Received IDR 72.8 Billion, Wahyoo Startup Focuses on Expansion

The Wahyoo digitalization startup has received series A funding of US $ 5 million or Rp.72.8 billion. This investment is led by a venture capital firm, Intudo Ventures. Other investors involved in the funding round include Kinesys Group, Amatil X, Arkblu Capital, and Indogen Capital. Selera Kapital, Gratyo Universal Indonesia, and Isenta Hioe also participated.

Wahyoo plans to use the funding to strengthen Human Resources (HR), by recruiting more employees. The company will also develop a technology platform to improve service quality.

“With this funding round, we plan to expand operations to new cities outside Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi (Jabodetabek),” Wahyoo CEO Peter Shearer said as quoted from e27, Wednesday (5/8).

On the other hand, Patrick Yip, Founding Partner at Intudo Ventures, explained that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are one of the engines of economic growth in Indonesia. “Wahyoo’s efforts to digitize the UKM will have an impact on the economic and social conditions of the Indonesian working-class community,” he said.

Meanwhile, Kadir Gunduz, President Director of Coca-Cola Amatil Indonesia, said that his party wants to be one of the top players driving the digital ecosystem in Indonesia. “Our partnership with Wahyoo will help SMEs overcome digital barriers and spur growth in Indonesia’s e-commerce industry,” he said.

In the future, Wahyoo also wants to attract more Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). Peter said Wahyoo’s business was affected by the corona pandemic. The income of restaurant partners has also decreased, some have even closed.

There has been a Decrease in Income since April

The decline in income occurred in April-May. Wahyoo noted, the business began to improve since June. One of the driving factors is the integrated service with the Gojek platform. Gojek users can access Wahyoo restaurant services, and vice versa.

Apart from profit-sharing schemes, the company’s revenue comes from franchising fried chicken products. “We are not only focused on the supply chain, but also on our own brands. We have a fried chicken brand and in the future will take advantage of financial technology and the catering business,” he said.

Wahyoo also gets money from advertising and several brands that leave their product installs. The brand holders include Pucuk Tea, Le Minerale, Torabika, Redoxon, Happy Tos, and Betadine.

This startup was founded in August 2017 by Shearer, Daniel Cahyadi, and Michael Dihardja. Wahyoo develops an ecosystem that focuses on digitizing the restaurant business or traditional scale food stalls.

Currently, the company is hooking up more than 13,500 restaurants in Jabodetabek. Wahyoo also has 350 fried chicken franchise kiosks, which are targeted to reach 1,000 by the end of this year. Intudo Ventures Founding Partner Patrick Yip said, MSMEs, like food stalls, is one of the main engines of economic growth in Indonesia.

“This is being changed through a new innovative business from Wahyoo,” he said as quoted by TechCrunch. Previously, Wahyoo had collected initial funding. This funding was obtained from Agaeti Ventures, Chapter 1 Ventures, Kinesys Group, SMDV, East Ventures, and Rentracks.

Help Communities by Distributing Food

Wahyoo Group Founder and CEO Peter Shearer revealed that based on internal research, Covid-19 has had a significant impact on the income of food stall owners. “From the data we received, the shops that interacted with us decreased (their income) by 50 percent. Very drastically,” he said at a virtual press conference in Jakarta, Friday, July 10, 2020.

The decline in income was mainly experienced by food stall entrepreneurs operating around offices. Due to the work from home (WFH) policy, the majority of offices were closed, causing food stalls to lose buyers. Food stall entrepreneurs have also lost buyers because many people now choose to cook at home instead of buying outside.

Through Rantang Hati, each food stall gets to make one hundred packs of rice and side dishes to be distributed free of charge to the affected communities. That way, he hoped everyone could eat. The distribution of free food will take place from July 1-10, 2020.