Motorcycling is a way of life in Indonesia. Some might say that the country has more motorcycles than it can handle, with over 120m bikes on the streets – 15% of those in the capital, Jakarta, alone – and the fleet is still growing 7% on average every year.
Yet, motorbike riders often have trouble finding parking. Official parking spots are hard to find, with the majority of properties often providing very limited space for motorcycles. Vacant, often disputed, the land is sometimes used for parking spots by illegal parking attendants, as are sections of public streets – causing even more traffic congestion Soul Parking is a startup that aims to provide an effective solution.
Through what it calls Compact Motorcycle Storage (CMS), the company offers the service of building new parking areas that are economical in size and function with accompanying technology to help manage the parked vehicles in them and to maximize the use of space.
“We see our solution as the prime answer to Indonesia's traffic jams and wild street parking problems, as data from Central Bureau of Statistics has shown that growth of motorcycle units in Indonesia significantly outweighs the growth of additional roads in Indonesia annually,” Kemas Ilham Akbar, Soul Parking's CEO and co-founder said in an interview.
Security solution, too
The moniker Soul Parking is derived from the word “solution” because, said Akbar, “we provide a solution through our compact motorcycle storage." The company launched in late 2019, having raised its first round of seed funding for an undisclosed amount earlier in June that year, led by AC Ventures, the recently merged Agaeti Ventures and Convergence Ventures.
“Our investor has been very influential in terms of connecting us to strategic stakeholders and we believe this strategic alliance will help us grow even faster,” said Akbar.
Soul Parking plans to use the fresh funds to add at least 10 more CMS modules across Jakarta and eventually in other parts of the country. So far, it has set up three CMS modules throughout the capital city – each at high-traffic areas, including near the Plaza Indonesia shopping center in one of the busiest sections of the city. It derives its income from profit sharing with the landowner and sale of products and services.
The company has patented its CMS technology, something Akbar is particularly proud of, though he declined to elaborate on the details. Aside from maximizing the parking spots within, the software also provides security – registering each vehicle to its specific owner and not letting people out without identification. It also monitors constantly via CCTV. The company additionally provides lost vehicle insurance.
“We have developed our module and technology as a breakthrough solution that we have patented and that is self-made 100% in Indonesia,” said Akbar.
Instagram-ready parking spots
The space provided in each of the CMS modules differs depending on the available plot size. However, each is made of multiple levels to maximize the area that can be used for parking. This land efficiency is what differentiates it from other parking solution platforms that have popped up in recent times in Indonesia, suggested Akbar.
“Our strong value proposition is that our module maximizes land productivity per square meter. With around 60 square meters, we are able to generate eight times more capacity than conventional off-street parking,” he said. “Other platforms only provide a parking management tool, but they don't actually solve the real issues in Indonesia, such as heavy traffic jams caused by limited parking opportunities or wild street-parking problems.”
The parking modules set up by Soul Parking come in the company's signature bright-yellow color and are optionally decorated with what the company calls “Instagrammable” illustrations such as angel wings or playful slogans such as “Keep Calm and Park Motorcycle.” These can be chosen according to each client’s identity.
Soul Parking's ready spaces have been thriving during the Covid-19 pandemic, Akbar said. He declined to provide figures. The parking spots "are safe and we also spray disinfectant on the motorcycles for free as an incentive for people to park there,” he said.
On the company as a whole, he said: “Our business was somewhat impacted due to the partial lock-down in Jakarta. However, we continue to hyper innovate through our promotions, such as free disinfectant for our users and, with our soon-to-be-launched app will further promote contactless transactions, with QR-code booking, early check-out and payment via e-wallet.”
