Edu-Wellness Startup "Mindtera" Secures Seed Funding from East Ventures

Educational platform for self-development (edu-wellness) Mindtera has announced seed funding with undisclosed amount led by East Ventures. Silicon Valley-based Hustle Fund, Henry Hendrawan, and several angel investors in the tech industry participated in this round.

The fresh funds will be used to accelerate its mission in helping people live their best lives, by providing access to a curriculum for self-development learning across a wide range of lives.

“This latest funding will be used to strengthen product and technology teams, launch more exciting features, increase brand awareness, and build capacity in response to market needs. We welcome passionate talent to join us on this journey,” Mindtera's Co-founder & CMO Bayu Bhaskoro said in an official statement, Monday (23/8).

The concept

This startup's other founder is Tita Ardiati. She is a licensed life coach who has spent more than 500 hours with 100 clients and is a senior statistician with experience working at multinational research institutions, such as YouGov and Nielsen. Meanwhile, Bayu has experience as a senior creative professional with various achievements.

Mindtera's Co-Founder & CEO, Tita Ardiati said, this platform was established to provide education and training on emotional, social and physical intelligence in digital format for individuals and companies. Mindtera's multiple intelligence curriculum has been scientifically and clinically validated by life coaches, educators, and clinical psychologists.

In addition, this learning platform will also build a community as a daily support system for its users. "Mindtera aims to overcome this imbalance by designing and building educational products containing multiple intelligences (multi-intelligence approach)," she explained.

She also mentioned, “[..] We provide content that opens up insights about multiple intelligences to more individuals and companies. Through Mindtera, look forward to accessibility, relevance and community in a digital format that will help increase your potential.”

According to the Harvard Business Review (HBR), emotional intelligence (EQ) is twice as important as any other skill for achieving personal growth and well-being, whether at home or at work. Generally, in schools, even edtech, focus on technical and academic abilities.

Nowadays, it's almost hard to find solutions to improve an individual's EQ in a structured way to better navigate life. Especially amidst the pandemic, EQ has become an important aspect to help people adapt to unprecedented changes and uncertainties.

East Ventures' partner, Melisa Irene said, “[..] We believe Mindtera will pave the way for changing people's understanding of intelligence as a whole, equipping people with the right curriculum and services to achieve life satisfaction.”

Wellness market share

Indonesia's market share for fitness and wellness industry has grown significantly over the past few years. Euromonitor International's data shows that Indonesia's health and wellness food and beverage market has grown 51% in five years and become the current $9 billion industry.

Meanwhile, according to a report from the International Association of Health Clubs, Rackets and Sports, the country's fitness industry grew by 45% in three years to $271 million in 2017. In Indonesia, wellness players serve across multiple verticals. It includes Fit Company, DOOgether, Jovee, YouVit, ClassPass, R Fitness, and many more.

Source: Euromonitor

The lucrative potential for economic value has made several digital innovators jump into this area. Carrying the concept of an educational application that focuses more on fitness and physical health activities, Telkomsel released the "Fita" application this year. To date, the app is still in its early access phase. It offers several products, from 1-on-1 tutoring services with professional trainers, on-demand workout videos, exercise programs, tips and nutritious food recipes.

–Original article is in Indonesian, translated by Kristin Siagian