Day: December 24, 2019

Update: Kopi Kenangan representative has reached out to e27 to clarify that Alpha JWC does not return for the company’s June 2019 Series A funding round nor will they be participating in its current expansion. We apologise for the inconvenience.

Kopi Kenangan, Indonesia-based on-demand coffee chain, just announced the extension of its Series A round with investments from Arrive (backed by US rapper Jay-Z’s Roc Nation) and athlete and entrepreneur Serena Williams’ Serena Ventures.

Joining the round is returning investors Sequoia India, followed by new investors NBA star Caris LeVert and Sweetgreen CEO & Co-Founder Jonathan Neman.

An official statement from Neil Sirni, co-founder and President of Arrive, reads: “We are inspired by Kopi Kenangan’s tenacity, vision, and ability to execute. In just two years, they have expanded to 18 cities, 200 stores, and over 1,800 employees. We’re excited to be an investor in and partner to Kopi Kenangan as they introduce Indonesian-style coffee to the world.”

Sequoia India led the coffee chain’s US$20 million Series A round in June 2019 while its seed funding round was led by Alpha JWC last year.

Founded in 2017 by Edward Tirtanata, James Prananto, and Cynthia Chaerunnisa, Kopi Kenangan aims to answer the gap left by the market sandwiched between the high-priced coffee served at international coffee chains, which are beyond the price range for most Indonesians, and the instant coffee sold at many street stalls.

Also Read: Indonesia’s tech-enabled coffee chain Kopi Kenangan raises US$20M from Sequoia India

Kopi Kenangan said it plans to add more than 1,000 new stores over the next two years and expand across Southeast Asia.

“We want to build a legendary brand, and we’re excited to work with our new investors and advisors who have built global consumer franchises spanning sports, entertainment, F&B, and technology,” Tirtanata said.

Nielsen Company named Kopi Kenangan as the number one in top-of-mind awareness in the kopi susu or milk coffee category and second only after an established multinational coffee chain in the general coffee category.

“We recognise that this is a joint effort from our Teman Mantan [team] which includes our baristas and employees, partners, shareholders, and most importantly our customers who have made us top-of-mind for kopi susu,” said Chareunnisa.

Arrive is a Roc Nation company, full-service management, music publishing, and entertainment company founded by Shawn “JAY-Z” Carter. It was launched in 2017 and it provides strategic capital and advisory to startups and early-stage ventures with a focus on the United States and Southeast Asia.

Also Read: Startup of the Month, June: Indonesian tech-enabled coffee chain Kopi Kenangan

Serena Ventures was created in 2014 by entrepreneur, philanthropist, and tennis icon Serena Williams with the mission of giving opportunities to founders across an array of industries, focussing on early-stage companies. Serena Ventures invests in companies aligned with its core themes of diverse leadership (women and person-of-colour), individual empowerment, creativity, and opportunity.

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Image Credit: Kopi Kenangan

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Myanmar’s Phandeeyar Accelerator has announced a new investment initiative, which aims to invest in pre-seed and seed-stage startups in the country.

The Yangon-based organisation has also made a US$25,000 investment in Resdi from the new fund. The restaurant bookings and discounts startup will use the money to expand its team, fuel product development and reach a wider audience.

Founded by Zay Ye Htut (CEO) and Thiha Htet Naing (COO), Resdi is an online restaurant reservation platform with the discount for off-peak hours. It helps fill up the empty tables with a low commission rate for the restaurants, then giving the discounts based on time for the users within off-peak hours.

Resdi was also the winner of Phandeeyar’s Startup Challenge 2018 and awarded a US$3,000 prize money.

According to Resdi, there has been continuous growth in Myanmar’s restaurant industry with new restaurants entering the market. However, it is a challenge for both newcomers and existing restaurants to get a favourable number of customers.

Also Read: Indonesian coffee chain Kopi Kenangan raises Series A extension from Jay-Z, Serena Williams’s VC firms

At the same time, the customers also have to pay the same prices between peak hours and off-peak hours while having long queues to get a table at their favourite restaurants.

Resdi aims to solve that problem by enabling the users to book their favourite restaurants and get off-peak hour promotions. As a result, the restaurants will be running at full capacity at all operating hours and customers will receive discounts during off-peak hours.

“At Phandeeyar, we’re always looking for resourceful entrepreneurs who are building tech products that support consumers and businesses. Resdi is a really good example of this. We have been following them since launch, and have been impressed by their initial growth. With this new investment, they will be able to capture the market for restaurant promotions and deals in Yangon, and later on in other cities in Myanmar” said Jes Kaliebe Petersen, CEO of Phandeeyar.

 

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The modern business market is oversaturated with businesses of all shapes and sizes. What this means is that anybody who’s looking to start their own business in this economy should be ready to fight some fierce competition if they ever hope to reach success. This might seem particularly challenging to anyone looking to launch a startup. 

Aside from doing their homework thoroughly and ensuring that they’ve tackled every single aspect of running a business, startup owners must also be extremely vigilant. Sometimes, making even the smallest of mistakes can really propel you on the road to failure. 

