Biogenes Technologies is trying to change the biotech landscape by creating and commercialising synthetic antibodies for mass use in all kinds of test kits. However building and scaling a deeptech startup like this can be challenging here in Malaysia without the right help. We speak to Adrian Joseph, Co-Founder & Chief Commercial Officer, of Biogenes Technologies about the startup’s journey and mission, and how Cradle Fund has supported them along the way.

Established in 2021, CookX Asia is an all-in-one social cooking app created for food enthusiasts and foodpreneurs that want a community for learning and sharing.From recipe-sharing, meal planning, and grocery shopping CookX has it all–and allows the users to make a profit with it.Photo Credits: Freepik

Hard Rock Hotel opened its second property at Johor’s Desaru coast in 2019. We speak to Murray Aitkens, General Manager of Hard Rock Hotel Desaru Coast to talk about how hoteliers are faring post-pandemic, tackling problems like labour shortage and economic recovery.

Swimming is fun. Even more so with your family members, be it a picnic by the beach or an evening by the pool. On the other hand, it’s not as easy for couples with young ones to plan a water-fun day, especially with toddlers. But what if we told you that your 5 month thumb-sucking toddler can actually swim?At Happy Fish they help you do just that, with baby steps. With their very-own professional instructors and heated indoor pools, your little ones will be guided to feel at ease and comfortable while surrounded with water. Today, we will be talking to Mr Tan Jian Yong, founder of Happy Fish, a swimming school renowned to provide lessons catered for toddlers as young as 4 months old.Photo Credits: Facebook | Happy Fish Swim School

Over the past few years, we’ve seen a shift in the mindset of a lot of people towards taking better care of their health, especially when it comes to their diet. Plant-based diets and veganism are no longer seen as ‘alternative’ lifestyle choices, they now stand proudly front and center in the mainstream. At least, in some countries.Here in Malaysia, there’s still a way to go. But that doesn’t stop the spirit of entrepreneurship.Jason, a strength and conditioning coach, has brought a new vegan dietary supplement to market. Its main ingredient is the water lentil, a super food that is considered a complete food source, higher in protein than other plants including pea and hemp, and is comparable to whey.

Small grocery stores and restaurants have to fight for supplies with bigger chains and players, which is often a losing battle. Enter Lapasar - a B2B wholesale platform that has served over 10,000 SMEs across the country through its own warehousing, distribution and financial services capabilities. With ambitions to become the largest wholesaler in Malaysia, Roshan Kanesan dives into Lapasar’s journey to hit RM1 billion in revenue and their path to profitability, with Thinesh Kumar Asogan, the Co-founder and CEO of Lapasar. Thinesh also gets into Lapasar’s plans to develop its own consumer brands and products, use its scale to expand margins, and what he expects Lapasar to look like in 2025.

Global Psytech consists of professionals that specialise in offering cutting-edge and scalable profiling and analytic solutions for a range of sectors. Experts from a variety of scientific fields, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, behavioural sciences, computer science, statistics, and psychometrics, make up their team. For research, development, and commercialisation reasons, they collaborate with esteemed partners both domestically and abroad. We hear from Dr. Haniza Yon, Founder & CEO of Global Psytech to explore more.Photo Credits: Freepik | DCStudio

A Little Thing provides gift curation with a variety of gift boxes to choose from, but they have integrated AI into their operations. But how are they differentiating themselves in the competitive gift curation landscape? Yeo Lee Ching, Director of A Little Thing unwraps the details.  Photo Credits: Freepik | Racool_studio

Founded in 2020, Kapitani is an early-stage firm that promotes itself as an agri-fintech company that focuses on empowering smallholder farmers through digital and financial inclusion. Their name is an abbreviation for "capital for farmers," which reflects their goals. We are here with Nazrul Hazeri Nazirmuddin, Co-founder and CEO of Kapitani to know more about the platform.Photo Credits: Freepik | pressfoto

While a zero waste business may be sustainable for the earth, is it enough to sustain the bottomline? This is a question that has come up following NUDE: The Zero Waste Store’s announcement that it was closed until further notice.Roshan Kanesan explores the closure with co-founders of the store, Cheryl Anne Low & Abhishek Bhattacharjee, getting into the reason they entered the zero waste business, whether it was profitable, and lessons learned from the journey.

