Utari Octavianty, General Director And Co-Founder Of Aruna- Indonesia’s Leading Fisheries Startup Company

Utari Octavianty is the General Director and co-founder of Aruna Indonesia, Indonesia’s leading fisheries startup company.

Aruna is an integrated fisheries commerce company that focuses on developing coastal economy by creating a fair and transparent marine-fisheries trade through Technology Innovation. We started as a Fisheries Data Platform in phase, and now we have started to focus on Fisheries E-Commerce. We are striving to become a powerful app & platform that gives positive impacts, not only to fisheries communities but also to marine & coastal communities in Indonesia, as we have a great capital in being a maritime country, the largest archipelagic country & the 2nd world longest coastline in the world.

Utari grew up in a coastal area, in a village where small fishermen mostly lived in Balikpapan, Kalimantan Timur (East Borneo). Her uncle is a fisherman, and her parents sell tools to utilize fishing for fishermen. She has always been dreaming of giving positive impacts to the village and the Fisheries Industry in Indonesia. Her biggest mission is to Make the Sea a Better Livelihood for All.

She went to Telkom University, majoring in ICT Business Management. She always did her best both in school and organization, which led her to honor the Best Graduate of Telkom University that year.

Utari co-founded Aruna with her classmates, Farid Naufal Aslam and Indraka Fadhlillah, during her final year. Even though she was busy managing and Aruna, she didn’t forget to also improve her self-development. She was awarded a short study program at Flinders University in Adelaide, South Australia, supported by Australia Award. In 2019, Utari made it one of the lineup speakers for the Global Women Conference 2019 in Hangzhou, China. Utari is currently enrolled in Said Business School at Oxford University, taking Executive Leadership Education.

In an exclusive interview with AsiaTechDaily, Utari says:

For first, we try to attract the fishermen to be our partners for the supply. And then we also attract buyers. For the fisherman, we have a specific way of approaching them through the program that engages the relationship. The program that we use is the training, educating, empowering the peoples, and entertaining program, which affects improving the economy of coastal communities.

And for the buyers, we always guarantee the availability of the best fishery products with international standards.

After waking up, I open my dream list on my phone and then ask myself, “Are you ready for today’s adventure?”

But there was a time when I was less motivated; my co-founder helped me a lot. We try to encourage each other, travel to the beach, eat seafood, have a conversation with the fisherman; It gives me more energy.

Read on to know more about Utari Octavianty and her journey.

Please tell me about your personal background and What motivated you to get started with your company?

Utari Octavianty: I’m the general Director & Co-Founder of Aruna. In the beginning, I’ve had a background in the Business Major with other founders, and we were really concerned about the situation of the Fisheries sectors. As a Maritime country, we still don’t achieve goals to make better use of fishery resources. And the technology in this sector is still lacking. That’s why we came through our innovative technology to fix the problem in Indonesian Fisheries.

What is your current main product, and can you share any previous product pivot story to the current product?

Utari Octavianty:: Our main product is the app for fishermen to selling their product to the wide market. We called “Nelayan Aruna” Apps. From the beginning, we use this product and continue to develop to produce applications whose use in accordance with the needs of fishermen. We also develop the application for buyers used. Aruna focuses on empowering people in the coastal community.

What were the internal decision processes in determining when to begin fund-raising, and what were the logistics for this? And how many investors have you met so far, and how did you meet these investors, and which channels worked best for you?

Utari Octavianty: We held discussions between founders and found that to accelerate the company’s business growth required additional capital, and we also need strategic investors who help not only from funding but also strategic aspects. We meet various types of investors and choose to work with some of them; all investors work together well with Aruna to date.

What are the biggest challenges and obstacles that you have faced in the process of fund-raising? If you had to start over, what would you do differently?

Utari Octavianty: On average, all startups need enough “breath” / “gasoline” when looking for investors. Creativity and good teamwork are needed to manage the business and cash flow because it takes time to deal with investors. If I could start differently, we want to be tidier in everything documentation/administration aspects since day 1.

