andrew setiawan

Advertising everywhere

How wonderful would it be if we could advertise everywhere? This was the brain wave of Andrew Setiawan and his business partners Jeff Hendrata, Tjokro Wimantara and Kennard Suganda. Their solution was to create Karta, a company that provides customised advertising services on motorcycles. Setiawan’s idea was particularly brilliant for Jakarta because there are an estimated 15 million motorbikes on the city’s streets – a potential 15 million moving billboards.

“By combining with technology, Karta provides a new way to advertise effectively and straight to target markets,” Setiawan says. “Traditional advertising is expensive and difficult to monitor. Unlike traditional media, the mobile Karta is highly scalable and targeted -giving our clients the power to customise their advertising experience.”

Setiawan, a graduate of Loyola Marymount University, is delighted that Karta provides much-needed extra income for motorcyclists. “Not only were we were able to build the business from zero, it also strives to help others. It was something I didn’t think would be possible. I thought running a business and being social entrepreneur was something that cannot be mixed, but I proved myself wrong!

“The idea came after we talked to motorcycle owners. It was what got us to think about how we could help them. That’s when we thought of moving billboards from buildings and poles to motorcycles. We would be creating a new and never-donebefore advertising platform. My ambition is to keep growing this company and never lose my way - to always try and improve people’s lives with what we do.”