Carlo Tabalujan

Carlo Hein Tabalujan (born Tan Tjin Hin 譚欣下巴; 18 April 1924 – 10 November 2011) is a Chinese Indonesian businessman and entrepreneur of Hokkien origin. He is the head and founder of Indonesian conglomerate PT. Sumber Selatan Nusa.

Born in Buitenzorg (today's Bogor) in 1924, Tan Tjin Hin, adopted the Indonesian family name of Tabalujan soon after Indonesia became independent on 17 August 1945. He was the fourth son of an Indonesian Chinese trader in a small town near Bogor. The family moved to Manado in Sulawesi and prospered until the outbreak of the Pacific War in 1941 which resulted in the complete loss of the family business.

Educated at the Anglo-Chinese College on the island of Kulangsu near Xiamen, (Amoy) and at a business college in Jakarta, Carlo Tabalujan at the age of seventeen was stranded entirely alone and without money when the Japanese occupied Java. He survived for three and a half years with the help from schoolmates and some poorly paid work. In 1945, his first real job was with the British Seaforth Highlanders, part of the Allied Forces that landed to take back control of Indonesia from the Japanese.

In 1945, he began trading on his own by renting a desk in the office of a businessman. From that basic beginning, Carlo Tabalujan built up successful trading and manufacturing businesses. These include relationships with a number of international companies as his long-term partners, leading to joint ventures controlling about a dozen affiliated companies under the Sumber Selatan umbrella, including PT Nestlé Indonesia, PT Danapaints Indonesia, PT Century Batteries, PT Maskapai Ansuransi; Union-Far East and PT Dan Motor Indonesia Vespa which at the time became Indonesia's leading manufacturers and distributors of motorcycles, automotive and decorative parts. In 1994, Carlo Tabalujan strengthened the company's interest in the motorcycle industry by a joint venture with Kawasaki motorcycles and heavy industries.

In 1972, The Australian Dairy Board monopoly expired. Ever since then, Nestlé Indonesia continued to diversify its consumer goods catering to local markets. Products such as Nescafé Coffee, Milkmaid and Dancow milk powder. Carlo Tabalujan currently continues as a member of the board of Nestlé Indonesia with his two eldest sons Hans and James Tabalujan.

Carlo is married to wife, Tine Kamboean and together have four sons and one daughter; Hans G. Tabalujan, James D. Tabalujan, Heyley L. Tabalujan, Peter L. Tabalujan and Benny S. Tabalujan. Carlo has fifteen grandchildren and three great grandchildren.

Fifty Years of Business in Indonesia

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