX Indonesia. That rivalry just got spicier, because OLX’s original founder is joining Jualo’s team.

Online classifieds site OLX Indonesia has a long history in the archipelago. It was founded in 2003 under the name TokoBagus, was acquired by South African internet company Naspers, merged with its major local competitor, and rebranded in 2014 as OLX Indonesia.

By contrast, Jualo is a scrappy startup that’s a latecomer to ecommerce in Indonesia. But it’s shown promising growth, and recently raised a series A round of funding.

In a surprising move, Jualo founder Chaim Fetter yesterday announced that TokoBagus founder Remco Lupker is joining Jualo’s ranks. It’s not a full-time position, but a senior advisory role.

Remco exited TokoBagus after the Naspers acquisition but remained an active figure in Indonesia’s startup world. He runs a digital ad agency and spent a long time as a member of the advisory board of the Indonesian Ecommerce Association.

It seems the ecommerce veteran is feeling the itch to once again be part of an up-and-coming startup team. But how deeply will he really be involved as an advisor?

“Remco is exclusively advising Jualo with regards to becoming the best-in-class player in the marketplace field,” Chaim assures. “He will spend significant time at Jualo’s offices and with Jualo’s team.”

It’s good news for Jualo to have someone as experienced as Remco help it make decisions in Indonesia’s competitive market. It’s certainly also a good publicity move for the startup. The message they’re trying to challenge OLX couldn’t be broadcast more clearly.

See: Life after exiting TokoBagus