With that in mind, here are the key elements of launching your startup and setting it up for success.

Don’t rush to enter the market

Without a solid business idea, there really is no point in starting a business. However, a solid business idea alone won’t be enough to set your business up for success. The fact is that many startup owners rush to enter the market when the market is just not ready for them.

Also read: The concerns, risks and success factors of any startup

That’s why so many startups fail sooner than they start. To avoid such a thing happening to your endeavor, make sure you have a good business idea and sit on it until you notice that there’s room for your business in the market. Only then should you launch your endeavor and present it to an interested audience. 

Set clear goals

Another thing you need to take care of is setting clear goals. While wanting to reach success is certainly a goal, it’s not very clear how you intend to achieve it. That’s why, instead of setting such a vague and distant goal as your only one, you should instead set a plethora of smaller and clearer goals that are somewhat easier to achieve.

Not only will this enable you to prioritise better and see which of the things need to be done first but it will also offer you a visual representation of just how well your business is truly doing. Pro tip: create a goal board and write down all of your set goals on it so that you can have the additional satisfaction of ticking them off one by one as you manage to achieve them.

Put together a strong team

No matter how big or small your endeavor is, the fact is that you simply can’t do it all by yourself. Instead of trying to achieve something on your own, you should let like-minded people help you out. So, when hiring, make sure you carefully select individuals that share your vision and passion.

Even more importantly, make sure you select individuals who have the necessary skills to make your dream a reality. Additionally, do know that there are no born A players. Instead, they are being created and molded in the workplace. Therefore, when trying to put together a strong team, choose individuals who display the biggest potential of becoming your own A players. 

Design a good website

In this day and age, trying to run a successful business without having a good website in place to back it up is simply pointless. The fact of the matter is that the majority of modern consumers will turn to the online realm to research a business before they actually decide to put their hard-earned money into it.

Also read: Why moving fast and pivoting is necessary for startups

That’s why you need to ensure that they are able to find your business there. Aside from that, not any website will do. You need to make sure that your site is well designed and optimised to allow for a seamless browsing experience. Also, you should make the transition from HTTP to HTTPS to offer your visitors – and potential customers – another layer of security when interacting with your website. This way, you will not only appeal to your audience but you will also make your website more appealing to online search engines. 

Always be on top of your finances

Another mistake startup owners make is not paying enough attention to their finances. The fact is that, in the business world, money truly is everything. You entered the game hoping to make money but you need to be very conscious of how much money you’re actually making.

The fact is that here, you will need to give some to make some, i.e., you will need to invest some of your resources into something that promises a good ROI in the end. However, if you’re not crystal clear about your finances, you may end up making mistakes that will cost you greatly in the long run.

Know when to take a step back

Finally, the thing nobody really talks about much is the negative side of the hustle culture. While yes, you do have to work hard and keep on pushing in order to reach success, you also need to be able to understand when it is time to slow down. Overworking yourself might present some short-term positive results but that’s just it – they’re all short-term. If you continue to work too much without having enough time to rest, you will reach burnout sooner than you think.

If you’re considering launching a startup and you want to ensure you do everything in your power to make it a success, keep these elements in mind. Sure, you will need to do much, much more than just what’s previously been mentioned, but this is a great place to start.

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Vox Dei reveals startup coverage trends of the 2010s – Press Release

Vox Dei, a Singapore-based startup that specialises in text analysis, today announced the results of their startup media coverage analysis for the 2010s.

Conducted as part of a test for their software Lexikat, the startup tracked media trends both in general and in various specific fields in 2019 and all the way back to 2020.

The analysis looked at coverage from media such as Dealstreet Asia, e27, Wired, and Popular Mechanics.

According to the analysis, “Hype in the tech press does not necessarily predict investor interest levels … Except possibly in the case of crypto which saw increased interest during the Bitcoin spike of 2018.”

It also noted a spike of interest in blockchain by English language media in 2018. Meanwhile, in Chinese language media at the same time, big data was a more popular theme.

The analysis also pointed out the popularity of sectors such as cleantech –and the reason behind it.

“Cleantech is frequently mentioned in the same breath as other technologies, as a way to boost their image. For example, Uber is principally a sharing economy startup, but also helps the environment,” the analysis elaborated.

SoftBank’s US$3B WeWork financing talks stall with Japan banks – Reuters

SoftBank Group’s talks to secure US$3 billion from three of the biggest banks in Japan have stalled as the lenders have hit internal lending limits to the firm, according to a Reuters report.

Citing two people familiar with the matter, the issue is said to further complicate the US$9.5 billion rescue package for the coworking space giant.

The sources also said that the banks are concerned about the risks involved in rescuing WeWork.

Also Read: 6 key elements of a successful startup

Kopi Kenangan raises Series A extension from Jay-Z, Serena Williams’s VC funds – e27

Indonesia-based coffee chain Kopi Kenangan today announced the extension of its Series A funding round with investments from Arrive (which is backed by US rapper Jay-Z’s Roc Nation) and Serena Ventures (which is owned by athlete and entrepreneur Serena Williams).

