Dagangan Raises $11.5 Mn Series A Led By Monk's Hill Ventures The funding will be used to grow Dagangan's house brand of private-label local products, product development, talent acquisition, and grow partnerships with community leaders, key opinion leaders, local entrepreneurs, and village chiefs

By Prabhjeet Bhatla

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

You're reading Entrepreneur Asia Pacific, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Dagangan

Dagangan—the social e-commerce platform for underserved rural communities in Indonesia—recently announced to have raised $11.5 million in Series A funding led by Monk's Hill Ventures. Other investors include MMS Group, K3 Ventures, Spiral Ventures, and PnP.

Dagangansupplies fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) to underserved rural communities through its Android app and partnerships with community leaders.

The funding will be used to grow Dagangan'shouse brand of white-label local products such as frozen foods, groceries and homeware appliances, product development such as expanding digital product features including paylater, logistics pick-up and delivery, talent acquisition, and growing partnerships with community leaders, key opinion leaders, local entrepreneurs, and village chiefs. In addition, Daganganalso plans to continue to expand its footprint in tier-III cities and tier-IV villages including Java, Sumatra, and Kalimantan.

"Our vision is that each and every one of the 100 million individuals in the underserved rural communities in Indonesia will have easy access to basic and high-quality local daily necessities and goods at affordable prices. A typical consumer can travel on average 20 kilometers for groceries. For small producers and sellers, the barrier to grow their businesses and have a wider distribution of their products and goods will no longer be a challenge," said Ryan Manafe, co-founder and chief executive officer,Dagangan.

The rural communities in Indonesia which make up 80 per cent of the population of Indonesia are currently underserved where the average consumer can pay up to 35 per cent for everyday necessities and groceries compared to tier-I and tier-II cities in Indonesia. The challenge is further exacerbated by inefficient supply chains and poor logistics networks. By building and scaling a tech-enabled community-based hub, Daganganaims to boost rural economic growth, make the supply chain the most efficient and serve the underserved in these markets.

"Supplying basic daily necessities to rural communities in Indonesia continues to be one of the most complex problems to solve with existing inefficient supply chains and logistics networks. Dagangan'shub-and-spoke model has shown impressive traction and an early proven track record that is impacting communities. We believe that Ryan, Wilson, and the Daganganteam are well-positioned to be a formidable contender in this market with their strong operational backgrounds and local Indonesia expertise," shared Peng T. Ong, co-founder and managing partner, Monk's Hill Ventures.

To date, Daganganhas a footprint in eight tier-III cities and 5,000 tier-IV villages in over 50 regencies. Daganganhas also distributed over 20 local products from smaller farmers and distributors to a wider market. Dagangantoday has more than 20,000 active users that manage over 3,000 SKU.

Wavy Line
Prabhjeet Bhatla

Former Staff

Related Topics

Business Ideas

100 Businesses You Can Start With Less Than $100

There are many obstacles to starting your own business, but money isn't always one of them.

Life Hacks

The Top 5 All-Time Best Productivity Hacks You've Never Heard Of

Want to combat chronic procrastination? Use these top five productivity hacks to put an end to this debilitating nuisance.

Leadership

I Accidentally Became a Successful Entrepreneur. Here Are 5 Mistakes I Learned to Avoid When Starting a Business

PR is, at its core, storytelling. And the story of my now-thriving solo-owned business has been fraught with as many mistakes as successes, as many fall down the ladder as steps up. It's from my missteps, in fact, that I learned even more than from my triumphs, and this article presents 5 of my biggest blunders on the road to a flourishing small business.

Growing a Business

5 Startup Assets That Will Get You Acquired in 2016

Acquisitions are going gangbusters. Do you have what it takes to make that remunerative exit?

Science & Technology

Is AI A Risk To Creativity? The Answer Is Not So Simple

As AI continues to advance, some may be wondering whether or not AI is a risk or a resource. But the answer isn't so simple.