Jakarta. Indonesian online marketplace Tokopedia recently announced an increase in its transactions and sellers, as 2021 comes to a close. Interestingly, the e-commerce giant reported that this growth spread evenly across Indonesia.

Tokopedia sellers —be it in the eastern, central or western parts of Indonesia— rose nearly 1.5-fold during this year-end, compared to the same period in 2020, according to Tokopedia spokesman Ekhel Chandra Wijaya.

Whereas the increase in transactions  slightly varies across the archipelago. Transactions in the western and central Indonesia grew almost 1.5 times towards the end of 2021, in comparison to the same period last year. The transaction increase reached nearly twofold in eastern Indonesia.

Ekhel also revealed each region’s favorite Tokopedia categories towards year end. Household, health and self-care, electronics and fashion are popular among Tokopedia users in central Indonesia.

In eastern Indonesia, products under the health and self-care, fashion, food and beverages, and electronics categories are in demand as year-end approaches. Whereas Tokopedia’s most sought-after categories in western Indonesia during this time of the year are household, health and self-care, food and beverages, as well as electronics.

“Moving forward, Tokopedia pledges to be #SelaluAdaSelaluBisa [always present, always able] in helping the public adapt to the changing era through technology. We will continue to collaborate with strategic partners to come up with the best innovation,” Ekhel said in a press statement on Tuesday.

The evenly distributed growth appears to be the result of the so-called Hyperlocal initiative. Last year, Tokopedia introduced the Hyperlocal initiative in a bid to bring equal opportunities to Indonesian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), regardless of where they are in the archipelago. 

The Hyperlocal initiative includes the Kumpulan Toko Pilihan (KTP) campaign, which will help connect Tokopedia customers to the nearby sellers in their city. Not only will this make shopping more efficient for buyers, sellers can enjoy the benefits of the digital economy without the need to move to the big cities.

Success Stories

Sambal Raja Roa, a Balikpapan-based business specializing in all kinds of smoked fish chili sauce, shared their story of becoming a Tokopedia seller.

“Almost 70 percent of my sales come from Tokopedia. My turnover soared threefold after joining Tokopedia’s Kumpulan Toko Pilihan [KTP] campaign,” Sambal Raja Roa owner Imam Masyhuda said.

Tokopedia transactions are also flourishing for Verne Indonesia, a Surabaya-based business offering cow leather goods.

“Tokopedia is currently our main sales channel. Every month, we receive 50 to 60 orders, and we notice that our transactions have nearly doubled compared to last year,” Verne Indonesia manager Marsetio Hariadi.

Belanja Termurah, a MSME in Papua selling Papuan souvenirs and snacks, also reported an increase in its transactions.

“Since the second quarter of 2021, the number of transactions has jumped threefold compared to before. Through Tokopedia, I can reach the entire Indonesian archipelago, even Aceh,” Belanja Termurah owner Marice.