20 Local Tourism Players WISH 2025 Finalists Showcase Innovations to Major Investors

Twenty tourism entrepreneurs from across Indonesia stood before potential investors at The Ritz Carlton, Mega Kuningan, South Jakarta. They carried dreams and fresh ideas about sustainable tourism.

This marked the culmination of their long journey in "Wonderful Indonesia Scale-up Hub (WISH) 2025", a program designed to help tourism businesses level up. 

After months of training and mentoring, the time had come for them to showcase their capabilities at Demoday, the final stage connecting them with potential investors and business partners.

"WISH 2025 Demoday consists of pitching sessions and business matching attended by 20 finalists. They were selected after a curation process from over 400 applicants, followed by capacity development and intensive mentoring stages over several months," stated the organizers.

For the finalists, this day represented not just competition but an opportunity to champion their hopes for business growth. Deputy for Industry and Investment at the Ministry of Tourism, Rizki Handayani, emphasized the critical importance of communication skills and business image-building for industry players.

"In attracting investor financing interest, it's essential for businesses to possess branding and copywriting capabilities," Rizki asserted. "These two elements also play vital roles in enhancing product value and supporting tourism industry growth," she added.

Among participants were those who had recently launched small ventures in tourist villages alongside others who had struggled for years without capital access. 

"I hope connections between entrepreneurs and potential investors won't end here but continue sustainably. Since this is our inaugural event, let's make it a moment to build lasting relationships," she expressed.

Meanwhile, Hanifah Makarim, Assistant Deputy for Business Development and Capital Access at the Ministry of Tourism, described Demoday as the most anticipated moment.

"Today we've invited investors, market access providers, and potential partners hoping matches will emerge for your businesses. Fundamentally, our role is connecting your enterprises with investors and other prospective partners," Hanifah explained.

Hanifah fully understood small tourism entrepreneurs' challenges, particularly regarding capital and markets. She affirmed WISH was created to address these two major hurdles.

"Therefore, the Tourism Ministry collaborated with entrepreneurial platform KUMPUL to launch WISH, aiming to strengthen business capacity for tourism industry players to elevate their operations," she noted.

Hanifah added that the program aims not only to facilitate meetings but ensure concrete follow-up actions from investors. 

Concurrently, Faye Wongso, KUMPUL's Founder and Chairperson, called this event the beginning of significant collaboration between business and government.

"The overarching theme of KUMPUL Connect for Change Summit 2025—building bridges for sustainable change—aligns perfectly with WISH. Because WISH is fundamentally about sustainability," Faye remarked.

She applauded the finalists' spirit in diligently presenting their products and ideas to potential partners. 

"Today isn't the conclusion of WISH but the start of broader collaboration between government, business, and creative communities to build an inclusive, competitive, and sustainable tourism ecosystem," Faye stated.

A lineup of investors and strategic partners attended—from Traveloka, Smesco Indonesia, Gayo Capital, Supernova Ecosystem, to Tiket.com and KADIN ITH. They came united by one objective: discovering new business potential to propel Indonesian tourism forward.

Among finalists were inspiring stories worth spotlighting: PT Salaku Cara Enak Makan Salak transforming local fruit into export-grade products; Joglo Ayu Tenan blending culture and culinary; and Ramen Jawi Yogyakarta fusing Japanese flavors with Indonesian spices. All shared the spirit to make Indonesian tourism not merely beautiful to behold but a genuine driver of local economies.