MarkPlus expands business into Singapore

Dadan Wijaksana, Singapore

Having opened an office in Singapore and marked its existence in the offshore market, top marketing strategy consultant MarkPlus&Co remains upbeat about facing much stiffer competition in the region's most dynamic business hub.

MarkPlus president and founder Hermawan Kertajaya said the company's years of experience in handling multinational firms in Indonesia, plus the comprehensive nature of the marketing services the company offers, should enable it to cope with the new challenge.

"It won't be easy, of course, but were we not confident about prospects for doing business here, we would not have opened the office here in the first place," the marketing guru said on the sidelines of a MarkPlus Forum here last week -- the first to be held in the city-state.

MarkPlus Forum is a monthly gathering of the marketing community, hosted by Hermawan -- listed as among 50 gurus who have shaped the future of marketing, by the prestigious Chartered Institute of Marketing -- in the form of a dinner-talk series to bring to light updated marketing ideas, concepts and cases.

"We were also underrated when we first set up the company in Jakarta in 1989. But look where we are now," added Hermawan.

To date, MarkPlus&Co has been the strategic adviser to plenty of multinational, national and state-owned companies in Indonesia on various aspects of businesses that the company offers -- which basically centers on consulting, research, education, interactive knowledge and knowledge multimedia.

In Indonesia, it has offices in Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang, Surabaya and Medan.

As part of its "go-international" drive, MarkPlus opened its Singapore office in May to challenge hundreds of similar firms already established there, and plans also to set up another in Kuala Lumpur next year.

Betting on stronger trade relations between ASEAN state members following the AFTA agreement, Hermawan is confident Singapore will remain a market with potential.

"Not to mention that the setting up of an overseas market will show the world that Indonesia is not only able to send unskilled workers but is also able to export highly skilled professionals," Hermawan said.

A company statement also said that, having experience in helping brands grow in Indonesia, the company was also eager to provide consulting services to Singapore brands wishing to expand their businesses into Indonesia.

Indonesian Ambassador to Singapore Moch. Slamet Hidayat echoed that sentiment, saying, "The company undeniably possesses in- depth knowledge of the Indonesian market and, as a result, I hope that many Singaporean companies will make use of this to discover and explore new markets in Indonesia."

Also present at the forum were respected Indonesian businesspeople Eva Riyanti Hutapea and Rudjito.

"What's good about MarkPlus is that it can provide a comprehensive package of services to clients -- not just consulting, but also reliable research and training -- aside from its strong networks," said Eva, former chief executive of Indofood, who now heads a division at the Indonesian Chamber of Trade and Industry (Kadin) on small and medium-sized enterprises.

"Not only do they provide a comprehensive package: They also strive to ensure that the client will implement it," said Rudjito, president of the region's largest microfinancing institution Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI).