Better late than never
Snack food manufacturer Miaow Miaow looks to accelerate growth as it catches up with peers
CHINK Poh Cheng’s prudent approach to business has ensured the steady rise of Miaow Miaow Group from a small hometown business in Batu Pahat, Johor, to a household snack food brand in the country and in some key international markets.
But after close to 30 years, he thinks the time has come to up the ante.
Miaow Miaow, Chink acknowledges, has perhaps been growing a little too steadily.
Compared to other local snack food manufacturers, “we are kacang putih”, he laughs.
“The other manufacturers are running their business using the modern organisation. They use modern system to improve and they are using modern technology and style. We are a bit slow on this. So on finding our weak point, we are starting to change now,” explains the 68-year-old group managing director.
Consequently, the team at Miaow Miaow has put in place plans to help the manufacturer play catch up including the recent roll out of a rebranding exercise and the building of a new factory to boost capacity. Even its website is undergoing a facelift.
Miaow Miaow was founded by Chink’s family.
They had started a trading business in 1975 with a second-hand van and whatever products they could get their hands on; toothpaste, soap powder, you name it, they sold it.
They eventually stuck to food items as it was easier to source for new products and they were easier to sell.
Once they found their niche in snack food, producing their own products seem like a natural next step to take.
But setting up their own manufacturing facility seemed too risky an idea as they lacked the technical knowledge and resources to manage their own venture. So they sought out other factories to do the manufacturing work for them until they could hit a certain scale.
By the late 1980s, the family was ready to go it on their own.
“For easy selling and to make it easy for our customers to remember, we needed a brand name. And I emphasised that this name must have repeated words,” says Chink.
The family was brought together for a brainstorming session and all kinds of names were brought to the table. But heads turn when one of Chink’s niece mentioned “miaow miaow”.
“Immediately, everyone agreed. There was no argument. So that’s how we started,” shares Chink. And to top it off, “miaow” also meant “excellent” in Chinese, which worked out well for the family.
Miaow Miaow took shape in 1989 and grew steadily from Batu Pahat to the rest of Malaysia.
The snack food manufacturer started exporting in 1999 and today, sells its products to over 40 countries. The overseas market is an important one to the group, contributing about 66% to group revenue. Its current key markets are in the Middle East countries, Asia Pacific and South-East Asia.
Things have been looking good for Miaow Miaow up till now.
Chink notes that competition is growing and the company is keen to stake a bigger claim in the market.
Miaow Miaow has invested over RM10mil to build a 43,600 sq ft factory next to its existing 99,910 sq ft facility in Batu Pahat. The new factory, expected to begin operations by the end of this year, will increase its production of snack pellet from nine tonnes a day to 25 tonnes per day.
Miaow Miaow Food Products Sdn Bhd managing director Ch’ng Poh Tee says the boost in production will open up more opportunities for the manufacturer.
“You need good care in the manufacturing of pellets to control the quality and texture. When some companies are phasing out (the production of pellets), we put more emphasis on this. So I think this is a strong point for us.
“It is not easy to come out with good quality pellets. You really have to control. So this is where we see a lot of opportunity for expansion,” says Ch’ng.
Currently, Miaow Miaow produces an average of seven million packets of snacks per month.
Moving forward, the manufacturer is looking to expand exports to 60 countries, with eyes on the United States and Europe markets for its next level of business growth.
Chink says its rebranding exercise is a key strategy to do that.
Its new marketing initiatives position its range of products as snack foods that bring people together. It also launched new packaging for five classic Miaow Miaow snacks – green pea snacks, prawn flavoured crackers, cuttlefish flavoured crackers, cheese flavoured rings and chicken flavoured crackers.
“Branding is not only to create awareness on our product. Branding is about creating value to what matters most to our customers and consumers at large. Branding is about building long-term relationship, connecting, engaging and nurturing for mutual long-term growth. Branding is about a brand’s commitment to meet and even exceed customers’ and consumers’ ever changing needs and wants,” he says.
And this time, the company is also willing to loosen the purse strings a little to ensure that its growth trajectory is not hampered.
“Miaow Miaow is quite a conservative company,” says Chink.
“We always emphasise on cashflow management. Even though our company is so small, we are proud to say we have never faced any financial problems because we really stick to that.
“But now, after implementing this rebranding exercise, we will allocate a certain percentage of revenue to promote the branding. At the moment, we are looking at about 3% of our revenue,” he says.
Chink believes its rebranding efforts will help the group grow and boost group revenue from RM53mil this year to about RM100mil by end 2022. Miaow Miaow is aiming to hit RM61mil next year.
He adds that there is still vacant land surrounding its existing factory, which will give it more room to expand in the future when the need arises.
According to Ch’ng, there are also opportunities to be had in the growing trend towards healthy snacks. He observes that other players’ attempts to shift towards manufacturing healthy snacks have not turned out well.
Such a move requires an experienced partner who has a credible branding in healthy snacks, says Ch’ng.
Fortunately for Miaow Miaow, it has found such a partnership, which could be a stepping stone for the manufacturer to enter into this new segment.
“Currently, we are working closely with an overseas partner. We are prepared to launch healthy snack. They already have their out- lets so potential buyers know where to get them.
“We will start off by doing the manufacturing for their brand. But because we are developing the product with them, we will get the first-hand knowledge. And if we see something successful here, we may extend (into the segment),” he says.
Additionally, the second generation has joined the fray with new ideas and new approaches to move the business forward.
With growth plans on its radar, will Miaow Miaow also be looking at plans for an initial public offering?
“We will let it happen naturally. We won’t purposely go for it. We don’t want to make it a burden to our family. But sooner or later, we will,” says Chink, true to his prudent approach.