ShopBack, founded in 2014, enables users to earn cashback each time they perform online shopping transactions through its website or app. The cashback earned can be withdrawn to the users’ bank account of choice. Since its inception, ShopBack has given out more than RM150 million in cashback and rewards to its users in Malaysia. ShopBack recently launched the PayLater, a Buy Now, Pay Later payment method, following the company's acquisition of hoolah, offering shoppers a seamless, convenient, and rewarding solution to pay when shopping offline or online. Today in Open for Business, we speak with Eddy Han, General Manager of ShopBack

Bila Bila Mart, a modern concept of kedai runcit, opened their first outlet in a Mont Kiara mall on March 16, 2020, 2 days before the first MCO was announced. The story "BilaBila" was inspired by the pride Malaysians take in their heritage, cuisine, and culture. Think as a Kedai Runcit recreated in a fresh and modern image, while being passionate champions of locally produced Malaysian businesses. We speak to Tan Hai Liang and Lee Hui Jing, the Co-founder of Bila Bila Mart to know more about their story. Photo Credits: Facebook | Bila Bila Mart

How did they manage to get involved with grocery outlets within a year? And why is their manufacturer based in Korea? Co-founders Vicole Lim and Yeann Tan started their company, MATES and their sole product is known as Oatler, a meal replacement shake. They wanted to change the landscape of the food options that we have in Malaysia to promote a better and healthier diet. They talk about how they managed to get into all Q-ra grocery stores and the challenges surrounding finding a local manufacturer.

A technology startup founded in 2009, Bitsmedia is known for developing and publishing the world's most popular Muslim lifestyle app – MuslimPro. Bitsmedia is one of the portfolios of Captii Ventures. What started as the intention of providing the most accurate prayer times for Muslims wherever they are, MuslimPro has come a long way.We catch up with Nik on his journey so far.Photo Credits: Freepik | marymarkevich

Most mums buy toys. Some mums take their kids to Disneyland. But this mum? She built a theme park in the city for her children. And not just any theme park, either — an educational one that grows alongside them. NEXTGEN Theme Park is a comprehensive and innovative one-stop cross-generational edutainment park. It is Malaysia’s largest indoor edutainment theme park, spanning 45,000 sq ft of play space. It features five experiential zones - Entertainment, Enrichment, Experience, Engagement, and Empowerment. We speak to founder and Mumpreneur Lillian Chan.

iMotorbike is Southeast Asia’s pioneering eCommerce platform for buying and selling pre-loved motorcycles. They market themselves as a fast, secure, and hassle-free online experience with other key features to make it a one-stop shop for the preloved motorbike ecosystem.After a solid 2022, they’re looking to grow sales 8X to hit $20 million in 2023. Roshan Kanesan spoke to iMotorbike’s Founder and CEO Gil Carmo about how they are going to achieve this goal, the reason Gil entered the space, and more.

The appropriate shoes can say a lot. Make a good first impression, increase your self-assurance, safeguard your feet, get you through muddy conditions, or even provide you with the extra edge you need to win a race. Dato’ Lewre Lew has been in the shoe business since 1987 and started Lewré Bespoke in 1997 and has received numerous accolades and prizes over the years for its outstanding designs, skilled craftsmanship, and capacity to push the shoe fashion industry to new heights. Even the Duchess of Cambridge, HRH Kate Middleton owns a pair.Photo Credits: Kr8tif Express

Having a comfortable and visually appealing house is what most people are looking for. But everyone knows hiring an interior designer is costly. How are The Makeover Guys trying to bridge this gap while differentiating themselves in this expensive industry?We speak to Gavin Liew, the co-founder of The Makeover Guys to get their take on interior designing for properties in Malaysia.

What started as allergic reactions resulted in Tan Yet Mee starting Ecominim, and there are more people than you think that have allergic reactions to cleaning products. With that in mind, the team decided to make it their mission to create gentle and eco-friendly products that are not just safe for the environment and skin but as effective as commercial cleaners.Photo Credits: Freepik | zinkevych

Comfort should be prioritised when designing the perfect home. It should be tailored to you and your family’s needs – it should inspire, relax, and reflect who you are. A home is a place to learn, to feel happy and calm. ‘Fuku‘, which has been borrowed from Japanese, roughly translates to good fortune and wellness – and this is what Fuku Studio hopes to introduce to people’s homes. We hear from co-founder Vilit Lau.

What happens when you take Netflix, throw in some Disney, sprinkle in some YouTube Kids, and curate it Muslim children - well you get Durioo+ - a Malaysian video streaming startup that’s gotten quite a bit of investor attention, including from the famed Y Combinator.A year after their launch, they’ve raised US$2.85 million (RM12.5 million) in a seed round led by Y Combinator and Gobi Partners and backed by those funds, Durioo aims to hit 100,000 subscribers in 2023 and 1 million by 2026. Today on Open for Business, Durioo’s Founder and CEO Sinan Ismail joins Roshan Kanesan in the studio to chat about hitting those goals, the challenges ahead, the path to unicorn status, and the story behind their drastic pivot in 2020 due to YouTube’s policy changes.

