PT Fore Kopi Indonesia Tbk, the entity that operates the coffee chain Fore Coffee, debuted on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) on Monday—the 12th company to be listed this year.
Shares of the company, which started trading under the ticker FORE, opened at 252 rupiah apiece, 34% higher than the IPO price of 188 rupiah apiece at the start of trading.
The company raised 353.44 billion rupiah (about $21 million) in fresh funds through the offering.
Fore Coffee plans to allocate the proceeds towards three key areas of business growth and development. Approximately 275 billion rupiah will be used to expand its outlet network, with a target of opening 140 new coffee shops across Indonesia over the next two years. This year alone, the company plans to open 72 new outlets. Currently, Fore Coffee operates 245 outlets in 45 cities across Indonesia and Singapore.
In addition, around 60 billion rupiah will be allocated to establishing new donut outlets through its subsidiary, PT Cipta Favorit Indonesia (CFI). The remaining 18 billion rupiah of total fundraising will be used for working capital.
Shifting consumer preferences and evolving lifestyle trends are opening up significant opportunities for brands with strong fundamentals and a relevant value proposition, such as Fore Coffee.
According to a Redseer Analysis report in December 2024, Indonesia’s coffee market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 11% through 2030, with potential market value reaching $12.6 billion, or approximately 214 trillion rupiah.
Challenging times
Willson Cuaca, Fore’s main commissioner and co-founder and managing partner of East Ventures, stated that the timing for Fore’s IPO was indeed challenging. It was launched last Tuesday when the IDX resumed trade after a long weekend.
On that day, the composite stock price index dropped to 8%, triggering a trading halt—the second such incident in 2025 after March 18. Prior to that, a trading halt last happened during the COVID19 outbreak on March 19, 2020.
“It was nerve-wracking because the market was not good at the time. Unexpectedly, Fore met its fundraising target, even oversubscribed 200 times, with over 114,873 investors joining, which was remarkable,” Cuaca said during a speech at the IDX.
He emphasised that despite the current downturn in the startup ecosystem, investor interest remains strong in Indonesia due to its large and attractive market within Southeast Asia. “What matters now is responsible growth.”
“What makes Fore unique is that it stems from a local coffee culture, run by a local management team. Fore isn’t impacted by the ongoing trade war, because everything — from sourcing to execution — is local,” Cuaca concluded.
He further revealed that more than 10 companies within East Ventures’s ecosystem have the potential to go public, though he declined to provide specific details.
According to the firm’s internal report, around 70% of its portfolio has reached profitable status, while more than 80% have shown improvement in earnings margins before interest, tax, and amortisation (EBITDA) over the past year.
Among the profitable names mentioned are Sociolla, ShopBack, The Parentinc, RPG Commerce, Praktis, Mighty Jaxx, Traveloka, Komunal, Fore Coffee, ISMAYA Group, IDN, Ruangguru, waresix, Inteluck, and Xurya.
