Richard Cahyanto is a serial entrepreneur currently based in Jakarta, Indonesia. He is a graduate of Singapore Institute of Management, where he received a BA in Business Management.
After graduation, Richard launched his career in Singapore, where he began his specialization in the food and beverage industry as a consultant for prominent Fortune 500 companies and eventually positioned as the lead consultant and project manager. Richard has a long record of successfully launching new establishments for local, national, and multi-national clients and ensuring their continued success in the long run. Soon afterward, his expanding expertise in food and beverage services allowed him to launch his own projects in Indonesia to learn more about the ins and outs of the business.
In early 2014, Richard moved back to his hometown in Jakarta and set his mind to disrupt the logistics service for SMBs, especially the food and beverage industry. He later co-founded Porter in October 2015, a logistics company that offers flexible and reliable delivery services for businesses of all sizes in an economical fashion. Porter also is working with the Jakarta government in an initiative called KAKI5JKT to deliver street food on-demand to the people of Jakarta.
A former barista, Richard is a coffee connoisseur who enjoys brewing his own cup of Joe every morning despite his hectic schedule.
In your own words what is Porter?
Porter is a logistics company based in Jakarta. We offer a fast and reliable last-mile and fulfillment logistics service (urgent, same-day, and next-day deliveries) for businesses of all sizes including e-commerces, online shops, restaurants and street food vendors. With Porter, businesses can manage, deliver, and track their products’ deliveries to their customers seamlessly.
How did you come up with the idea of Porter?
As a consultant in the F&B industry, I saw firsthand the problems faced daily by businesses in getting their goods delivered to their customers and/or getting goods from their suppliers. I set my mind to disrupt the logistics service in Indonesia to help businesses of all sizes, especially SMBs who may have limited resources to invest in a large scale logistics solution.
Could you walk us through the process of starting up Porter?
Porter started with an idea that I had after years working in the F&B industry. I came back to Jakarta, shared my ideas with like-minded friends who eventually become my co-founders and colleagues, and decided to run with it. We’re fortunate enough to rally support from friends and family to launch this startup.
Did you encounter any particular difficulties during startup?
Just like any early stage startups, we were challenged by limited resources and operational expertise during our first few weeks. Regarding limited resources, we decided to bootstrap our company and allocate resources to our fleet and product development in order to get early traction. Regarding operational expertise, we hired a general manager who is able to strategically place and manage dozens of fleet to deliver goods effectively and efficiently within the greater Jakarta area.
How have you been developing Porter since startup?
While uber successfully implemented a 2-sided marketplace for transportations, we are looking to build an efficient way for people to move their goods in an economical fashion. We aim to be the logistics solution for businesses of all sizes, especially SMBs in Indonesia and beyond.
What kind of feedback did you get for Porter so far?
The most common feedback is regarding pricing. Compared to similar services, we believe that we’ve set a good rate for our delivery service. Additionally, we provide continuous support to our clients/partners and guarantee the quality and reliability of our services.
What is your strategy against your competition?
There are a number of companies and startups competing in the same industry and offer lower rate for their delivery service. Our strategy is not to get into a price war with these companies and focus on our quality and value added services that we can offer to our clients and partners.
What is your definition of success?
Success to me is to be able to change the lives of people around me for the better.
In your opinion, what are the keys to entrepreneurial success?
I believe that failure is the key to success. With each failures, I get to learn valuable lessons and continuously improve myself to be a better entrepreneur.
Connect
Website: www.porter.id
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/company/porter-id
Facebook: www.facebook.com/porter.id
Twitter: www.twitter.com/porterdotid
Instagram: www.instagram.com/porter.id