In 2013, Eaugene Eau and Fion Tan, a husband-and-wife duo, had an idea to help modern women feel confident by creating Shapee modern shapewear. In September 2016, they made the decision to introduce nursing and maternity items with the goal of bringing joy, innovation, and information through every motherhood journey after thoroughly understanding breastfeeding mothers. Shapee has successfully entered more than 100 independent and chain baby stores in Malaysia as of the end of 2017. Today, we will be speaking to the founders of Shapee. Photo Credits: VulcanPost

With so many languages in the world - more than seven thousand to be exact - how can we still communicate effectively? Langwords is a language service provider startup based in Penang, Malaysia, that provides language solutions in more than 50 languages. Co-founders of Langwords, Joy Ooi and Yin Ooi share what it is like to run a business housing translators and transcribersPhoto Credits: Shuttershock | pathdoc

Malaysian based venture capital firm, Ficus Capital, recently announced its intent to continue investing in Malaysian and South East Asian startups with global growth potential. With its flagship RM60 million fund, Ficus SEA, the world’s first shariah compliant venture capitalist is looking for revolutionary, sustainable and purpose-driven startups that are bringing impact to the environment, social and governance (ESG) in a sustainable way.It recently invested US400,000 in Assemblr, Indonesia’s revolutionary augmented reality platform company that helps users to create AR content via its web-based platform. Today, we will be speaking to Hasbi Asyadiq, CEO of Assemblr.Photo Credits: Facebook | Assemblr World

Did you know that ‘Everything, Everywhere, All At Once’ was filmed in 10 locations in California, while ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ was shot at at least 16 locations, spanning three states in Malaysia and seven buildings in Singapore. With more content producers filling the market, video production and film-making is quickly becoming mainstream. As of February 2022, there are 30.25 million active social media users in Malaysia alone. These active social media users actively consume and create their own content, some of which eventually become micro influencers. These spell a huge door of opportunity for Malaysian home, building, land, retail and commercial property owners to list and potentially earn an income stream from leasing their sites for content creators.

Fi Life started in 2018 after acquiring the life insurance distribution business of U For Life, Malaysia's first direct-to-consumer online life insurance service. 5 years on, Fi Life is no longer just a distributor, now building and distributing their own life, total and permanent disability, critical illness and accidental death insurance products. We speak to Fi Life Founder Malek Ali about the journey of the last 5 years, the challenges building an insurtech startup, and what lies ahead.

Making an Indonesian Layer Cake is no small feat, and crafting the 18 layers is, for some, a work of art. It’s also a way for some people to stay bonded to their homeland. Ambon Boenda believes in keeping with the tradition, authenticity and the continuity of layer cake recipes passed down from generation to generation. Linda Lo, the founder and director of Ambon Boenda shares the layers of love with us.Photo Credits: Shuttershock | Jacob Lund

Recommend.my is a platform for locating and hiring Malaysia's service experts to provide home maintenance and cleaning services on demand since 2014. We speak with Lua Jes Min, CEO and Co-Founder of Recommend.my, to know more about how they integrate technology to match service experts to their customers. Photo Credits: Shuttershock | Andrew Angelov

Goodday recently concluded Malaysia’s biggest kid-preneur programme KidStart. The competition’s main objective is to encourage financial literacy and entrepreneurship among Malaysian children. 10-year-old Fatimah Basyeera won the programme with her stroke recovery software application, while Ong Joon Zach is the runner-up with his coconut extractor idea CocoCool. They discuss what their steps are moving forward.

Malaysians are still wasting plenty of food, despite having to fork out more money for meals nowadays. According to the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation (SWCorp), in 2021, Malaysians generated 17,007 tonnes of food waste per day in 2021 – enough to fill one-and-a-half Olympic-sized swimming pools. Sean Tan, CEO of Insect Feed Technologies discovered how to utilise technology to rear and breed the black soldier fly to be incorporated in upcycling food waste. Through an in-house proprietary treatment, the team then translates black soldier fly larvae into a sustainable and healthier alternative for animal feed, and replaces chemical fertilisers for plants.

While other areas of startup funding seem to be cooling down, like our planet, climate tech is heating up. Global policy change looks to be a big growth lever for space. Whether it’s the EU’s proposed carbon tax - the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism or the US Federal Government’s proposal to require suppliers disclose emissions or climate-related data, the bottom line here is that, knowing, accounting, and planning for GreenHouse Gases will become vital if you’re doing business globally. Enter Pantas Software, a homegrown startup looking to make carbon accounting simple and automated.

For many of us, coffee is a daily need. However, premium or specialty coffee is often seen as a luxury only to be enjoyed on special occasions. ZUS Coffee is bucking this trend by making specialty coffee more affordable and accessible to all. They are also a digital-focused coffee chain enabling online order to offline delivery via their own app. We speak to Venon Tian, Chief Operating Officer at ZUS Coffee to learn more about their business journeyPhoto Credits: Facebook | ZUS Coffee

It is commonly known for the MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) business event industry to be one of the lucrative businesses in the market. But it is also an industry that was impacted severely by the pandemic. Evenesis is a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) technology that provides event management solutions for event planners.Being in business for more than 13 years, its CEO and Founder of Evenesis, Ts. Yusno Yunos, discusses his business model and how they weathered through the tough unprecedented times.Photo Credit: Facebook | Evenesis

Pickiddo was developed as a platform that enabled SMEs in education, such as training or tuition centres to operate better. Local SMEs are looking for digital solutions because their businesses cannot be managed effectively through manual work. Therefore, the development of the Pickiddo platform has enabled them to accelerate their business and their management. We hear from Rasid Maasom, the founder of Pickiddo.Photo Credit: Facebook | Pickiddo

Workplace rewards are great. In fact, workplace rewards have traditionally been an all-important motivation for employees. That said, this form of incentive has always been a one-size-fits-all approach because it assumes that all employees feel equally rewarded by the same form of rewards. This begs the question, is it high time we took a long hard look at the system and made appropriate adjustments to better suit an increasingly diverse workforce?

