Chilibeli is a young online social commerce platform that connects community members to buy and sell products. The goal of the company is to empower local producers and help them market and sell their products to a wider audience via virtual networking within the local economy.
Chilibeli -About The Company
Chilibeli was founded in July 2019 by the team of Alex Feng, Matt Li and Damon Yue. It is based in Seitabudi, Jakarta, and functions all around the country of Indonesia. The platform manages to connect manufacturers and farmers directly to agents and consumers, helping both parties procure local products at better rates. Especially in agriculture, it allows producers to sell their crops online, and consumers to purchase them locally.
Impact and Focus
Chilibeli emphasises boosting the local economy and helping people find opportunities to buy and sell their products in their vicinity. They empower producers, farmers and its network of agents to earn easier by contributing to the local market and benefit from social networking. It also helps consumers purchase locally, helping them get fresh, locally available products. Thanks to their business model and partnerships with all users, they can sell the produce at much lower rates than traditional markets by cutting down on a lot of the expenses for traditional marketing and selling.
The Business Model
Chilibeli has a network of suppliers, consumers, and part-time intermediary agents called Mitra. A lot of the Mitra are housewives, who are consumers, as well as people who sign up to be part-time agents for the company. They buy produce in bulk and proceeds to resell them in their neighbourhoods at competitive prices in their local communities. This allows farmers to sell their products locally via agents, saving a lot in logistics costs and other market-related expenses. This also eases the supply chain and creates new sources of income for the agents while simultaneously helping the farmers sell their products.
The company also provides rewards to customers who purchase via their app, encouraging them to buy the products. Their business model helps to streamline the supply chain by creating sustainable local market environments that producers and consumers can utilize better than traditional markets.
Growth and Investments
In the year following their inception, they have experienced incredible growth and support from local communities. Chilibeli is estimated to have created almost 500 direct employment opportunities, along with much more indirect jobs for Mitra. This growth has not diminished even in the face of Covid-19. The company has even managed to bring in funding for expansion as a part of their Series A investment rounds. The round announced in March 2020 attracted a total of $10 Million in funding from the investors such as Lightspeed Venture Partners(Lead Investor), Golden Gate, Alto Partners and others. This funding was pledged to expanding in the Greater Jakarta region and also strengthen their platform.
Conclusion
Chilibeli applies Agritech to bolster the local market, allowing all sides of the supply chain to benefit from services. They have empowered farmers to sell better, created many jobs for the rising middle class, and has bolstered the local economies of its areas of operation. Their grassroots business model brings real change to local markets, empowering everyone involved.
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