As Indonesia’s first modern retail store and a trailblazer in retail transformation, Sarinah has grown into something far more meaningful: a cultural experience centre.
Through curated events that blend heritage, innovation, and inclusivity, Sarinah offers a multidimensional journey into Indonesia’s evolving identity. The months of June and July 2025 saw Sarinah in full stride, delivering three memorable programmes: the 2025 Sarinah Jakarta E-Prix, Sarinah Festiloka, and Anungsung Sura in collaboration with Pura Mangkunegaran.
These highlights reaffirm Sarinah’s role in shaping a vibrant, community-driven cultural narrative: where the past is honoured, the present is celebrated, and the future is envisioned together.
Formula E 2025 Sarinah Jakarta E-Prix: Where innovation meets culture
Jakarta played host to one of the world’s most innovative sporting events in June: The 2025 Sarinah Jakarta E-Prix, part of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. As the title sponsor, Sarinah proudly supported the race not only as a global showcase of electric mobility but as a catalyst for sustainability and cultural engagement.
Unlike any other motorsport, Formula E is designed to leave a smaller carbon footprint. The 2025 race in Jakarta drew global attention by integrating green energy from the Indonesian national grid, deploying electric shuttle fleets, and implementing a zero-waste-to-landfill policy with Waste4Change. This year’s Formula E, the world’s only net-zero carbon motorsport, offset 100% of its 33,000-ton annual emissions, far less than Formula 1’s 350,000 tons.
“Our partnership with Formula E reflects Sarinah’s values as a cultural experience centre,” said Raisha Syarfuan, President Director of PT Sarinah. “We proudly support events that promote sustainability while sharing Indonesia’s heritage with the world.”
Ahead of race day, Sarinah hosted all 22 drivers in a warm cultural reception, featuring sasando music and curated Nusantara cuisine. It was a moment where speed met soul, where global athletes were welcomed with the richness of Indonesia’s traditions.
In collaboration with the Better Futures Fund, Sarinah and Formula E also donated €25,000 to support CLIMATEABILITY, a local climate leadership programme empowering women, youth, and people with disabilities. The week ended with a 150-kg beach clean-up, underscoring that this race was about more than winning—it was about leaving a positive legacy.
Sarinah Festiloka 2025: From tradition to generation
Held on the occasion of Jakarta’s 498th anniversary, Sarinah Festiloka 2025 was a joyful celebration of all things local. The three-day festival at Anjungan Sarinah Thamrin invited locals and visitors alike to immerse themselves in Betawi and Indonesian culture reimagined for today.
True to its name, being a blend of festival and local, Festiloka served as a stage for creative interpretations of tradition. Most notably, three legendary ondel-ondel were redesigned by fashion icons Wilsen Willim, Ria Miranda, and Mel Ahyar. These cultural symbols, once rooted in street performance, were reborn in couture, paying homage to history while embracing the aesthetics of the future.
The event also included a special collaboration with Harper’s Bazaar Indonesia, presenting the public art installation Senandung Taman. This collective work featured striking pieces by artists such as Arkiv Vilmansa and Darbotz, offering a visual playground that fused Jakarta’s urban pulse with cultural reflection.
Visitors enjoyed authentic culinary offerings, creative workshops, Betawi kebaya fashion showcases, and a curated pop-up market highlighting local brands.
“Sarinah is where the spirit of tradition meets the energy of a new generation,” said Raisha Syarfuan, President Director of PT Sarinah. “Through Festiloka, we reaffirm our position as a cultural experience centre, where culture is not only preserved, but reimagined.”
Anungsung Sura: Honouring the sacred in the heart of the city
To close out June, Sarinah partnered with Pura Mangkunegaran to bring the solemn Javanese tradition of 1 Sura to downtown Jakarta. From the 26th of June to the 26th of July, Anungsung Sura transformed the ground floor of Sarinah Thamrin into a reflective space that honoured the Javanese New Year with philosophy, ritual, and resonance.
Macapatan poetry performances, traditional gamelan music, and immersive cultural installations invited the public to pause, emotionally and spiritually.
“This is more than an event,” said Raisha Syarfuan, President Director of PT Sarinah. “It’s an invitation to slow down, reflect, and reconnect with meaning. And it’s exactly the kind of experience we want to bring to Jakarta as a cultural experience centre.”
This programme allowed Jakarta’s residents, including many expats unfamiliar with Javanese customs, to experience the depth of one of Indonesia’s most sacred traditions. It was a testament to Sarinah’s mission to democratise culture: Making it accessible, relevant, and alive.
Redefining the role of retail in Indonesia
Whether supporting the future of electric mobility, offering a creative take on traditional art, or opening sacred rituals to the city, Sarinah is at the centre of a growing cultural movement.
As a cultural experience centre, Sarinah represents a bold shift in what retail spaces can offer. No longer confined to commerce alone, Sarinah brings together people, purpose, and pride. It is where sustainability meets storytelling, where the global connects with the local, and where visitors, both Indonesian and international, can engage with the rich diversity of the archipelago in meaningful ways.
With 13 stores across Indonesia and one in Perth, Australia, Sarinah is also expanding its reach globally: Taking Indonesia’s creative spirit and heritage to the world.
Hence, whether you are visiting Jakarta or living here as an expatriate, make time to explore Sarinah. You may come for the fashion or food, but you will leave with something far richer: A deeper connection to Indonesia’s evolving cultural story.
Come to Sarinah. Experience Indonesia in motion.