People love their pets, but do they love them enough to buy pet insurance? That’s certainly something that Oyen is hoping for. The digital pet insurance player is aiming to insure 100,000 pets in Southeast Asia within 3 years, fueled by its seed funding round of around RM1.7 million back in 2021. That said, 100,000 is a big number, how far is Oyen from achieving that goal? We get into this, the viability of this business model, and whether Kevin and Michelle are looking to leverage Oyen’s brand beyond pet insurance

Ejen2u is a cloud-based agent management platform that is seeking to help digitalise the agentship industry. With leadership spanning years of experience in the agentship and business digitalisation, Ejen2u is an integrated data driven platform with the goal of helping product founders increase their business productivity and profitability.Imran Hadi, co-founder of Ejen2u joins us to give us an insight into the business.Photo Credits: Shuttershock | KPs Photography AND Film

Many businesses can no longer solely rely on traditional mediums to market and improve their company, and hence turn to firms and agencies to handle the nitty gritty so businesses can focus on what they do best. But with the boom of digital marketing agencies, how are business solution providers differentiating themselves in the market?We hear from Chan Leong Teng, CEO and Goh Wei Wen, Head of Operations of Skribble about staying ahead of the curve.

We’re all familiar with the different scenarios of how AI has played a role in our lives. NexMind.AI decided to take it one step further by integrating AI Machine Learning into their Search Engine Optimisation software. With a goal to create smarter search robots known as SEO automation software, NexMind.AI provides an enterprise SEO platform that can help brands boost their presence and visibility on the internet. We speak to Francis Lui, founder and CEO of NexMind.AI on how they are leveraging the power of AI to boost their service offerings.Photo Credit: Shuttershock | MaximP

There are plenty of food options available in Malaysia, and we’re often lauded with just how good our food options are. And there are some foods that are an institution here in Malaysia – Nasi Lemak, and even the humble Ramly burger. Nazri and his team at Sausage Sizzle have started to introduce something that isn’t exactly Malaysian, but does have a familiar roadside setting. They produce a premium hotdog experience at a reasonable price. But how can they compete with the greats?

The need for cybersecurity has never been greater. Technology is everywhere and whether the digitisation of society is good, bad, or ugly, what is indisputable is that we are incredibly reliant on tech. According to research and advisory company Forrester, 68% of enterprises in Asia suffered from at least one security breach in 2021. While this is an incredibly scary problem, it’s also a giant opportunity that Singapore-based cybersecurity firm Blackpanda is looking to tap intoPhoto Credit: Digital News Asia

The wedding industry is one of Malaysia's most lucrative industries, worth up to RM7 billion a year, according to the Malaysia Reserve in 2019. But we cannot forget that this industry has suffered one of the worst hits during the pandemic. Some couples even had to go through online weddings. But Precious Wedding Bridal Studio weathered through it all despite having no sales at all during the two years of pandemic. How are they doing now? And what are the wedding trends for couples who are looking to tie the knot this year?Photo Credit: Shutterstock | Alex Gukalov

WeHantar is a digital startup logistics company looking to bridge ASEAN by providing solutions for businesses and individuals to move goods across the region. Where many couriers charge based on weight and size, WeHantar seeks to differentiate themselves by adopting the approach of sending anything that fits into their box, within the limit of 75kg. We speak to Ash Najwan, Co-Founder and Operations Lead of WeHantar to hear about their unique approach to the courier industry. Photo Credit : Shutterstock | Gorodenkoff

Back in 2017, two passionate youths were dedicated to reimagining the way people eat and creating food products that are healthy, enjoyable, and convenient for people. In just two years, they are able to expand their markets into 6 different countries. Until now, their products are available in over 1000 retailers across multiple countries. They are also one of the 12 companies for the Endeavor ScaleUp Cohort 3 program. One of the founders, Justin Chan, shares their milestones.Photo Credit : Facebook | Thips

Most of us are probably familiar with cashless and ticketless parking, in fact, smart parking in Malaysia is valued at USD 450 million from 2022-2030 whereas the figure stands at USD 8 billion in Southeast Asia. However, surprisingly, the Southeast Asian market for parking is still 90% cash-based. This could be down to parking space owners not understanding or fearing the switch to digital. Started by 3 industry veterans, Sonicboom looks to transform traditional cash payment parking businesses to a 0 capital expenditure low operational expenditure business, by having an all-in-one terminal software that eliminates the need of upgrading the software to keep up to date with the latest payment features.

