How Shopee outspent Lazada; Indonesia’s thriving D2C brands

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Many foreigners love Vietnamese traditional black coffee, but for me, it’s too strong.

For sure, Southeast Asia has a diverse coffee culture. It’s not a surprise that Starbucks has a lot of local rivals, one of which is Kopi Kenangan in Indonesia.

The grab-to-go coffee chain is backed by top venture capital firms like Sequoia Capital, Alpha JWC, and B Capital. It is reportedly raising another US$200 million, which could propel the company to unicorn status.

Aside from Kopi Kenangan, Indonesia’s consumer brands like Flash Coffee, Green Rebel Foods, and beauty retailer Social Bella have also been scooping up millions in venture funding. Social Bella in particular chose Vietnam as its first overseas expansion, opening new offline stores even amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The direct-to-consumer (D2C) landscape in Indonesia is thriving. In the first half of the year, our data shows that as many as 17 VC firms have invested in the country’s consumer brands.

In this week’s big story, Tech in Asia maps out the key players in Indonesia’s D2C space.

It might take some time for Indonesia to produce a Warby Parker, the US-based eyewear maker that went public in September and is now worth about US$6.8 billion.

Can D2C brands be the future of ecommerce in Southeast Asia? For now, the bulk of the money remains with the marketplaces.

Pouring through financial figures, our analysis this week looks at how Alibaba and Sea Group have each invested in their ecommerce units. It just might be a lesson in reaping what you sow.

— Huong

THE BIG STORY

The key players in Indonesia’s D2C space

Image credit: Timmy Loen

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