DIGIVESTASI - AQUA is not just a brand, but has now become a common term used to refer to bottled mineral water. As one of the dominant brands in the bottled water market in Indonesia, AQUA is widely recognized by the public. The brand with the dark blue color has been present in Indonesia for more than five decades, so it's no surprise that many people trust it when purchasing bottled drinking water.

Given its high popularity, many are curious about the figure behind this famous brand. The owner and founder of AQUA is Tirto Utomo, who was born with the name Kwa Sien Biauw in Wonosobo, Central Java, on March 8, 1930. Tirto grew up in an entrepreneurial family, with parents involved in dairy farming.

During high school, Tirto was active in a Chinese youth movement organization, Cung Lien Hui, and was even trusted to become the leader of the organization. It was in this organization that he met his wife, Kwee Gwat Kien, the daughter of a senior banker at The Javasche Bank (now Bank Indonesia).

After completing his studies at the Faculty of Law at Gadjah Mada University, Tirto pursued his master's degree at the University of Indonesia while working part-time as a journalist at Jawa Pos. He then moved to Jakarta to follow his wife, Kienke, and continued his graduate studies.

Tirto began his professional career at several major companies before eventually founding AQUA as the pioneer of bottled drinking water in Indonesia. Initially, he worked at Pertamina, Indonesia’s largest state-owned company, where he was promoted to head the legal division and foreign sales.

A pivotal event that inspired Tirto to create bottled drinking water occurred when he held a meeting with representatives from an American company in Jakarta, where the wife of the company’s representative fell ill after drinking water from a well that had been boiled. This experience sparked Tirto’s idea to create a product for sterilized and ready-to-drink bottled water.

After conducting research with the help of his brother, Tirto founded PT Golden Mississippi on February 23, 1973. The company began producing sterilized bottled drinking water in Indonesia, with the first factory built in Pondok Ungu, Bekasi. In 1974, the company launched its first product under the Puritas brand, using glass bottles as packaging.

However, some consultants recommended changing the brand name to AQUA to make it easier to pronounce and to align with the meaning of "water." Although initially criticized, the bottled water business run by Tirto Utomo was a huge success in the market.

After achieving great success with this business, Tirto Utomo passed away on March 16, 1994. Since then, AQUA has been managed by the Tirto Utomo family. On September 28, 1998, the French multinational company Danone acquired 40 percent of AQUA's shares. The acquisition increased in 2001 when Danone bought 70 percent of AQUA’s majority shares. Today, the Tirto Utomo family only holds 26 percent of the company’s shares.

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