Insurance - it’s a crucial part of any good financial plan and it’s more than just life insurance, medical card, or critical illness cover. More importantly, it’s not just for individuals, businesses need insurance as well. Senang Insurance is an insuretech that’s trying to make insurance easier for businesses, gig workers, and more. Armed with a new round of funding from TIM Ventures, we speak to Co-founder and CEO Sharian Raj about how they started and what comes next.

Arus Oil provides convenience solutions for households, F&B, and hoteliers to recycle their Used Cooking Oil (UCO) waste. The first of its kind to focus on the household market in terms of collecting UCO waste, where households can recycle as little as 5 kgs of UCO from the convenience of their homes and Arus Oil's digital platform.Transactions of payments made are transparent and also a carbon calculation will be summarised for the user(s) to keep in track with their carbon activities by recycling their UCO. Photo Credit : Facebook | Arus Oil

Many Malaysians own pets and are always on the lookout to provide the best service and care for their ‘fur babies’. Petotum is looking to revolutionise the pet care ecosystem by using technology to connect both pet owners and pet businesses on a single integrated platform. We speak to Afifah Basir, Co-founder and CEO of Petotum to hear about her unique platform and motivations behind starting a pet community ecosystem.Photo Credit : Shutterstock New Africa

Digital marketing agencies have sprouted up in abundance over the last few years, addressing all of the needs of many businesses. To some people, digital marketing can seem like a different language, or even a different universe; so who best to help you with your digital marketing campaigns? Digital natives. We hear from Brandon Lee, Co-Founder of Pandan Social about what it's like to head up a young dynamic DM team.

Digital assets are slowly becoming more mainstream with people having at least heard of cryptocurrency and NFTs. Unfortunately, just like physical assets, assets in digital form are also vulnerable to theft and loss. Web3Gate is looking to offer a secure yet convenient way to enjoy token gated benefits without requiring holders to connect or carry their crypto wallets. We speak to Edwin Yin, co-founder of Web3Gate to hear how they are making token gating convenient, yet safer.Photo Credit: Shutterstock | Ground Picture

A new vegan brand from Indonesia has entered the Malaysian market – Green Rebel Foods. Helga Angelina Tjahjadi, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Green Rebel Foods started the business with her partner Max Mandias in September 2020. She shares about the demand for plant-based meat alternatives in Indonesia and Malaysia, and what it takes to expand regionally.  Photo Credit : Facebook | Green Rebel Foods

Established in 1974, FireFighter Industry Sdn Bhd is a manufacturer of fire extinguishers and also a one stop fire safety service provider. They are also the only Malaysian fire extinguisher manufacturer with both ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certifications. They’ve recently been the only business accepted into Endeavor Malaysia’s ScaleUp Program under Cohort 3. Interestingly, they are the only non-startup among the listing. We speak to Brian Soo, Chief Innovation Officer at FireFighter Industry to hear about the business and their fresh approach to marketing in a serious industry. Photo Credit: Facebook | FireFighter Industry

The concept of Earned Wage Access (EWA) is actually a simple one: giving employees immediate access to the salary they have earned, rather than having them wait for paycheck week. With the rise in cost of living, timely access to finances and salaries have become more vital than ever. As the competition to hire and retain employees grows ever more important, EWA can make a big difference in attracting the right people to help one’s business to scale and meet customer expectations. But is it the solution that we need right now, and what are the pitfalls?

Hayley Chang and Chew Si Khai started Del’cs back in 2020 and Hayley was only 16 at that time. They talk about their concept store located in Taman Paramount which curates thrift clothing and stocks as they want to push for sustainable fashion. Photo Credit : Shutterstock | antoniodiaz

MakeTimePay is a web and mobile app-based ‘on-demand work’ ecosystem that is designed to help job seekers and posters find on-demand tasks and opportunities that are matched to their skills, interests and free time. With the growing number of people getting involved with gig work platforms, how does ‘MAKE TIME PAY’ differentiate itself from other job platforms? Shahryn Azmi, Executive Director and Co-Founder of MakeTimePay joins us to talk about how they are changing the gig employment landscape. Photo Credit : Shutterstock | 4 PM production

According to a study published by WHO in 2020, 84% of adults will experience back pain at least once in their lifetime. This means over 22.3 million Malaysians are exposed to such risks. Physiomobile, is a tech-enabled healthcare company that provides physiotherapy services at the convenience of its patients. As staunch believers in tech-based solutions, Physiomobile complements the previously traditional physiotherapy industry with tech-based solutions that make patient information easy to document, store, and access.

