In The Beginning

The phrase: “a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” perfectly describes SIDO’s journey. From a home-based herbal medicine industry to being the giant in the Indonesian herbal medicine industry, the journey spans for decades across generations.

In 1951, Mr. and Mrs. Rakhmat Sulistio set up SIDO as a home-based herbal medicine industry in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia. Its flagship herbal brew was “Tujuh Angin”, which was used for preventing and treating cold, which was later repackaged and rebranded as “Tolak Angin”.

As its demand grew, SIDO decided to open a bigger factory in Semarang in 1953, thus increasing its production capacity. That year, Mrs. Desy Sulistio – the seventh child of Mr. and Mrs. Rakhmat Sulistio - and her husband, Mr. Jahja Hidajat, joined in and contributed both capital and management expertise to the family business.

The business finally established as a legal entity in 1970 when it was named CV Industri Jamu & Farmasi Sido Muncul. Five years later, it was transformed into a limited liability company under the name PT Industri Jamu dan Farmasi Sido Muncul.

Modernizing the Production

In 1984, SIDO built a more modern production facility in Kaligawe – still in Semarang – which featured a laboratory and waste treatment installation. And thus, the Company began its journey into the era of scientific herbal medicine. Thanks to its modern facility, the Company’s flagship product – “Tolak Angin” – has started to be made in liquid form without altering its original formula, making it more convenient for customers to consume it. Consequently, the product had become even more well-received and gained even wider popularity.

Fast-forward to 1997, the Company has decided to build another plant in Ungaran, of which the construction process took five years to complete. The Ungaran factory featured more advanced technologies, such as computerized and automatic machinery and a sealed environment to keep the products sterile. In addition, a certified lab was established there where SIDO obtained its Good Traditional Medicine Manufacturing Method certification (CPOTB) from the Food and Drug Authority (BPOM). SIDO became the first herbal medicine company to receive such certification which was typically reserved for pharmaceutical companies.

Expanding Further, and Farther

Further expansion of its production capacity was done in 2018 when its second Liquid Medicine Factory (COD II) was completed. The factory had a total production capacity of 180 million sachets per months and was fully operational in 2019. A year later, SIDO launched its soft capsule products, using the modern soft capsule technology. After installation of a new machine in 2023, the soft capsule production capacity has increased to five million capsules per month.

SIDO is not only aiming the domestic market, but its products have been exported as well to countries such as Malaysia, Philippines, and Nigeria. Most recently, the Company has announced that Vietnam will be its next target market. Excluding the newly added Vietnam, contribution of exports to total sales have reached 8% in the first half of 2024 (Figure 1), with Malaysia contributing 4% of total sales, while Philippines and Nigeria contributing 1-2% of total sales each. SIDO is aiming to push the exports contribution higher to as high as 15% in the future.

Going Public

We step back a bit to 2013, when SIDO shares went public. Unlike most other companies deciding to go public, SIDO’s decision was simply to save the future of the Company at that time. Quoting Mr. Irwan Hidayat at that time, as the Company has entered its fourth generation, managing such business will become increasingly difficult. One way to maintain its existence and professionalism was to go public, which will ensure better business transparency.

In December 2013, SIDO shares were offered at Rp580 per share and the total number of shares offered to the public was 1.5 billion shares. In addition to the founders’ shares, there were a total of 15 billion shares oustanding after the IPO. From the IPO, the Company had managed to raise Rp870 billion. In 2020, SIDO’s shares underwent a stock split with the ratio of 1:2, making its total outstanding shares to 30 billion shares.

As of the end of June 2024, PT Hotel Candi Baru held 23.28 billion of SIDO shares or equivalent to 77.6% of total shares outstanding, whereas the public held around 6.72 shares or equivalent to 22.4%. On the other hand, Mr. Johan Hidayat, Mr. Irwan Hidayat, and Ms. Venancia Sri Indrijati Wijono held 1.86 million, 1.28 million and 4.09k shares of SIDO.

The Journey Continues

It has been 73 years since Mr. and Mrs. Rakhmat Sulistio started SIDO as a home-based herbal medicine industry. Now, the Company is the biggest in the industry, well-equipped with modern technology and is continuing its expansion – not just domestically, but also expanding outwards to other countries. This implies that SIDO’s journey is far from over as it could still go far beyond the national boundaries, putting “jamu” to the wider global stage. 

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