The Vice Governor of West Java, Erwan Setiawan, supports affirmative regulations for local culinary actors to be able to compete in modern shopping centers. This strategic step is considered part of the local government’s structural alignment in maintaining the existence of the archipelago’s culinary cultural heritage amidst the onslaught of global consumption trends. The presence of a balanced protection policy will provide breathing room for regional entrepreneurs to align their service quality with international franchise brands. Without clear regulatory intervention, it is feared that the disparity in commercial market access in urban areas will widen further and marginalize the potential of the domestic creative economy. Therefore, a collective movement through providing a local culinary franchise stimulus must be realized immediately through concrete and sustainable cross-sector collaboration.
This was stated by him while attending the Opening Ceremony of the Info Franchise and Business Concept (IFBC) Exhibition 2026 organized by the Indonesian Franchise Association at the Sudirman Grand Ballroom, Bandung City, Friday (29/5/2026). This annual exhibition serves as an important indicator for the revival of domestic investment passion in the integrated trade and services sector. Many business model innovations were introduced to the public as solutions to face shifts in consumer behavior post-digital transformation. Operational efficiency and product quality standardization became the primary focus offered by industry innovators to attract the interest of young investors in the West Java region.
Rental Price Challenges and the Regional Entrepreneurship Ecosystem
According to Erwan, Indonesian traditional restaurants are still minimally present in large shopping centers compared to foreign restaurants. One of the main causes is the high cost of rent, which makes it difficult for local business actors to compete. The structure of commercial property financing, which tends to be expensive, is often a huge barrier for micro, small, and medium enterprises that have limited capital. “Restoran Indonesia di mal besar paling hanya satu atau dua. Kenapa? Karena kita sulit bersaing dari sisi harga,” said Erwan. He assessed that there needs to be a specific policy from shopping center managers to provide cheaper rental prices for local business actors.
Erwan emphasized that amidst global economic dynamics, West Java must remain adaptive and capable of creating new economic growth spaces through entrepreneurial activities such as IFBC. Regional economic independence can only be achieved if the grassroots-based real sector is provided with adequate stimulus consistently. He called the exhibition a strategic space to bring together business actors, prospective partners, MSMEs, and the community wishing to develop businesses through partnership and franchise systems. “Ekosistem yang saling menguatkan ini bukan hanya soal bisnis, tetapi juga penciptaan lapangan kerja, perluasan akses ekonomi, dan pembentukan kelas menengah produktif di Jawa Barat,” he expressed.
Accelerating the Entrepreneurship Ratio and the Export Power of Processed Products
On that occasion, Erwan also appreciated the consistency of the Indonesian Franchise Association in encouraging the growth of partnership-based businesses in various regions in Indonesia. The long-term commitment of this institution has proven capable of elevating many local products into franchise commodities calculated on the national stage. To monitor legal drafts regarding trademark protection, franchise agreement standardization, and legal certainty guarantees for partnership business actors in the country, official updates can be accessed through the public service portal of the Kementerian Hukum as a valid administrative governance reference. Open access to regulations is essential to provide a sense of security for novice investors in investing their capital to help back the local culinary franchise stimulus in their respective regions.
Meanwhile, the Vice Minister of Trade of the Republic of Indonesia, Dyah Roro Esti Widya Putri, stated that the government continues to push for an increase in the national entrepreneurship ratio, which currently only reaches around 3.29 percent of the total labor force. This statistical figure indicates that Indonesia still has major homework to do in expanding its entrepreneur base to strengthen the national economic structure. According to her, Indonesia needs to increase this ratio to 10 to 12 percent to be able to become a developed country. “Kami ingin melihat lebih banyak generasi muda terjun ke dunia usaha dan menciptakan lapangan kerja baru,” she said. The utilization of digital technology and inclusive funding schemes are expected to become major catalysts for the younger generation in starting their business journeys.
The Chairman of the Indonesian Franchise Association, Anang Sukandar, also highlighted the lack of Indonesian restaurants in modern shopping centers compared to restaurants from other countries. This imbalance must be addressed as a great opportunity to carry out a total overhaul of the management and packaging systems of traditional products so that they possess high visual appeal. He assessed that Indonesia has great potential through its rich culinary wealth and local processed products, which should be able to become national export strengths. “Indonesia punya makanan khas dari berbagai daerah. Potensinya luar biasa. Yang harus kita dorong adalah produk hasil dan nilai tambahnya,” said Anang.
According to him, developing businesses based on franchises and partnerships is one of the important strategies to expand the market while maintaining the quality and uniqueness of local products. Through a standardized business duplication system, the authentic taste of traditional menus can be distributed to various cities without losing its genuine cultural value. This operational standardization also simplifies periodic quality audit processes, which are main prerequisites for winning the trust of modern consumers in urban areas. The seriousness of stakeholders in implementing global standards will accelerate the achievement of government targets to optimize the local culinary franchise stimulus so it can penetrate international markets massively and sustainably.
