Toraja-based Coffee MSMEs Trained By BRI, Become Coffee Shop Suppliers In 5 Countries

ToROJA - Departing from the spirit of returning to cultural roots and exploring regional potential, ToRi Coffee succeeded in proving that Indonesian products were able to compete in the international market. Thanks to continued assistance from BRI, this MSME entrepreneur from Toraja, South Sulawesi, has succeeded in developing the coffee business ecosystem from upstream to downstream as well as introducing the cultural identity of Toraja to the world stage.

Founded by Citra Wulandari and Fredy Pairunan on February 2, 2020, ToRi Coffee was born from a big decision, where the married couple left their jobs in the city and returned to their hometowns to build ToRi Coffee as an effort to preserve Toraja's taste and cultural wealth.

"Toraja was known as one of the best coffee producers in Indonesia, until finally we decided to raise the ethnic character of Toraja in our coffee shop, including in the philosophy of brands to product designs," said Citra.

More than just presenting Toraja's signature coffee taste, ToRi Coffee also brings a deeper social mission. ToRi Coffee's uniqueness is not only located in the quality of its products, but also in its commitment to developing the potential of local human resources (HR). The effort initiated by Citra Wulandari and her husband now employs 21 employees, including students who work part-time to gain additional experiences and income.

Not only creating jobs and self-developing spaces, Citra is also actively assisting coffee farmers and providing education for their children as part of efforts to regenerate so that Toraja coffee remains alive across generations.

ToRi Coffee, which was founded by Citra Wulandari and Fredy Pairunan, can now export Toraja coffee beans. (IST)

By growing with the community, ToRi Coffee's business is slowly growing. Currently, ToRi Coffee is able to market around 275 kilograms of roasted beans and powdered coffee every month. These products are also distributed to various souvenir shops in the Toraja tourism area, distributed to a number of provinces in Indonesia, even sold directly to consumers abroad. In the international market, ToRi Coffee products have reached consumers in Australia, France, Japan, and the Netherlands, but are still on a limited scale. For overseas, orders are usually made for special menus at coffee shops or private consumption, with a minimum purchase of five kilograms and continue,' explained Citra.

He also said that the opportunity to expand to the global market was increasingly wide open when ToRi Coffee won the Best Newcomer award at the BRI MSME EXPO (RT) 2025 event which was held in January 2025. This category is intended for MSME players participating in BRI MSME EXPO (RT) to be categorized as not yet and ready for export but selected to participate in business matching until they get potential for dealing from international buyers during business matching.

For this achievement, BRI recommended ToRi Coffee to represent Indonesia in the FHA Food & Beverage 2025 event in Singapore which took place on April 8 "11, 2025". "When we participated in the FHA, we were contacted by potential markets from Singapore who were interested in supplying Toraja defenders to their coffee shop," he explained.

However, Citra emphasized that the series of exhibitions that she participated in were not instant results, but the fruit of the long process that ToRi Coffee underwent with strategic support from BRI. Everything started when Citra and her husband decided to develop their coffee business more seriously by utilizing the People's Business Credit (KUR) facility from BRI.

The decision became the entry point for their active involvement as customers, which then opened access to various business development and development programs. One of them is the 2022 BRILiaN Young Entrepreneurs program, where Citra was elected to represent South Sulawesi to the national level as one of the 21 best young entrepreneurs. In the program, he received various forms of assistance to strengthen his business foundation.

"Of course, thanks to assistance from BRI, our business is more level up. We have the opportunity to participate in various expos, which have a direct impact on increasing product marketing. In addition to access to e-commerce, we obtained briefings regarding business planning, branding and digital marketing," said Citra.

In the future, Citra hopes that ToRi Coffee can export Toraja coffee on a large scale, while continuing to empower local communities and strengthen Indonesia's coffee image in the eyes of the world. We want ToRi Coffee to be a role model for local-based MSMEs that has a broad impact. And we believe BRI will continue to be an important partner in this journey, "hop to Citra.

On a separate occasion, BRI Corporate Secretary Agustya Hendy Bernadi also said that BRI consistently carries out various empowerment programs to support the growth of MSMEs in Indonesia. According to him, MSME players have great potential to become national economic forces, as well as introduce Indonesian cultural identities through local products in the international market.

"We believe that with the right support, MSME players can expand their business reach in a sustainable manner, increase competitiveness, and can penetrate the international market," concluded Hendy. (ADV)