Lanvin, the 130-year-old Parisian fashion house, appointed 31-year-old Bruno Sialleli as Creative Director of both menswear and womenswear. His debut collections, much like these Indonesian achievers, are young and bold-spirited. Get inspired!
James Hadisurjo – Eager to Achieve
Having a family that runs the eyewear retail giant Optik Melawai for over 30 years inspired James Hadisurjo to build Bridges Eyewear, an optical brand targeting young adults. “I started my venture in the summer of 2015, a direct-to-consumer eyewear brand that would help serve as an affordable alternative.”
Selling a few hundred pairs of glasses per month to over than 50,000 a year is a major accomplishment for Hadisurjo, who graduated from the Carroll School of Management at Boston University. “I feel proud, especially when seeing people wear a pair of Bridges glasses. It reminds me of the impact that I have made in the Indonesian optical market.” Asked about his tussles he said, “as a business owner, you are faced with the challenge of setting up a team that is not only right for the business, in terms of productivity and fit, but also people you are comfortable working with to help you feel inspired and grow.”
Describing himself as a curious learner and always eager to achieve, James is currently busy expanding the business. “I’m focusing on the launch of the Roots Retail Group that focuses on direct-to-consumer products targeting millennials. My aim is to grow the retail group to be one of the biggest in South Southeast Asia, as well as to be the top of mind for young people when purchasing affordable goods.”
Felicia Kawilarang – Bridging the Gap
“The reason I joined Halodoc is that there is a huge gap in healthcare access across Indonesia. It is concerning and needs to be addressed because everyone deserves equal access and quality healthcare,” said Felicia Kawilarang, the Vice President of Marketing Communications at Halodoc. “What I want to do is to close the gap in the unequal distribution of healthcare through the use of technology.”
Halodoc is the leading healthcare network platform that connects users to more than 20,000 licensed doctors and 1,500 certified partner pharmacies through medical delivery services and licensed medical laboratory services. Currently, Kawilarang is busy on Halodoc’s new feature called “Appointments”. She aims to have a partnership with 1,000 hospitals across Indonesia to “book an appointment with a doctor of their choice and offer them premium slots, so they no longer have to wait at the hospital and can consult with a doctor right away.”
The graduate of Bachelor in Applied Science from Boston University-School of Management with Cum Laude shares that “the biggest challenge is to be taken seriously in an industry as complicated and hierarchical as healthcare”. But she managed to soldier on. “I learnt to be resilient, to quickly recover from pushbacks and challenges. Three years ago Halodoc was an unknown name, but now we are able to help about 8 million Indonesians monthly to get access to healthcare services. In the future, I would make Halodoc an even more comprehensive healthcare service that can help many more people.”
Guida Arezzi – Heartwarming Work
Guida Arezzi and her best friends Ursula Wantah, Dewi Andarini and Dian Aisyah started AVA Prologue, an online fashion store focusing on festive wear, six years ago after finishing their master’s degrees. “The idea of modernising Hari Raya attire came three months before Ramadhan in 2013,” Guida explains.
Starting the business at a young age, Guida admits, “at first, many people doubted us; they didn’t take us seriously. They said ‘why bother sell kaftan dresses when you are master’s graduates. You didn’t need to go to school to sell kaftans’. It only motivated us to work harder and prove them wrong.”
“What started out in my garage–with just the four of us–is now expanding to Malaysia, Brunei, and the United Arab Emirates,” Guida excitedly shares. “If we do what we love and take it seriously, no idea is too small, and nothing is impossible.”
The holder of a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design from the University of New South Wales says, “Another thing I am very proud of is giving 60 women workers extra income by doing our beading at their own respective homes. They never have to be away from their families.”
Arsyah Rasyid – Feeling Blessed
“I think starting a business at any age is difficult,” says Arsyah Rasyid, the young entrepreneur behind Kokatto, a pioneer in automated voice notification technology in Indonesia. “Maybe in particular for my situation at that time was the fact that we are selling our solutions to corporations and big bussiness. Given our young age, convincing big name companies and their directors was definitely a huge challenge.”
On how Kokatto was built. “It was initially a casual discussion over coffee amongst friends. It made us realize a specific inefficiency in the market for automated notification system and we decided to tap into that opportunity,” he explains. Arsyah, who was formerly a consultant with Boston Consulting Group, shares that he feels blessed to see his company grow over these past five years. “But I think what’s more satisfying is that I am able to create job opportunities and create a tangible impact for my clients.”
Talking about the future, Arsyah tells, “For Kokatto, we are planning a regional expansion, hopefully in 2020. For myself, I hope to keep on growing and becoming better, and maybe start a family in a few years’ time.”
ALL OUTFITS BY LANVIN
PHOTOGRAPHY Zaky Akbar
STYLING Paul Dela Merced
INTERVIEWS Liviani Putri & Claudia Rindiantika
MAKE-UP: KARTIKA SHABRINA
(62 818) 0808 8576
GROOMING: ATAR (62 812) 8687 7227
HAIR: UJANG TUMIN & ASEP
(62 813) 1914 3312
STYLING ASSISTANTS: LINTANG HUTAMI & FITRIA AYUNISA
LANVIN IS IN PLAZA INDONESIA
