The Greater Hub, a business incubator organization under SBM ITB, welcomed 366 Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the program at the West Java MSME Coaching Clinic Batch 10. The opening took place at Amphitheater 2, MBA Campus ITB Bandung, 15/ 9. This program succeeded in attracting MSMEs from 22 cities throughout West Java, with culinary and fashion MSMEs dominating the composition of participants.
In his opening speech, Prof. Dr. Ir. Ignatius Pulung Nurprasetio, M.SME., the Dean of SBM ITB, highlighted the importance of a growth mindset for MSME entrepreneurs.
“Through this program, these 366 MSMEs must seek support and resources from each other,” he added. Collaboration, not competition, is the key to surviving today’s business climate.
This program, held every semester, collaborates with Akseleraksi, the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs, and Rumah BUMN Bandung to provide a platform for MSMEs throughout West Java to increase their business capacity and competitiveness. According to Dina Dellyana, Director of The Greater Hub, the MSME Coaching Clinic was founded to provide social impact, strengthening SBM ITB’s role in developing the economic ecosystem in West Java.
West Java MSME Coaching Clinic Batch 10 will be held every Monday-Friday from 18 September to 30 November 2023 in The Greater Hub MBA ITB Bandung Campus. SBM ITB will provide 23 MBA students as trainers to help MSMEs solve business problems. Selected entrepreneurs will receive 5 offline consultation sessions, each lasting 30 minutes.
Before starting a training session, every MSME entrepreneur must complete a behavioral assessment. This assessment will measure the participant’s talent level and personality quality as an entrepreneur. The results of the behavioral assessment will provide knowledge about the strengths and weaknesses of each Coaching Clinic participant.
“The test results will guide coaches in providing interventions,” explained Sonny Rustiadi, Ph.D., Head of Bachelor of Entrepreneurship Program.
West Java MSME Coaching Clinic Batch 10 is the first batch supported by the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs. Irwansyah Putra, Assistant Deputy for Business Ecosystem Development and Deputy for Entrepreneurship at the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs, announced that the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs will provide productive vouchers for MSMEs with the best coaching progress.
“The voucher can be used to pay for halal registration (certification), pay for designer (services), or other productive activities,” he explained. It is hoped that this voucher will motivate participants to make maximum use of the Coaching Clinic.
The opening ceremony for West Java MSME Coaching Clinic Batch 10 itself presented Muhammad Shidiq, the CFO of local fashion brand Geoff Max, and Iyus Ruslan, the founder of Cibiuk Restaurant. Shidiq and Iyus share their stories in building a brand.
When building Geoff Max, Shidiq focused on determining the target market. Young Indonesians want affordable, unique, and trendy shoes, so Geoff Max positions itself as a fashion brand with “low prices but not cheap.”
“In business, you must have a vision,” Shidiq emphasized the importance of business direction so that a business can develop.
Meanwhile, Iyus started Cibiuk Restaurant in 1999 as a small restaurant in Garut. Currently, he has 13 Cibiuk Restaurant branches in several cities in West Java.
Iyus pointed out that quality standardization is the key to enlarging and expanding business. Restaurant visitors have uniform food quality and service expectations in all restaurant branches. Iyus spent 7 years building a system that ensures all its branches have the same standards in this area. Another thing he set was financial standards, an important standard for companies with large inventories.
MSME participants have high hopes for this Coaching Clinic program. Reini Sagita, for example, owner of Nasi Kebuli Al-Gazhali, which currently operates in a food court mall in Bandung, hopes that SBM ITB can help her prepare an operating system and standardize product quality.
“I dream of having 20 branches in five years,” he said. “(Coaching Clinic) helps bridge MSMEs with much-needed business solutions.”
