Jakarta –
Kosim Coffee Shop was one of those chosen to serve local Indonesian coffee at the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Not many people know, this coffee shop from Tulungagung was started from scratch.
Gautama Sastra Waskita or familiarly known as Tama, owner of the Kosim coffee shop. Tama started this coffee shop business in 2015. This coffee shop was started after Tama decided to resign from her job.
Through a broadcast on the YouTube channel Pecah Telur (12/8), Tama revealed her coffee shop business. Kopi Kosim is an abbreviation of Kopi Siang Malam, Tama’s wife gave this name. Who would have thought, this small coffee shop would later become a prestigious coffee shop in Tulungagung.
This Tulungagung Coffee Shop Serves Coffee to Diplomatic Guests at the Indonesian Embassy in Malaysia Photo: instagram @kedaikosim/youtube Broken Eggs
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In 2015, Tama started this business with capital of IDR 28 million. At that time, there weren’t many coffee shops in Tulungagung, so Tama was very aggressive in carrying out marketing strategies so that many people knew about his coffee shop.
After running for approximately 3 years, Kosim Coffee Shop reached its breaking point. One of the baristas won a coffee brewing competition at the East Java Province level. Apart from that, Kosim Coffee Shop was also invited to serve coffee to diplomatic guests at the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
“2018 was at the peak of our glory, we won 1st place in the East Java Barista Competition. Then we were invited to serve coffee to diplomatic guests. At that time there were 6 coffee shops in Indonesia serving diplomatic guests at the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur during the Republic of Indonesia’s Independence Day in 2018,” explained Tama. .
Tama has basic education in the world of F&B and hospitality. However, regarding coffee, he only started learning when he wanted to open a coffee shop. The aim of choosing a local Indonesian coffee business is to be able to introduce Indonesian coffee to the wider community.
“We want to spread love for our country through local coffee,” said Tama.
Before establishing this coffee shop, Tama worked in a prestigious position. Previously he worked as Head of Marketing at an international private university in Bekasi. The large salary with guaranteed facilities did not make Tama complacent, she actually wanted to further develop her interests.
“Previously, I was paid in dollars, got a driver and official car, official housing, guaranteed facilities. But I felt like I would just be stuck in this position. I tried to burn the ship, I resigned to advance myself, not resign,” said Tama.
Even though he received great resistance from his parents and wife, Tama continued to resign and set up a coffee shop.
“I received rejection from my parents, wife and family because they thought my position was not bad. I was also caught in debt of more than 1 billion,” explained Tama.
This Tulungagung Coffee Shop Serves Coffee to Diplomatic Guests at the Indonesian Embassy in Malaysia Photo: instagram @kedaikosim/youtube Broken Eggs
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This coffee shop business is also not always running smoothly. When the pandemic hit Indonesia in 2020, Tama’s business was also affected. His coffee shop’s income plummeted 80 percent but he racked his brains to stay afloat.
“How can we stay at this 20 percent figure? Finally we turned our brains to change the brewed sales system to sell ready-to-drink drinks. Thank God, we were able to survive, and now there is Kosim Express Coffee,” continued Tama.
Tama believes that if Indonesian people know local coffee and enjoy it often, Indonesian coffee can progress and become more famous. “More brew, less sadness,” concluded Tama.
(dvs/odi)