Heaptalk, Jakarta — Indonesia’s e-commerce company, Bukalapak, visited the Ministry of Trade to discuss its plans for this year following its declaration to discontinue the sale of physical products on its e-commerce platform. The meeting was attended directly by the company’s CEO, Victor Lesmana, and welcomed by the Minister of Trade, Budi Santoso, along with the Director of Trade through Electronic Systems and Trade Services, Rifan Ardianto.
Responding to the CEO’s visit, the Minister of Trade claimed that the authority will continuously support Bukalapak’s initiative to boost Indonesia’s economic digital transformation, mainly through digitizing small shops and MSMEs via partnership programs and virtual services.
Furthermore, the Minister emphasized the significance of prioritizing local products, whether conventional or digital, such as local games, by facilitating the onboarding of MSMEs through training, product curation, and providing promotional spaces for domestic products.
On January 8th, 2025, an e-commerce company with an issuer code of BUKA plans to stop selling physical products in its marketplace as part of a strategic shift toward virtual products. This plan was transparently communicated through the Disclosure of Information announced in late October 2024. The discontinuation will occur gradually, starting in the second month of 2025. This business shift is necessary to focus more on the company’s developed business lines and those with more significant growth potential.
“Despite the shift in product focus, we want to assure that the Bukalapak Marketplace platform, both the application and website, as well as Bukalapak Partners, will continue to operate and remain accessible to users and consumers for previously available services,” Bukalapak affirmed.
The company is not altering its business activities; it continues operating the Bukalapak Marketplace. Discontinuing physical product sales on the platform is claimed to have had no material impact on the company’s revenue.
According to company records, physical product sales on the Bukalapak platform contribute approximately 3% to the company’s total revenue. Conversely, this move supports the Indonesian-based e-commerce company’s efforts to achieve positive EBITDA and ensure a sustainable, profitable business.