During times of crisis, most people do turn to art for comfort and strength. Started back in 2018, Beatrice Oh is the founder and illustrator behind the beautiful illustrations of OhBeatrice. Beatrice specialises in graphic design using watercolour illustrations. She also launched her children’s book Dumpling the Tiger recently. She shares her creative journey for us to get the picture of how artists thrive in Malaysia’s art scene.Photo Credit : Facebook | Oh Beatrice

Eating great food is happiness, but sharing great food with family and friends doubles the happiness. Back in 2017, a mother who loves to create delicious food for her daughter and believes in sharing happiness through food started Kintry. Having survived in the market for five years, Michelle Chai, the founder of Kintry shares her journey behind this joyful brand.Photo Credit : Facebook | Kintry

Komuniti Tukang Jahit is an accredited social enterprise that wants to empower B40 Malaysian women, which include single mothers, single women, underprivileged women, stay at home mothers and even the OKU group. And they do that by training and providing job opportunities to these women as they work from home. They focus on making mostly making corporate gifts, customised sewn items or even tourist souvenirs. They sit down with us as they share the true story behind running a social enterprise that no one talks about.Photo Credit : Instagram | komunititukangjahit

HappyPreggie was founded as a marketplace for pregnancy and parenting services back in 2020. They are on a mission to make it convenient for parents or expectant couples to connect with such services while ensuring everything is simpler, safer and affordable. We speak to Yoong Poh Joon, founder and CEO of HappyPreggie to hear more about their unique platform. Photo Credit : Shutterstock | Odua Images

Courtsite, a Malaysian-built web app, is changing the game for budding athletes and sports enthusiasts with a centralised booking system for sports facilities. Easily accessible via any mobile or web browser, the platform allows users to digitally book sporting facilities across eight states for a variety of sports.

Many women stop exercising once they find out that they are pregnant. Is it safe for pregnant women to exercise? Three mothers founded B studios, a fitness centre run by mothers for mothers. Loh Huey Shin and Nadia Azahari, the founders of B Studios, sat down to talk to us about fitness for mothers. Photo Credit : Facebook | B Studios -Bumps Bubs & Burpees

The past 2 years have not been easy for many industries especially for those involved in the travel and tourism sector. Universal Holidays Travel and Tourism has not only weathered the storm but continued to grow and function as a complete B2B Travel Management Company providing qualitative travel-related services and products consisting of hotels, furnished serviced apartments, transfers and tour packages for travellers globally. We speak to Zahira Tahir, founder and CEO of Universal Holidays Travel and Tourism to hear about her journey.Photo Credit : Shutterstock | DimaBerlin

Petworld is the parent company of the familiar pet food brands on retail shelves, such as ProDiet, ProBalance and Natural Clump. We spoke to Choy Peng Yew, the Group CEO of PetWorld to discuss his business operations and him being among the Top Nominees of the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year 2022 Malaysia awards.Photo Credit : Facebook | ProBalance | ProDiet

Five decades ago, people were using bamboo or heavier aluminium poles which is less efficient for harvesting and pruning tall oil palms and coconuts. To solve this problem, TenAsia was born and became the pioneer in the development of carbon fibre composite telescopic pole technology to harvest oil palm. Casey Teh, the president of TenAsia and also one of the nominees for the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Malaysia joins us today to share the story behind this unique technology.Photo Credit : Facebook | TenAsia Corporation Sdn Bhd

 Atap connects property owners to trusted interior designers across Malaysia. Their platform allows property owners to view the profiles and portfolios of verified interior designer firms; provides educational and inspirational content on interior design and renovation, and ultimately connects property owners looking to renovate to an interior design firm of their choosing or a few recommended by the Atap team.Photo Credit : Seow Yao Han

Tapauware is a reusable food container service, designed to reduce single-use food delivery packaging from going into landfills. Its venture builder Jehan Omar is here with us to unpack and unload what Tapauware is all about.Photo Credit : Facebook | Tapauware.co

Founded in July 2021, Bantu Aid is a community friendly food aid distribution platform that connects those in need of help to the nearest foodbank & volunteers which was started by Anas Amdan.  Bantu Aid is a platform under Bantu Heroes.  Anas formed a company Kasi Gegar Entertainment SDN BHD as a Music Producer.  He has been actively involved in producing, composing and arranging music until today. Together with a few friends, he founded Sabah Bangkit Youth Movement which focuses on empowering the youth through performing arts & community service. Anas is also the owner of Nook Cafe Kota Kinabalu.Photo Credit : Facebook | Bantu

Langit Collective promotes unique and heirloom agriculture produce from smallholder farms in East Malaysia to larger markets. Sourced directly from farmers and procured at a fair price - a minimum of 35% of the retail proceeds go directly to the farmers.  They also curate intentional experiential trips to these villages to bring consumers further upstream to understand and appreciate the artistry that goes into the planting and production of these quality products. Chan Zi Xiang and Lilian Chen, the co-founders of Langit Collective, share their journey with us.Photo Credit: Facebook | Langit

What does it take to go from serving meals on wheels to surviving lockdowns to finally finding a brick and mortar home? Azhan Benny Foo, managing partner of Tex-Mex F&B outlet Gringo’s, tells us what it’s like to take business from a food truck to a full-blown restaurant.  Photo Credit : Instagram | gringosmalaysia

Back in 2015, Carpedia was born to serve a niche market for individuals who owned idle cars but had little use for them. Everything came to a halt when the pandemic and MCO happened. From car rental to car-related gig jobs, Carpedia changed their business model to survive during the pandemic. Hazim Azhar, the co-founder and CEO of Carpedia explains how they have evolved their business into what it is today. Photo Credit : The Carpedia

