ETA Khalid Osman’s highlight this month came from an unlikely source: cheese. Many months ago, Khalid befriended the owner of a cheese factory headquartered on the outskirts of Boyolali. This gentleman, hereby referred to as “Novi”, was an alumnus of SMAN 1 Boyolali and a rising entrepreneur.

Novi shared his experience building his business from scratch and the obstacles he had overcome in the Indonesian dairy sector. Even though Boyolali was famous for its abundance of cows, cheese was surprisingly scarce. Khalid was amazed to discover that Novi learned his craft from YouTube and a brief stint in Germany.

After sampling the catalog, it became clear that Novi possessed a special dairy acumen. From that day forward Khalid frequented the factory and began to stockpile various assortments of cheese. One day, he encountered a group of hungry travelers and offered them a bite. They were delighted to indulge in a luxury found sparingly throughout Indonesia.

The following week word had spread, and his social media accounts were flooded with keju (cheese) related inquiries. Khalid relayed the information to Novi who has since capitalized on the opportunity to fill an unmet need and expand his consumer base.

Khalid Osman is currently teaching at SMAN 1 Boyolali, Central Java