- Gudang Garam
Infobox_Company
company_name = Gudang Garam, Tbk.
company_type =Tobacco industry /Public idx|GGRM
foundation =Tjoa Ing Hwie (1958)
location = flagicon|IndonesiaKediri ,Indonesia
key_people = flagicon|IndonesiaRachman Halim , CEO (1984–2008)
revenue = profit Rp 20,512.18 billion (Q3 2006)
net_income = profit Rp 900.31 billion (Q3 2006)Gudang Garam (Indonesian for "salt warehouse") is a major
Indonesia n "kretek " (clove cigarette) manufacturer. It was founded on26 June 1958 by Tjoa Ing Hwie, who later changed his name toSurya Wonowidjojo . In 1984, control of the the company was passed to Wonowidjojo's son,Rachman Halim , who subsequently became the richest man in Indonesia. Halim headed the company until his death in 2008.History
In his late twenties, Wonowidjojo got his big break when his uncle offered him a job working with tobacco and sauce at his "
kretek " factory Cap 93. Cap 93 was one of the most famous "kretek" brands inEast Java . Hard work and diligence was soon rewarded by promotion to Head of Tobacco and Sauce and eventually led to him becoming acompany director .Wonowidjojo left Cap 93 in 1956 taking fifty employees with him. He immediately started buying land and raw materials in Kediri and soon after began producing his own "
klobot kretek" which he marketed under the brand name "Inghwie". Two years later he re-named and registered his company as "Pabrik Rokok Tjap Gudang Garam" and a legend was born.The story behind the name "
Gudang Garam " deserves a special mention. One night, Wonowidjojo had a dream in which the old salt warehouse which stood across the way from Cap 93 featured prominently. Subsequently, Sarman, one of the original fifty employees who had followed him when he left Cap 93, advised him to put a picture of the warehouse on every packet of his "kretek" to secure good fortune. Wonowidjojo thought this was a good idea and asked Sarman to design thelogo ."Gudang Garam" grow rapidly and by the end of 1958 it had 500 employees producing over 50,000,000 kretek annually. By 1966, after only eight years in production, "Gudang Garam" had grown to be the largest "kretek" factory in Indonesia with an annual production of 472 million sticks.
By 1969, "Gudang Garam" was producing 864 million sticks a year and was indisputably the largest "kretek" producer in Indonesia.
In 1979, Wonowidjojo completely renovated "Gudang Garam's" production system, ordered thirty rolling machines and developed a new formula for his machine-made "kretek".
Products
Since the Asian economy crisis in 1998, Gudang Garam has lost half of its market share from nearly 50% to nowadays at only less than 25%.
Despite being a relative latecomer to the game of "kretek", "Gudang Garam" was now clearly one of the top three producer of kretek in Indonesia and one of the top ten largest
cigarette manufacturers in the world.Their most popular brand is Gudang Garam Merah, an unfiltered kretek, with 35 mg of tar per cigarette.
They also sell a premium filtered brand, Gudang Garam Surya, as well as some other less popular brands.
Other interests
Gudang Garam owns one of the top five badminton clubs of Indonesia. Suryanaga Gudang Garam is based in the capital city of East Java, Surabaya.
External links
* [http://www.asiaweek.com/asiaweek/magazine/nations/0,8782,109283,00.html Article in "Asiaweek"]
* [http://www.gudanggaramtbk.com/index.php?act=home GudangGaramTBK.com]
* [http://www.coffeecigarette.com kretek cigarette]
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