Loka Made was founded in 2015 by Audrey Chew and Chong Fei Giap and it is a local lifestyle brand that wants to promote Malaysian culture by adding their own twist of fantasy and creative imagination through their illustration and products through puzzles, postcards and more.Image Credit: loka made Facebook Page

The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) food security definition is when “all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.” The pandemic showcased how many in Malaysia alone were affected. Kenneth Chai, the co-founder of Airgro shares how they are addressing this need in Sarawak.Image Credit: Shutterstock | Ihor Hvozdetskyi

Many of the world's best-selling food products start in a humble kitchen somewhere, and chances are, it was a mother’s recipe. Red Gold Dessert is something a little special, crafted from premium ingredients from very specific places within Iran - to say it’s unique is no understatement. A combination of Rose, Saffron and a few other secret elements, this dessert has a story to tell. 

In this fast-paced, ever-shifting world, what better way to get your brand out there than for your ads to move with and towards your targeted customers? Thilaganathan, the CEO of Truck It, discusses their mobility advertisements, their partnership with Asia Mobility Technologies, and their plans for the future. Image Credit: Truck It Official Website

Did you know 33 percent of all food produced is lost or wasted? To achieve sustainability, LightBlue Consulting integrates circular business models in the move towards zero food waste to landfill and low carbon operations. Benjamin Liphilibert, the founder of LightBlue Consulting explains how they are working towards solving this food waste issue.Image Credit: Shutterstock | Andrey_Popov

For children, sometimes their best companions are their fluffy soft toys. Michelle Lim and Chan Chi Leong founded Abbie & Friends because they couldn't find good quality soft toys. They have been bringing Jellycat soft toys from the UK into the Malaysian market and have grown to be one of the premium soft toy providers in Malaysia. Image Credit: Abbie and Friends Facebook Page

How successful are cloud kitchen spaces doing? How important are factors like partners and location in determining the success of spaces like this? Huen Su San, founder of Cookhouse, Malaysia’s first-ever shared cloud kitchen space shares the thought behind their concept.Image Credit: Cookhouse Official Website

Like it or not, drone tech is here to stay and make a change in countless industries for the better. From agriculture to transport, from security to mining, drone tech can not only help with risk assessment, but also optimisation and maximising revenue. Therefore it makes sense that companies ensure their drones have the proper protection and are sufficiently insured.

Lim Xin Yu and Jason Wee, the co-founders of The Asli Co, are dedicated to supporting indigenous mothers and the Orang Asli community in general. They explain the inception of this social enterprise as well as their big dreams of getting more Orang Asli children into and interested in school. Image Credit: The Asli Co. Official Website

Maintenance can be a major expense of home ownership beyond just the monthly instalments. It can be a headache considering the many things that can go wrong such as plumbing, electrical and appliance issues. Handibee is seeking to take the worry out of all this by providing a subscription service covering home repairs or replacing important appliances and components due to wear and tear. Mohamed Shakir, founder of Handibee explains their unique business.Image Credit: Handibee Facebook Page

Reams Technologies is a solutions provider focusing mainly on maintenance management. They provide a management platform that centralises maintenance information and facilitates maintenance operations. Delvin Yeoh, CEO and Founder of Reams Technologies explains how they are trying to evolve the industry's performance with technology.Image Credit: Reams Technologies Facebook Page

The 4th Industrial Revolution has been a long-standing topic of conversation. Although the manufacturing sector has led our nation's economy with digitalised logistics and warehousing technology, the growth progress of IR4.0 within our industries has been stagnant. Sustainable, yes, but the sector is hardly progressing in comparison to some of its regional peers like Singapore and Japan for instance. Gan Soon Kiat (SK), Founder and Managing Director of the warehouse automation company WoodTrees is of the opinion that manufacturers lack the know-how to utilise logistics tech.

Digitalisation has been one of the biggest buzzwords to come out of the pandemic, but you may not have all the answers or solutions to your techy problems. That’s where companies like VLAN.Asia come in; Lance Cheang, founder & managing director, explains how they are helping businesses as the forefront technology concierge.Image Credit:  VLAN Asia Facebook Page

The Autism Cafe Project (ACP) is a labour of love that came about from a father’s concern for his autistic son’s wellbeing and future independence. From the initial plan of providing a space for children with special needs to impart a sense of purpose in their lives, the Autism Cafe Project has evolved into a platform to train autistic youths in the entrepreneurial spirit and help them achieve a sense of independence. Mohd Adli Yahya, founder of the Autism Cafe Project shares his drive and motivation behind the initiative. Image Credit: Autism Cafe Project Facebook Page

Founded by Cynn Chua & Pei Ying in October 2018, Summorie wants to make the best notebooks and stationery for Malaysians. They share their journey, everything from pen to paper. Image Credit: Summorie Facebook Page

Malaysian athletes always face the issues of lack of funds, which pushes many to  end up as a coach or go back to the academic path. To encourage Malaysian athletes, a push in the right direction is needed to make them believe in their capability and talent by providing the appropriate resources. Thus, OVER was born, and founder Low Yi Xian shares how the business model helps Malaysian athletes.Image Credit: OVER Facebook Page

Pivoting from their luxury style, Sacoor Group’s launch of Sacoor Blue is inspired by the idea of living a sustainable lifestyle and taking care of the Earth. Their relaxed styles and environmentally conscious outlook echo the sentiments of the Gen Z market, which continues to voice out its concern for the planet. We hear from Hugo Carriço, Sacoor Group’s Chief Operations Officer about the pivot.

