Bandung is a city famous for its budding entrepreneurs who have brought us Lakoca Cuanki and yoghurt drinks (Yoghurt Cisangkuy).
Cuanki (image above) is a street food in Bandung traditionally consists of fried tofu, siomay, meatballs and fried dumpling served in soup
Zanana Chips
Zanana Chips was created by a 19-year-old entrepreneur Gazan Azka Ghafara from Bandung in November 2013. The name Zanana comes from his name Gazan and banana.
Aimed at 17-30-year-old
According to an interview with SWA magazine, females aged 17-30 who are fond of shopping online are the main target for Zanana Chips. The product comes with a minimalist design with eye-catching colours to appeal to young modern females.
Power of social media and celebrity endorsement
Zanana Chips is marketed and sold through Instagram, Twitter, Line, Facebook and other social media. Gazan also uses celebrity endorsement by giving out Zanana Chips for free to celebrities. Among the celebrities that have endorsed Zanana Chips are Vicky Shu, Fatin Shidqia, Oki Setiana Dewi, Vidi Aldiano and Hanggini Purinda Retto.
Vicky Shu and her sister Kalia Labitta eating Zanana Chips in New York City (image above)
Inspired by Lampung chocolate banana chips
Zanana Chips was inspired by the lack of chocolate flavour banana chips in Bandung. Such chips are famous in Lampung.
Image above are chocolate banana chips from Lampung
Zanana Chips started off with the chocolate flavour and has since expanded the flavours to include Green Thai Tea, Smoked Beef, Creamy Milk and Classy Spicy.
Using resellers to expand distribution reach
Apart from agent and distributor, Gazan uses resellers to sell Zanana Chips to expand the distribution reach, while creating business opportunities for people who want to earn extra money. Gazan has even set up a website for resellers at http://resellerzananachips.com.
At the moment, Zanana Chips is available in over 70 cities in Indonesia as well as overseas in Malaysia, Japan, the US, Brunei and Egypt. As of the first six months of 2016, the monthly turnover is IDR 400 to 450 million (USD 30,000).
Combining modernity with religious piety
One thing that is interesting about Zanana Chips is it combines modernity (modern packaging) and Muslim piety and practice. On the back of the packaging, the proper way to eat Zanana Chips is to first start with a prayer “Bismillahirrahmanirrahim” (In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful), then grab a pile of Zanana Chips and ‘Roar’ and finish them.
Key takeaways
The combination of celebrity endorsement (like Vita Coco harnessing the power of Rihanna), social media and contemporary packaging (clean packaging and striking colour) have contributed to the success of Zanana Chips.
The religious element on the packaging of the chip indicates the possibility of a revival in religious sentiment among young Indonesians, which may give us an idea on how products should be marketed in the future.
