Open For Business

Two years ago, Applecrumby was navigating its transition from a long bootstrapped journey into its next growth phase. Today, the company is expanding beyond baby care into kids skincare, scaling its retail presence, and rethinking what sustainable growth looks like for a consumer brand built on trust. Co-founders Sean Tan and Jesmine Tan join us to break down what has changed since our last conver...

Many professionals have deep expertise but struggle to turn that into a credible, sustainable career as a trainer, facilitator, or industry practitioner. Riley Goh is aiming to change that dynamic with The Lighthouse Academia, a Malaysia–Singapore based academy that helps practitioners professionalise their craft and build real training careers. Through accredited programmes, consulting, and cours...

In 2022, brothers Joshua and Joel Lim set out to eliminate single-use plastics with BeeBag, a gamified reusable bag venture. But after facing a hard truth, that corporates viewed sustainability merely as a "marketing initiative" rather than a necessity, they made the difficult decision to pivot, swapping sustainability for scalability. Rebranding as Buzz, they are now turning financial apps like T...

In an F&B landscape often defined by rapid burnout and aggressive discounting, Arieni Ritzal has taken a different path. Since her last visit to the studio, Gula Cakery has evolved from a boutique success into a disciplined enterprise with 19 outlets and record sales in 2025. We explore how she navigated the “founder’s bottleneck” and the specific systems required to maintain “home-baked” qual...

Grassroots sports have always had the talent, the passion, and the stories but rarely the technology. AirUpThere Technologies is trying to change that. Since 2018, the Malaysian startup has been building AI-powered camera systems and a sports streaming platform called Huddle, designed to help schools, academies, and amateur leagues broadcast games, analyse performance, and create professional-grad...

Two years ago, TTRacing was already a fast-growing gaming chair brand making its mark across Southeast Asia. Since then, the business has continued to evolve, expanding its product portfolio, strengthening its regional presence, and navigating the realities of scaling in a highly competitive consumer category. In this episode of Open For Business, we catch up with Founder and CEO Henry Ting to unp...

1.9 million. That’s how many living quarters are vacant here in Malaysia, nearly 20% of the total, according to the 2020 Census. This puts hard numbers to a feeling many of us have: Malaysia has a housing paradox. We see "For Sale" signs and empty houses, yet many Malaysians still feel priced out of owning a home. UrbanMetry’s Cha-Ly Koh and Stirling Yiin discuss Urby, their platform selected for...

What does it really take to bridge the gap between a child’s imagination and a viable business model? In this episode of Open For Business, we explore the evolution of Goodday KidSTART 3.0 , Malaysia’s largest "kidpreneur" platform, which recently culminated in a national TV series finale. We sit down with Amy Gan , Vice President of Marketing at Etika Sdn. Bhd., and Pearl Liang , the 12-year-old...

Is it possible to reduce an investment portfolio's risk by adding a highly volatile asset like Bitcoin? Halogen Capital Co-Founders Hann Liew and Lucas Ooi certainly think so. While the investment thesis might be a point of debate, the business traction is undeniable. Founded in 2023, Halogen has grown from zero to RM400 million in AUM, with institutions making up 70%-80% of that figure.  Add...

What does it take to build a business when the stakes are high and your time is already accounted for?  In this episode of Open For Business, we sit down with Thiban Chandra, founder of TechX Malaysia, to explore the reality of the corporate side-hustle. From his career as a reservoir engineer in the oil and gas industry to launching a home audio and Hi-Fi venture, Thiban shares how he identi...

What does it really take to turn passion into a sustainable business? In this episode of Open For Business, we sit down with Janice Siew , founder of Petiteserie and Jan’s Gelato & Bakes , to explore the decisions behind the craft. From seven years in corporate banking to classical French pâtisserie, Janice shares how discipline, restraint, and long-term thinking shaped her journey. We look at...

The F&B industry is often romanticised, but for Shareen Ramli, the reality is far grittier. Yet, for 23 years, she has stayed in the game, evolving from making curry puffs at 2 a.m. to running the 105-seater Siti Li Dining & Foodhall. BFM Open For Business sits down with Shareen to discuss why she compares the trade to being a "stuntwoman", full of invisible bruises, and her mission to pre...

In this episode of Open For Business, we sit down with Dr Shian Lee, the aerospace engineer behind Alphaswift Industries. This is not a shiny drones conversation. It’s about what happens when machines start carrying real responsibility. We talk about why the sky might actually be easier for autonomy than the ground, why “fake it till you make it” has no place in aerospace, and how oil palm plantat...