What are your milestones for the next round? And what are your goals for the future?

Utari Octavianty: In Aruna, we have a mission to Making The Sea a Better Livelihood for all, by

• Increasing the number of fishermen and coastal residents involved
• Conducting transparent and sustainable trade in marine products
• Creating appropriate technology to improve coastal life

Comparing against august 2019 to august 2020, we have already grown 86x, so we hope to continuously growth

How have you attracted users, and with what strategy have you grown your company from the start to now?

Utari Octavianty: For first, we try to attract the fishermen to be our partners for the supply. And then we also attract buyers. For the fisherman, we have a specific way of approaching them through the program that engages the relationship. The program that we use is the training, educating, empowering the peoples, and entertaining program, which affects improving the economy of coastal communities.

And for the buyers, we always guarantee the availability of the best fishery products with international standards.

Which has been the best marketing software tool for the growth of your startup, and why?

Utari Octavianty: We didn’t have specific software for marketing tools. But we use online marketing to reach the wider markets. We use so many online marketing methods, like Google ads, mail marketing, social media ads, etc. Using online marketing makes our job easier, effective and targets specific markets as our goals.

What do most startups get wrong about marketing in general?

Utari Octavianty: Marketing isn’t just about selling products, but we make people get their best experience through our products. And many startups get the wrong way to reach their market. It makes them know our products through our brand story, give the best feature of our products, and then get their interest in our products until they are buying the products. Which the best marketing tools for us? You should know the best. But bring your product to using online marketing. That’s more efficient for marketing ways.

How do you plan to expand globally?

Utari Octavianty: We know the market for our products is wide, especially the international markets. The different ways we use for global expansion are by cooperatives with the government, event expo international, and online marketing. We are also fixing our products’ quality control to get the best procedure and quality for the buyers.

How do you handle this COVID-19 outbreak situation for your company’s survival in the future?

Utari Octavianty: During the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, we continue to open up wider market opportunities, especially in the national & international markets. Fish handling is also continuously improved to meet market standards. We also educate fishermen and other coastal residents to follow health protocols during their daily activities.

What are the most common mistakes founders make when they start a company?

Utari Octavianty: Based on what I found, it can sometimes be the founders’ mistake to build something the market doesn’t need, selecting the co-founder incorrectly. Not having a clear vision/mission from the beginning when starting the business, don’t love what you do, and don’t have high determination.

What are the top-three books or movies (TV series) that changed your life and why?

Utari Octavianty:

Books :

• Robert Kiyosaki Cashflow Quadrant: Helps me to see the other side of planning a life
• Hector Garcia, Albert Liebermann Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life: Helps me to find my purpose in life
• Eiichiro Oda, One Piece (it’s comic anyway): Helps me create value for all the people involved in Aruna

TV Series :

• Shark Tank: Helps me to think creatively
• Pirates of Silicon Valley: Helps me get excited about finding a business
• Itaewon Class: Helps me to think strategies and give confidence to the team

How do you keep yourself motivated every day?

Utari Octavianty: After waking up, I open my dream list on my phone and then ask myself, “Are you ready for today’s adventure?”

But there was a time when I was less motivated; my co-founder helped me a lot. We try to encourage each other, travel to the beach, eat seafood, have a conversation with the fisherman; It gives me more energy.

What are the top-three life Lessons that you want your (future) sons and daughters to know?

Utari Octavianty:

• I will never compare them to other people; the real competition comes from you and yourself
• Financial literacy and the global economy, I will teach them as young as possible 🤣
• Live with an impact is a must, don’t be a trap by dogma, kids!

What would you like to be remembered for?

Utari Octavianty: I would like to be remembered as the person who created something that can bring Indonesia as a center of the world maritime in 2045 (100 years “Indonesia Merdeka”) and as a person who could contribute a better livelihood for others.

You can follow Utari Octavianty here.

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