Enter the Local Dragons
Entering the 20th floor of Lippo Kuningan Building, John Riady looks every bit as normal as other young men in their early 30s. Clad in shirt and khakis, nothing about him indicates that he is heir to the Lippo Group, one of the country's biggest companies, set up by his ethnic-Chinese grandfather, Mochtar Riady, 25 years ago. A few months ago, he had opened the office of MatahariMall.com, an e-commerce business that Lippo recently initiated.
With US$500 million, MatahariMall.com hopes to emulate the success of China's tycoon Jack Ma and his Alibaba venture. The recent entry into e-commerce is just one of the Lippo group's diversification move. The other businesses are in property, healthcare, education and some smaller investments. The group's young director said he would like to focus more on e-commerce to tap the growing demand for the convenience of online shopping.
September 22, 2015
Entering the 20th floor of Lippo Kuningan Building, John Riady looks every bit as normal as other young men in their early 30s. Clad in shirt and khakis, nothing about him indicates that he is heir to the Lippo Group, one of the country's biggest companies, set up by his ethnic-Chinese grandfather, Mochtar Riady, 25 years ago. A few months ago, he had opened the office of MatahariMall.com, an e-commerce business that Lippo recently initiated.
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