Through Trade and Education, Next Step Helps Expand Indonesia-China Connectivity

For most Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Indonesia, penetrating the international market often feels like an unattainable dream. Their efforts are frequently hindered by complicated bureaucracy, language barriers, and a limited understanding of the global competitive landscape. Amidst these challenges, a graduate of International Relations from Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Assed Lussak, has sought to bring a new spirit to local SMEs by establishing the consultancy firm Next Step. He sees a vast, underutilised space for domestic business actors to break into the export market, particularly to China, and dreams of mobilising local SMEs to launch a ‘counter-attack’ into that country’s market. Next Step assists traders in Indonesia in sourcing goods from China and acts as a facilitator for Indonesian SMEs wanting to explore the highly potential market of the 1.4 billion-strong nation. The firm employs strategies including initial mentoring, followed by business matching through the provision of market information, and actively curates potential Indonesian products such as commodities, furniture, and local creative industry goods. To date, no fewer than ten medium-scale Indonesian businesses have been facilitated, with each achieving transaction values exceeding Rp 1 billion per month. To support this mission, Next Step has established an official representative office in Shanghai to ensure Indonesian SMEs have a strong anchor in the heart of China’s economy. Beyond trade, Next Step has developed an education consultancy service, facilitating Indonesian students to pursue undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral studies at top Chinese universities, including the Beijing Institute of Technology and Tianjin University. Assed, a former Tanoto Foundation scholarship recipient, believes that access to global experience must be broadened for Indonesia’s young generation, providing comprehensive services from course selection consultation to scholarship searches and registration.