Open For Business

They say the path to a person’s heart is through their stomach, and for Malaysians, food is definitely one of our country’s passions. With the F&B industry taking a hit in 2020, Kenneth Lai, co-founder of cloud kitchen, Vacrea, discusses how he kept three food companies up and running through the pandemic. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s a lot of paperwork involved when buying a new car. And maintaining a car takes effort as well. Arief Imran, founder of SERV, wanted to digitalize the entire process by creating a one-stop platform for vehicle owners. After years of trial and error, SERV is now quickly gaining popularity and plans to expand not just nationally but regionally in the near future. We speak to Arief about...

There’s a lot of paperwork involved when buying a new car. And maintaining a car takes effort as well. Arief Imran, founder of SERV, wanted to digitalize the entire process by creating a one-stop platform for vehicle owners. After years of trial and error, SERV is now quickly gaining popularity and plans to expand not just nationally but regionally in the near future. We speak to Arief about...

During the movement control order (MCO) in mid-march last year, the country was seeing  over 800% sales increase in cooking appliances online. MCO really brought out the cook in a lot of us. Leveraging on that situation is Khalid Gibran, founder of X Promosi Sdn Bhd, by shifting his business from selling kitchen wares to retailers, to now selling it directly to the customers. Thus born My Coo...

When the travel industry came to a grinding halt due to the pandemic, the co-founders of airbnb management company Plush Services had something dreamy up their sleeves. They supplemented revenues by launching an online DTC bedsheet brand, Kapas Living. The duo speak to us about the bed linen market in Malaysia, changing consumer purchasing behaviour, and give us a 101 on what makes great sheets. S...

Although Sixty Bites has been a go-to burger joint in Kuala Lumpur for a few years, owners John Tey and Amer Ezzadeen knew that it was time to refresh the brand and expand their network. The duo plan on opening more outlets and serving a wider area with a new central kitchen. We speak to John and Amer about taking over Sixty Bites in 2019, picking the pandemic as a time to grow, and sticking with...

Being a student right now is tough. Your school life has been upended, you don’t get to see your friends in person, and your education hangs on the strength of your WiFi connection. So how do you find the motivation to study in these times? Gamification has a big part to play, and speaking about that is Stanley Han, CEO & cofounder of KooBits.   See omnystudio.com/listener for priva...

Being a student right now is tough. Your school life has been upended, you don’t get to see your friends in person, and your education hangs on the strength of your WiFi connection. So how do you find the motivation to study in these times? Gamification has a big part to play, and speaking about that is Stanley Han, CEO & cofounder of KooBits.   See omnystudio.com/listener for priva...

Soy sauce is a staple ingredient in many Asian countries. You can go to any Asian household or kitchen and you’ll definitely find soy sauce there. Adding into the soy sauce food culture is Shirley Chia, through her own artisan soy sauce, Mu. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Despite it being a fairly new player in the industry, PG Mall saw an impressive revenue growth in its initial startup years, and true enough, within just a short span of 3 years since its establishment, it has won over a substantial market share to compete on level ground with bigger and long-established players, which are mostly foreign-owned online marketplaces within the industry.   See om...

Despite it being a fairly new player in the industry, PG Mall saw an impressive revenue growth in its initial startup years, and true enough, within just a short span of 3 years since its establishment, it has won over a substantial market share to compete on level ground with bigger and long-established players, which are mostly foreign-owned online marketplaces within the industry.   See om...

BeliGas Malaysia was born amidst the pandemic to help those in the Klang Valley with a long-standing problem - the ordering and delivery of cooking gas tanks. Via its app, BeliGas aims to disrupt the traditional LPG cylinder delivery market, and support marginalised communities by hiring unemployed riders from the B40 group, as well as ex-convicts. We speak to founder Suthan Mookaiah about the sta...

BeliGas Malaysia was born amidst the pandemic to help those in the Klang Valley with a long-standing problem - the ordering and delivery of cooking gas tanks. Via its app, BeliGas aims to disrupt the traditional LPG cylinder delivery market, and support marginalised communities by hiring unemployed riders from the B40 group, as well as ex-convicts. We speak to founder Suthan Mookaiah about the sta...

Urban farming is on the rise thanks to increased social awareness and a need for healthy living. Pasarkita leverages the rise in “garden vegetables'' by sourcing, buying, and delivering fresh, pesticide-free greens to monthly subscribers. We speak to Hanizar Mohd Shaari, founder of Pasarkita, about the logistics, challenges, and expansion plans of his relatively new crowdsourcing and deliver...

COVID-19 has proven more than ever that a brand’s online presence is just as important as their offline presence, and that creativity and innovation are key to ensuring you get your brand name out there in a safe and fun environment. Jason Ang, founder & managing director of Fotobox Co., discusses the digitalisation and gamification of marketing campaigns and their digital arm, Conten. T...

COVID-19 has proven more than ever that a brand’s online presence is just as important as their offline presence, and that creativity and innovation are key to ensuring you get your brand name out there in a safe and fun environment. Jason Ang, founder & managing director of Fotobox Co., discusses the digitalisation and gamification of marketing campaigns and their digital arm, Conten. T...

Kamilia Abdullah churns a gluten free, diet and diabetic friendly peanut butter spreads. She shares her journey in building up her brand, The Jaw Kisser, and how she operates her artisanal peanut butter business.    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kamilia Abdullah churns a gluten free, diet and diabetic friendly peanut butter spreads. She shares her journey in building up her brand, The Jaw Kisser, and how she operates her artisanal peanut butter business.    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Employment Hero is a scalable, ‘cross-borders’ employment solutions suite for SMEs, with comprehensive automated solutions for employee recruitment, management, payroll and benefits. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

 Building your dream home is no easy feat. Visualizing how it can be, from the flooring to the furnitures that fit your style - it takes time and energy. And the wrong choice can be a costly mistake. Keith Loh from Creative Lab shares how the company can help you visualize your dream home with 3D-designs. It’s the way of the future for experiencing home renovation, and to bring home you...

 Building your dream home is no easy feat. Visualizing how it can be, from the flooring to the furnitures that fit your style - it takes time and energy. And the wrong choice can be a costly mistake. Keith Loh from Creative Lab shares how the company can help you visualize your dream home with 3D-designs. It’s the way of the future for experiencing home renovation, and to bring home you...

In an effort to tackle the financial gap in the B40 group, Aida and Wei Qi, two of the three founders behind Ibupreneur, decided to dedicate an online platform to “mompreneurs” with culinary skills. The platform helps sell baked goods and hopes to create a sense of independence and sustainability in its community. We speak to the founders about the ups and downs of running the platform...

Not all of us have the privilege of a private home office or even privacy at home with which to work at all. On the other hand, many offices are closed or encouraging remote work. So what’s the next best thing? A co-working space, of course, much like WORQ for example; Stephanie Ping, founder & CEO of WORQ, discusses how they’ve been coping throughout the pandemic. See omnystudio.c...

Not all of us have the privilege of a private home office or even privacy at home with which to work at all. On the other hand, many offices are closed or encouraging remote work. So what’s the next best thing? A co-working space, of course, much like WORQ for example; Stephanie Ping, founder & CEO of WORQ, discusses how they’ve been coping throughout the pandemic. See omnystudio.c...

Johor Empowerment of Intellectual Women Association (JEIWA) was started by female entrepreneurs and professionals to help women who have been victims of domestic violence. Ina Fadilah, founder of JEIWA shares the foundation’s contributions to women empowerment, and its efforts in fighting the prejudice against women. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.