How do you manage all the balancing factors of working in an industry as complicated as politics? Well, sometimes you need a little help. Dr. Sophie Lemiere, director of political consultancy firm SoCo, takes us through what political consultancy entails and what entrepreneurs in general can learn from it. Image Credit: Shutterstock | fizkes

Aonic was born as a commercial drone solutions provider for enterprises looking to modernise their operation workflow. While they are no stranger to the commercial drone industry, they are looking to expand beyond the skies and to build an ecosystem beyond just their core drone capabilities. Cheong Jin Xi, founder and CEO of Aonic, gives us a peek into this unique industry. Image Credit: Aonic Facebook Page

In 2020, Alyssa Lee founded The Petal Archive with her sister by pressing and drying real fresh flowers, then embedding them in resin before transforming them into jewellery pieces. She joins us to explain the concept of jewellery as time capsules and a reflection of their customers’ individuality.Image Credit: The Petal Archive Facebook Page

Making a home isn’t just about the sofas you choose or the colour of your walls, but how do you know what decisions to make in creating your space? Xavier Mah, the founder of Pokok Asia shares the story of creating this home & living trends platform, and the importance of guiding home and property owners towards their dreams.Image Credit: Pokok Asia Facebook Page

Companies are racing towards digitalisation; and whilst this is the direction they need to be heading in, especially in 2022, it can be an expensive endeavour especially for SMEs and MSMEs. Current tools that are available for productivity and cybersecurity are either free (with caveats) or extremely expensive for a small business. This is where the partnership between Open-Xchange, BigDomain and DotAsia hopes to change things. This collaboration offers advanced email and productivity tools, and digital services with integrated cybersecurity protection, with the goal of supporting small and medium-sized enterprises in digitising securely and seamlessly - all at an affordable price. 

We all have our insecurities, and we’ve all gone through awkward periods of life where we feel ashamed or worried about those insecurities. Maybe, instead of hiding those insecurities, we need to find a way to take pride in them instead. Esther Erin and Ethan Wong, co-founders of Dododots Beauty Patch, discuss how they’re using this approach with acne, and how they utilise collaborations to conduct successful marketing campaigns. Image Credit: Dododots Beauty Patch Instagram Page

Throwing away used furniture that’s still in good shape is a waste, but giving it away gets you nothing. On the flipside, what if you’ve got an unfurnished house or are just looking to replace furniture with attractive but inexpensive second hand options? Johnson Goh, owner of Unearth Store, shares his unique business that helps connect sellers and buyers of used furniture and other bulky items.Image Credit: Unearth Store Facebook Page

Bake with Yen has become an established name for baking supplies, especially as they offer lower prices for baking ingredients in the market. Bake With Yen specialises in the manufacturing, supply & distribution, and retail of baking ingredients, premixes, accessories and tools. Alexandre Rosso, Bake With Yen’s newly appointed CEO, shares how Bake with Yen operates and their expansion plans. 

Project ID is a social enterprise that designs innovative student-centric experiences. They aim to empower students, particularly those from underserved communities, with a sense of possibility and to pursue their dreams. Since the start of the pandemic, they have run over 300 virtual workshops and continuously innovate their approach to  learning. Kelvin Tan, CEO of Project ID, explains how the enterprise finds new ways to help students self-develop in areas of leadership, mental & emotional health, core values, and career aspirations. Image Credit: Project ID Official Website

Tymba Education Group is a privately-owned Bumiputera Professional Accountancy Training Centre, led by founder, Airil Razali and his team of Chartered Accountants. Starting with only 30 students, TYMBA has now grown to over 2,000 students within a year, and so far have successfully produced several global prize-winners and attained consistent higher average passing rates compared to the world average.

Many people unfortunately found themselves out of a job when the pandemic hit, with areas like the travel & tourism industry being especially affected. For some, they managed to pull themselves back up into new ventures - and since then have created new careers for themselves. Afiq Nazar, director of Grill Haven, shares how Grill Haven came from a couple of grounded pilots, and where they’re headed next. Image Credit: Grill Haven Facebook Page

Shahnaz Interiors is dedicated to transforming the nation’s healthcare facilities from monolithic concrete blocks to inspiring and contemporary spaces for healing the patients. Nazrin Shahnaz, the CEO of Shahnaz Interiors shares how they intend to humanise the hospital experience, and why this is crucial in light of the pandemic.Image Credit: Shahnaz Interiors Official Website