MarkPlus&Co goes international

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The top domestic marketing consultant MarkPlus&Co has opened an office in Singapore and plans to open another in Kuala Lumpur to tap business opportunities arising from the stronger trade relations between Indonesia and the two countries.

The firm opened its first offshore office in Singapore last month and could open its Kuala Lumpur office by January next year, the company said in a statement.

Company president and founder Hermawan Kertajaya said the expansion was motivated by the stronger trade relations between the three countries, which are expected to further strengthen in the future thanks to the implementation of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA).

As part of the "go-international" drive, Hermawan said the firm had also signed an agreement to cooperate with the Chartered Institute of Marketing-United Kingdom (CIM-UK) to provide international marketing certificates for local marketers, Hermawan said in the release.

"We must not only export unskilled laborers, but also world- class professionals," he said, adding that the certificate was recognized by companies in the UK, Singapore, Malaysia and 40 other countries.

"We have to show the world that Indonesian professionals can contribute to global development," he said.

Founded in 1989, MarkPlus&Co is now a strategic advisor to many multinational, national and state-owned companies on various aspects of business, including marketing, research and training. In Indonesia, it has offices in Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang, Surabaya and Medan.