1. Startup

East Ventures Leads RPG Commerce's Series B Funding

RPG Commerce is a D2C-based social commerce startup from Malaysia

East Ventures is leading a $29 million or approximately 431 billion Rupiah series B funding round for RPG Commerce. In addition, this round was also led by UOB Venture Management, Vertex Ventures SEA & India (VVSEAI), and RHL Ventures.

In his official statement, East Ventures' Co-founder and Managing Partner, Willson Cuaca said, RPG Commerce has a unique position as it takes an approach by serving various categories, brands, and roll-up models in e-commerce sector.

He said this is an important strategy for D2C businesses to attract international interest in ensuring its success in the market. "RPG Commerce is capable to grow a loyal customer base in the United States, Canada, and Europe, through quality products and innovation in the supply chain," Willson said.

RPG Commerce's Co-founder & CEO, Melvin Chee said he would use the additional funding to add to the brand portfolio and the team numbers, encourage R&D innovation, also M&A. "We wanted to quickly add to our talent and leverage technology capabilities to expand our consumer landscape," Melvin said.

On a general note, RPG Commerce is a D2C-based social commerce startup from Malaysia. The platform offers in-house brand products in the categories of daily necessities, clothing to basic household. Currently, RPG partners with more than ten brands, including Thousand Miles, Bottom Labs, Eubi, Montigo, and Cosmic Cookware.

RPG manages various brands from product launch, operations, and optimization supported by end-to-end production and delivery. According to the company's data, RPG is supported by state-of-the-art back-end technology and a visionary creative team that has been able to rapidly expand its brand portfolio and grow its customers by 300% over the past year.

With the spirit of supporting independent businesses with on-demand products, he aims to empower small business owners through incubation and acquisition programs to serve consumers in various verticals.

Investment climate and social commerce potential

In a recent interview with DailySocial.id, Willson Cuaca mentioned some interesting notes regarding the investment climate. Despite the negative sentiment in the Indonesian startup ecosystem, he believes that this has not changed his position in finding potential startups.

He said, there are still many startups with good fundamentals. "Remain calm and alert in dealing with this situation. Seek support from your investors, be more prudent in spending, and don't do fundraising when your company needs money," Willson advises the founders.

In the context of social commerce in Indonesia, this model shows the potential for great growth in the future. Bain & Co data recorded that transactions from social commerce contributed $12 billion to the total GMV of e-commerce in the country which amounted to $47 billion in 2020.

In addition, social commerce trends continue to develop considering that rural communities still have limited access to fulfill their needs through online platforms compared to people living in urban areas.

By empowering the distribution network model or reseller, social commerce can open access to products and wider job opportunities.

Original article is in Indonesian, translated by Kristin Siagian

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