INSIDE In order to develop students’ interest in entrepreneurship, various programs, and forums have been created by the Ganesha University of Education. Starting from the Student Entrepreneurial Program (PMW), Student Creativity Program (PKM), and entrepreneurial organizations. This certainly opens up enormous opportunities for students to become entrepreneurs. I Kadek Aldi Parera Putra took advantage of this opportunity. This Accounting Study Program (S1) student developed a business in the agricultural sector called Klumpu Fresh. Klumpu in Balinese is a place where rice is stored. “This is where rice is stored before being processed into rice. So here I call klumpu fresh which means a place to store products in the form of fresh staple food before being processed in the community’s kitchen,” he said, Wednesday (18/8/2021).
The entrepreneurial spirit of this student from Marga District, Tabanan Regency has emerged since he was in elementary school. This is shown by his passion for selling various types of goods, such as frangipani flowers, fireworks, insurance agents, editing services, shoes, and so on. His journey has made him the focus of his current business. “So the main thing is that I am interested in entrepreneurship because of my desire to achieve the goal of being successful in making my parents proud, changing people’s views, and having a better life in the future,” he continued.
Even though the business he is currently running is not in line with the disciplines studied in college, for him it is not a problem. There is nothing to lose in gaining knowledge because, in the accounting study program, students do not only get courses on accounting but also other subjects, such as courses on entrepreneurship, digital business, and business management.
His move to pursue this business was based on the low prices given by collectors to farmers. Often this condition makes farmers complain. “I chose this business because my aunt is a farmer. Previously, the harvest was valued at a low price by collectors and there was a long distribution line from farmers to consumers. So from a month-long process, they only get a little, you could say it’s only enough to eat every day,” he said. Apart from price problems, he continued, farmers also often experience problems in terms of the distribution of crop yields, especially when added during the pandemic with the Enforcement of Community Activity Restrictions (PPKM). Therefore, he took the initiative to create a service that can help farmers and the community to be connected to each other. “Likewise with other farmers who have difficulty in distributing their crops. Besides that, it happened that at that time there was a pandemic, and there were restrictions on workplaces, malls, and traditional markets, of course, this made it difficult for the community to meet their basic needs, namely food. So from that I took the initiative to create a service that can help farmers and the community to be connected to each other,” he added.
Even though he is still a student, which means he is still busy with campus activities, be it lectures or organizations, the student whose birthday is on August 6 admits that he can still run his business. “Actually, college and business have different proportions and responsibilities. But fortunately, for now, in starting a business, we still run a college system online flexibly. So I can manage the time for lectures, business, and organizations. Here I try to make a priority scale which is done first. Until now, it can be said that I am still running both smoothly,” he said.
Even though there are many similar businesses, this student who was born in 2001 admits that this is not an obstacle to development. For him, fortune will come to those who are consistent in trying and trying. This can be said to be true because this business is capable of generating tens of millions of turnover and profits that can be used to meet their daily needs. In addition, this business can be a job opportunity for a number of residents.
Aldi’s success in developing his Klumpu Fresh business cannot be separated from the support of the institution and lecturers. Moreover, he is also a member of the YES FE community which is a forum that accommodates business students at the Undiksha Faculty of Economics. He can get a lot of knowledge, information, and also useful relationships for his future business. The presence of this business is expected to help more farmers and the community to meet each other’s needs. “To support this I have designed a website to ease-costumer in knowing the products of farmers and the process,” he continued. According to him, now is the right time for young Indonesians to become entrepreneurs, to build and develop MSMEs in order to create jobs and boost the people’s economy. (hms)
