Business Grows 86 Times, Aruna Fisheries Startup Received Funding

Maritime and fisheries startup Aruna announced the acquisition of the latest funding from previous investors (existing investors). This additional capital comes amid Aruna’s business growth which reached 86 times, despite the corona pandemic.

The fresh funds raised by Aruna reached US$ 5.5 million or around IDR 81.2 billion. This additional capital was obtained from East Ventures, AC Ventures, and SMDV. Aruna plans to use the funds to strengthen the community base of fishing partners.

One way, by expanding the operational reach to more coastal areas. In addition, increasing fishermen’s productivity through training and education on product quality and standardization.

Currently, the company has collaborated with thousands of fishing partners in 31 coastal locations in Indonesia. Aruna distributes fishery products and fisherman marine products to export markets in Southeast Asia, East Asia, North America, and the Middle East, as well as the domestic market.

With additional capital, Aruna hopes to explore new markets both at home and abroad. “Aruna plans to support economic equality by reaching more coastal points in various parts of Indonesia,” said Aruna CEO and Co-Founder Farid Naufal Aslam as quoted from a press release, Wednesday (12/8).

Aruna is One of the Startups that was Positively Affected during the Crisis

Aruna was founded by Farid, together with Indraka Fadhillah and Utari Octavianty in 2016. The three graduates of Telkom University Bandung pioneered Aruna to create a sustainable and fair trade ecosystem for fish and marine products by utilizing technology.

The company has a mission to make the sea a better place to live for all, especially fishermen. “The electronic trading platform makes the sale of marine and fishery products more fair and transparent, and cuts the chain of fish trade that has been inefficient,” he said.

Co-founder and Managing Partner of East Ventures Willson Cuaca added, Aruna’s income in the first half of 2020 grew 86 times compared to the same period last year (year on year / yoy).

Reflecting on this performance, East Ventures is back investing in Aruna. “Aruna, one of the companies that were positively affected by the crisis. This makes us excited to strengthen our support for Aruna,” said Willson.

Founding Partner of AC Ventures Pandu Sjahrir added, Aruna is focused on finding solutions to the biggest problems in the fisheries sector. “This improves the welfare of fishermen and other MSMEs while creating transparency in the economy,” he said.

Aruna Logistics Process Helped by Infrastructure Development

Aruna’s startup service can be accessed by verified fishermen and buyers. This startup, which was founded in 2016, simplifies the flow of fisheries buying and selling for fishermen with the help of local heroes.

Ordinary buyers or factories will pre-order via the Aruna app or website. Orders will be forwarded to local heroes, where later they determine which requests can be fulfilled and process the digital contract. Local heroes will then forward orders to fishermen.

After that, the logistics partner will take the order, and send it to the buyer’s warehouses. Most shipments are made by air.

CEO Aruna revealed that the average income of fishermen is only IDR 1 million to IDR 2 million per month. After joining Aruna, his average income increased to IDR 6 million to IDR 7 million per month.

Other than that, it is acknowledged that infrastructure development in areas that have been quite aggressive in recent years has greatly assisted Aruna’s logistics process. The construction of the Palapa Ring fiber optic in various parts of Indonesia, especially in 3T, said Farid, also greatly helped make the buying and selling process run smoothly.

“Delivery of seafood has been greatly helped by the number of new airports and ports opened by the government. In addition, telecommunication access in the regions has also started to be easy, especially since the Palapa Ring was established,” said Farid.