KMTs Michael Rama starts GIRI coffee in Indonesia

At Kaine Mathrick Tech, we seek innovation in everything we do every day. Our team consists of exceptionally smart players with a unanimous vision. We have individuals from culturally diverse backgrounds, and our workplace is a true depiction of modern setups. KMT encourages its employees to seek their ambitions and back each other in achieving personal objectives besides professional goals.

Michael Rama works as a full-time employee at KMT. An IT engineer with more than 5 years of experience, he recently partnered up with his sister and two friends to start a coffee outlet back home in Indonesia.

His motivation behind the startup was to support his family and the local community. With his startup, GIRI Coffee, Michael dreams big of improving the living conditions of local people by providing them jobs and supporting local farmers. With his coffee brand, he also hopes to raise the profile of Indonesian coffee at a global level.

GIRI Coffee started in late 2018 by Michael and his sister Jennifer, along with business partners Egha and Satria, in Indonesia.

We had a talk with Michael Rama, the founder of GIRI Coffee, about his journey.

When asked about what motivated him to start his business, he said, “Since we are mainly four partners, each of us have different reasons for starting the coffee business. For me and my sister, we wanted to have some sort of ongoing income for the household back home as our parents have retired and we wanted a way to improve the standards of living.”

The other two business partners, Egha and Satria, joined GIRI as a team to take the opportunity to scale a growing coffee market in Indonesia and expand the brand of Indonesian coffee.

When asked about the impact the startup had on him, his family, or the community, he said that everyone involved in the process learned a lot about running a business. The best thing about it was that they got a chance to work with local farmers around Java Island and provide work in the local area.

“And definitely, it created a new bond between friends 😊”, adds Michael.

With a background in Information Technology, starting a coffee business was a different venture. Michael and his sister were looking for ways for a steady second income and invest money that would help them take care of the daily needs of their parents down the road. This made them look for resources, connections, and demand in the area that was available to them at the time, and coffee was at the top of the list – considering the Return on Investment and future scalability.

Being a full-time employee, it’s not easy to build a startup alongside one’s daily work routine. However, the innovative culture at KMT extends past their office walls. KMT has always encouraged and supported its team to pursue its purpose.

“Ever since I started GIRI Coffee, KMT has been very supportive throughout my journey. They have been actively trying to promote GIRI and understanding further along what we do. I feel very encouraged and empowered”, he says.

“And how do you manage your job and business simultaneously?”, we asked.

“The team members have their own work as well, so we initially took a lot of time refining processes to allow us less time to invest down the road. Now the business is getting more and more automated, except for Egha who is always looking for testing new products. We just have meeting calls (like a team huddle) weekly to check on progress and track some goals for the next week, month and year, and sometimes chat daily for smaller discussions during evening times.”, says Michael.

Talking about his brand, we asked Michael about how GIRI Coffee is different from other coffee shops and what makes it unique. Michael believes that their best strength lies in the relationships they have built and continue to build with the locals to get the best product they can with what’s available locally. Also, their ability to make changes in every step of the coffee process – which is very uncommon back home.

“And where does the name GIRI Coffee come from?”

“Giri is a word from the local dialects, Javanese and Sundanese, meaning “Mountain”.
It’s a word that came up when we were visiting the plantation early on and it was one of the words that the farmers used to say in their day-to-day language. It symbolizes the scenery and origin of where the coffee comes from.”

Talking about responsibilities, Michael says that he seeks out opportunities and partners they can work with, and serves as an extra pair of eyes for the other team members when a process is being worked on. Jennifer handles the coordination and day-to-day processes that happen in the shop and also manages the financials. Egha is the one with coffee knowledge and refines GIRI’s coffee-making process from start to finish. She also handles product development. Satria handles the sourcing and beans control and nurtures the relationships with the farmers they work with.

“Let’s talk a little about your products, what’s your most popular drink?”

“Currently, since COVID started, our most popular is the “Daily Dose” as it’s versatile and we deliver it via GoJek (Similar to Doordash/Menulog/Deliveroo) for customers to consume. But our cafe favorites are the classic V60 Drip Brew.”

“And are there any other food items available besides coffee?”

“Although GIRI Coffee does offer food, we work with local food stalls and the community and offer what they have instead of making it ourselves. For example, in our main shop, we integrated a food stall that used to be next door into the café, to serve the local food and snacks. This allows us to focus more on Coffee. 😉”

Michael and his team have also opened two more small pop-up shops that integrate with other restaurants. Although they are looking to actively partner with other businesses, they are working on their logistics at the moment to allow a wider reach of their supplies. Once that is out of the way, they are looking to move on to the next 5 locations around the city.

Michael’s story can serve as a source of inspiration for many other young entrepreneurial minds that strive to achieve more alongside their jobs. It also reminds us of the importance of working at a friendly, collaborative, helpful, and supportive workplace like KMT that promotes a culture of reassurance and encouragement.

If you would like to know more about GIRI Coffee and the team behind this startup, you can visit their website at https://giri-coffee.business.site/

GIRI coffee can also be contacted at https://linktr.ee/GiriCoffee