For most people, the name Sudhamek Agoeng Waspodo Soenjoto (Sudhamek AWS) may be foreign to the ear. His character rarely appears in the media, unlike the Garuda Peanut Peanut advertisement which often appears on the small screen.
However, Sudhamek is the person behind Garuda Food’s success as one of the largest snack producers in Indonesia. He lah which spreads Garuda’s wings from only peanut skin production to a variety of snacks and beverages.
Last year, Forbes recorded that Sudhamek’s total assets reached US$995 million or around Rp. 14.3 trillion (assuming an exchange rate of Rp. 14,300 per US dollar). His wealth puts Sudhamek at number 42 on the list of the 50 richest people in Indonesia.
Sudhamek was born in Rembang on March 20, 1956. After his expedition went bankrupt, his father Darmo Putro founded a tapioca flour production business ‘Tudung’ in a village near Pati, Central Java, in 1958.
As the youngest of 11 siblings, Sudhamek admitted that he was oftenbully‘ by his brothers as adopted children. Another time, he was afraid that a monk would take him to Sri Lanka. Even though it was just a joke, he often cried hearing it.
When he was in high school in Semarang, he was also full of being called a village boy because he came from Rembang. His unique name also often makes him laugh.
In fact, he was once insulted times by his friend’s brother who came from a more affluent family. This made his mother so beaten to tears.
“Those inner wounds can be ignored but cannot be forgotten,” said Sudhamek when sharing his life story on the Youtube channel @CoachYudiChandra last October 2020.
This painful experience did not make Sudhamek a vindictive person. In fact, it motivates him to work hard and proves that he can be a successful person. However, he did not deny that the experience had made him low self-esteem and difficult to get along with.
“I am grateful to her, including my sisters. That’s why no hard feelings although it cannot be forgotten, it can be forgiven and grateful,” he said.
It was only during his higher education that he learned to start opening up and improving communication. Understandably, he majored in law and economics which required him to speak convincingly.
After completing his law and economics education at the Satya Wacana Christian University in 1982, Sudhamek chose to work at the PT Gudang Garam cigarette factory. A decision that was regretted by the father who wanted his son to become a little king instead of working under someone else.
“When my father tried to build a biscuit factory in Rembang, I felt guilty for being a burden. Finally, I said goodbye and worked with people,” he said.
After eight years, he was contacted by his brother who wanted him to enter the family business. At that time, the company which had changed its name to PT Tudung Putra Jaya began exploring the snack business with its superior product, Garuda peanut shells.
In 1994, the company established PT Garuda Putra Putri Jaya in Pati, Central Java, where Sudhamek was entrusted as the president director.
“My salary at that time fell, from working in a large company to a small company at that time,” he said.
Under the leadership of Sudhamek, Garuda began exploring the biscuit business in 1997 by establishing a factory in Gresik, Central Java.
He also led the company to spread its wings by producing various snacks and beverages under the brands Okky Jelly, Gery, Chocolatos, Mountea, Hormel, to Prochiz.
In 2012, Sudhamek relinquished the position of president director and succeeded in making the peanut business no longer a nut. He has served as President Commissioner of Garuda Food Group and Tudung Group until now.
In 2018, the company was listed on the stock exchange with the issuer code GOOD. Last year, the company recorded a profit of Rp424.82 billion from the sale of more than 140 stock keeping units (SKUs).
As of Wednesday (30/3), its market capitalization value reached Rp. 20.29 trillion and employs more than 9,000 people.
Apart from businessmen, Sudhamek currently also serves as a member of the Steering Committee of the Pancasila Ideology Development Agency (BPIP) and a member of the Steering Committee of the Steering Committee of the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN). Both bodies were chaired by Megawati Soekarno Putri.
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