Joining the round is returning investors Sequoia India, followed by new investors NBA star Caris LeVert and Sweetgreen CEO & Co-Founder Jonathan Neman.

With the new funding, Kopi Kenangan said it plans to add more than 1,000 new stores over the next two years and expand across Southeast Asia.

Myanmar’s Phandeeyar launches new investment initiative, backs restaurant booking app Resdi – e27

Phandeeyar Accelerator today announced a new investment initiative, which aims to invest in pre-seed and seed-stage startups in Myanmar.

The organisation has also announced a US$25,000 investment in restaurant booking and discount app Resdi from the new fund.

The startup will use the money to expand its team, fuel product development, and reach a wider audience.

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Image Credit: Daria Nepriakhina on Unsplash

The post Today’s top tech news: Vox Dei reveals startup coverage trends of decade appeared first on e27.

Businesses these days spend typically significant amounts of money on quality assurance, especially for those in the tech sector – just one significant product issue can be enough to be a significant detriment to a company’s reputation for years to come, even if they had produced rock-solid products until that point.

One critical strategy that can often be overlooked by larger organisations: using their own solutions for their infrastructure and business operations, ensuring that all employees are familiar with the nuances of the solutions their company offers, both positive and negative.

SMEs and startups would be more familiar with this approach, but in this article, I’d like to offer some additional nuances for consideration by tapping onto Synology’s own experiences.

The use of this strategy has definitely paid dividends for the company in the form of customer accolades. The Synology brand has topped PCMag’s Readers’ Choice Award every year in the home network-attached storage (NAS) category since it was added in 2012, with customers lauding our reliability and fantastic customer service. The same publication has also awarded us top honours in its Business Choice Awards.

Also Read: Getting out of the weeds: Simplicity is the key to scale startups

We’ve identified a few key takeaways that we feel were critical in our success:

Take time to understand how your products fit into your own business

One of the biggest factors in our quality assurance success is our commitment to using our own products for almost all of our business’s IT infrastructure, allowing the organisation to collect feedback from all of our workforce – from IT to HR.

Aside from quality assurance, one huge added benefit is that our sales, marketing and support teams are very familiar with the company’s products since they’re using those solutions on a daily basis.

This might seem like a basic first step, but does require the investment of time and resources to conduct an intense scrutiny of an organisation’s infrastructure and processes, from both business and operational leaders. This might even spark some additional ideas about how your products could be further refined to better fit into businesses.

For example, to name just a few, we use our products for the following critical business functions: storage for virtual machines; Active Backup for Business; collaboration and messaging; surveillance; and disaster recovery.

Also Read: How this fundraising programme helps these two startups access better funding opportunities

Proactively foster a culture of openness towards constructive feedback

A company’s products are often a labour of love from its employees, and this emotional investment might result in them being resistant to feedback, whether it be from customers or from their colleagues.

The organisation’s leaders will need to be proactive in fostering a culture where employees are receptive to criticism, and where feedback is valued and seen as an essential part of helping the company and its solutions succeed.

From the R&D team to department heads, we ensure that all employees understand the importance of actively addressing feedback and that this is seen to be a priority from the management. Our own efforts in this regard are perhaps most clearly demonstrated in the anecdote that the company’s Chairman spends a couple of hours every day reading through user comments and enquiries.

Develop clear lines of communications

Of course, it’s also important to ensure that customers and internal staff are able to share their comments easily. Aside from emails, our teams also visit end customers from time to time to get them to share their comments and address any issues they might have, allowing our team to gather feedback directly from the ground; we find that this also helps to encourage our users to share thoughts that they may not have penned in written feedback.

Similarly, our employees are encouraged to use email or internal messaging platforms to share feedback freely, both when they have positive experiences and whenever issues arise.

Also Read: How to shine like a diamond in the coalfield of startups

Develop SOPs to ensure all feedback is addressed

In using our own products, our R&D team is able to examine how our products function in real-world scenarios, allowing them to quickly identify issues and possible improvements, accelerating our development process.

Another possible point of failure for many businesses is that feedback can be lost down a black hole, where internal teams can decide to prioritise what they themselves deem to be important rather than addressing actionable feedback.

Going back to what I mentioned earlier, all feedback is also read by the management so that they are aware of any issues that they might need to direct their team’s attention to. We also collect and log all of such feedback for internal reference.

Don’t lose sight of the competition

One potential drawback to using only your company’s own products is that your team’s vision of the competitive landscape can become quite insular, owing to a lack of experience with the solutions offered by your competitors.

The management, therefore, needs to ensure that the team proactively keeps itself up to date on the latest news and products on the market through thorough market research; in this era of information overload, the difficulty is not in finding the information, but rather in ensuring that the team avoids complacency and keeps an eye on the competition to ensure that their own products are always a step ahead.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. Become a thought leader in the community and share your opinions or ideas by submitting a post.

Join our e27 Telegram group here, or like e27 Facebook page here.

Image credit: Unsplash

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