Founded in 2017 as a simple telemedicine app, Doctor Anywhere (DA) became a pandemic darling, raising nearly $176 million from heavyweights like IHH Healthcare and Temasek-linked Pavilion Capital. But in a surprising twist, the digital disruptor spent ~$80 million USD in late 2022 to acquire Asian Healthcare Specialists , shifting from an asset-light tech model to owning traditional brick-and-mort...

How do you turn nostalgia into a scalable business in one of Malaysia’s most crowded food and beverage markets? On this episode of Open For Business, we speak with Nick Ng, Founder and CEO of Hock Kee Kopitiam, about building a modern kopitiam brand rooted in heritage, community, and made-to-order tradition. From opening a single outlet in Johor Bahru with no prior restaurant experience to growing...

In this episode of Open For Business, we look at why coworking seems to have lost its way and whether a quieter, more stripped-back model is the answer. We speak with Timothy Tiah, founder of Jerry Coworking Space, about building a business that deliberately rejects community theatre, lifestyle branding, and forced interaction. With automated, private offices across the Klang Valley and beyond, Je...

In late November, Costco filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the “Liberation Day tariffs", and the White House remained surprisingly silent. BFM speaks with Bryan DeAngelis of Penta Group to decode this "quiet rebellion." Corporate America is finally "unbending the knee," but they are doing it with a new playbook: filing lawsuits based strictly on business logic while avoiding th...

Restaurants are under pressure like never before like rising costs, staff shortages, shrinking margins, and systems that were never designed for today’s pace of business. We speak with Squall Tan, CEO of FeedMe, about how a simple frustration with slow service and wrong orders led to the creation of a full F&B operating system now used across the region. Squall shares how FeedMe evolved from a...

In 2015, advertising veterans Chantelle Teoh and Kelvin Long grew tired of the generic, "embarrassing" souvenirs found at Central Market. They wanted products that actually spoke the language of Malaysians, literally. Starting with a single t-shirt design complaining about cigarette prices ("Mahal Bro"), APOM (A Piece of Malaysia) has grown from a bazaar pop-up into a 7-figure retail brand with fi...

Founded in 2018, Sagtec Global Limited was a three-person operation in Kuala Lumpur, aiming to digitise Malaysia's F&B sector. Fast forward to March 2025, and Sagtec listed on the NASDAQ at an IPO price of $3.60. But the public markets have been unforgiving, the stock has since lost nearly 50% of its value. Kevin joins BFM to unpack the realities of a NASDAQ listing. We discuss why he spent $2...

On this episode of Open For Business , we speak with Paul Dass, Managing Director of Green Street Farms, about what it means to grow food with care in the heart of a city. Green Street Farms uses aquaponics, a natural system where fish and plants support one another, to produce fresh food while working in rhythm with nature. But beyond the method, this is a story about intention: choosing to grow...

Startup accelerators are everywhere, but few operate like AppWorks. Based in Taiwan with a sizable footprint in Southeast Asia, the firm runs an accelerator that takes zero equity and charges zero fees, a model sustained by its associated VC funds. Alyssa Chen, Principal of the AppWorks Accelerator, joins BFM to explain how this "founder-first" model acts as the top-of-funnel engine for an ecosyst...

Private credit has exploded over the last decade. But is it a necessary structural shift or a "shadow banking" bubble waiting to pop? David Z Wang, Co-Founder & CEO of fintech firm Helicap Group, joins BFM to make the case for connecting global investors to Asia's massive private credit opportunity. Backed by S$20 million in paid-up capital from the likes of Kenanga Group, Phillip Capital, Sai...

Malaysians are investing more than ever, but many are doing so in a market flooded with hype, social media tips, and unverified “gurus.” The result? Emotional decision-making, rising losses, and growing distrust among retail investors. We speak with Warren Mak, CEO and Co-Founder of Ted Optimus, about why so many Malaysians struggle to invest sustainably, and how his platform aims to help investor...

While skeptics dismiss the current wave of startups as mere AI 'wrappers,' a grassroots movement in Kuala Lumpur is ignoring the noise and building anyway. It begs the question: is it really just an 'AI wrapper' if it solves a fundamental business problem? Joseph Chin, City Organizer for AI Tinkerers Kuala Lumpur , joins BFM’s Open For Business to discuss how a small meetup grew into a thriving ne...