Seen any elevator ads lately? One for “Kapal Api Coffee, recommended by the Indonesian President, it smells so good!” caught my eye. I’ll use this ad to illustrate how treacherous the world can be.

Since at least November 16, 2021, I’ve seen Kapal Api Coffee ads in the elevators of both my office and apartment buildings. The ad implies that Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) recommends this coffee, using his photos and video footage.

What’s your take? Do you believe the president is actually involved? Or do you just shrug it off? It’s rare for a head of state to endorse a brand, so I dug deeper.

First, I checked Kapal Api Coffee’s origins. Business records show the domestic entity is Kapal Api Food (China) Co., Ltd., wholly owned by PT. Balini Inve Indonesia, an Indonesian firm.

Here’s the tricky part: I don’t speak Indonesian. How to trace this? Searching the full name in English gave me some third-party business info, but no official site. Luckily, Kapal Api Coffee does have an official website. Its international name is Kapal Api, and it’s indeed Indonesia’s top coffee producer. But what’s the link between Kapal Api and PT. Balini Inve Indonesia? Direct searches turned up nothing, so I broke down the company name.

“PT.” is Indonesian for “Limited Liability Company,” and “Inve” means investment. So, PT. Balini Inve Indonesia is “Indonesian Balini Investment Co., Ltd.,” with Balini being the company name. Searching for Kapal Api and Balini revealed the connection: Balini is a Kapal Api brand. Great, Kapal Api Food (China) Co., Ltd. is indeed part of the Indonesian coffee giant, Kapal Api.

Second question: Is that really the Indonesian President in the ad? Public information confirms it is indeed President Joko Widodo. However, the video shows a younger Jokowi, and the segment featuring him is blurry compared to other shots, suggesting older footage. This raised a red flag.

The core issue: What’s the relationship between Jokowi and Kapal Api Coffee? Searching the Chinese internet, I found no endorsement news. Instead, I found the ad’s source: Shanghai Shengsi Zhuozhi Marketing Planning Company. They came up with the “President’s Coffee” strategy.

This is a small micro-enterprise with a registered capital of 5 million, offering brand marketing services.

On Shengsi Zhuozhi’s website, they proudly showcase the Kapal Api Coffee case study, explaining the “President’s Coffee” strategy, confirming my online findings.

Shengsi Zhuozhi’s other clients are mostly local Chinese firms. The few foreign brand cases are all marketing within China. I concluded that this company lacks overseas marketing experience and focuses domestically. Thus, they likely don’t have the resources for an overseas endorsement, let alone one from the Indonesian President.

Could Kapal Api’s parent company have a deal with President Jokowi, bringing those materials to the Chinese market? I searched in English, and even Indonesian.

First, I searched for Kapal Api and “president.” No dice, whether articles or images.

It’s a language issue. “Kapal Api” is Indonesian, “president” is English, hence English results. Indonesia and its coffee aren’t hot topics in the English-speaking world.

Time to tackle the Indonesian-speaking world. The president’s name is Joko Widodo. Would searching these two names unlock it?

Yes, a flood of gibberish nearly made me spit blood. But, I don’t need to understand Indonesian, just find where the names appear together. And there it was, in a 2017 report.

Translation tools helped me grasp the context. President Jokowi took steps to boost Indonesia’s coffee industry. Kapal Api, a major beneficiary, awarded Jokowi the title of “National Coffee Activist.”

Endorsement? Ad? Nothing. I could dig further, but it’s unnecessary. Any reasonable person can see what’s happening.

Kapal Api’s Chinese marketing team is playing fast and loose. It’s like the Minister of Agriculture announcing a push for the peach industry, and then a peach seller claiming the Minister endorses their peaches, using the minister’s photos and videos.

The endorsement doesn’t affect my buying decision. The lie isn’t hugely damaging, but it’s insulting. Are they treating consumers like idiots? How many people would go to these lengths to verify an ad? It’s like using a nuke to swat a fly. The cost of the lie is minimal, a slight nudge from the truth, yet consumers need a nuke to detect it.

Much of the commercial world is malicious. They’ll hype anything, lie, and spread pseudoscience, all for profit. They swarm around you, filling your life with lies while picking your pocket. It’s disgusting.

I once saw a WeChat post making extreme political comments. The author? A grocery store. Does the owner fancy himself a modern-day Zhuge Liang?

I’ve got nothing against Kapal Api Coffee, so why bother? Because I’m a stickler for details. I’ll dive into academic papers to get to the bottom of things. I’ve exposed far worse false advertising. A coffee company lying about endorsements is just the tip of the iceberg. Think about all the ads that have excited or intrigued you. Hyaluronic acid thermoses, blood sugar-lowering rice cookers – how much false info has been crammed into your brain? How much money has been drained from your wallet?

What kind of world is this? Peaceful? Stable? I’d say: Besieged.

I reported Kapal Api Coffee to the Administration for Market Regulation. Easy to do on the 12315 mini-program. But that’s beside the point. I want to warn everyone, to protect my family and friends.

March 31, 2022 Update:

The Administration for Market Regulation responded. Due to the minor nature, timely stop, and lack of serious consequences, they decided not to impose a penalty. I’m not dissatisfied; it’s reasonable in this case.

See? Society tolerates these commercial lies. It’s not just unscrupulous businesses; society encourages it. Bragging and lying are more beneficial than harmful for companies.

Especially in the information age, businesses aren’t shouting face-to-face. People used to know lying would damage their reputation. Now, consumers face a brand, an ad, not a person. A company’s image is vague. It has no psychological burden, only gains and losses.

This is a fundamental problem. Is there a solution? Sadly, not yet.