NABELLA ANUAR 30
CEO & Founder, Kayman Beauty
“Anyone can create the same products, but not everyone has the same story as you do.” NABELLA ANUAR
When it comes to crafting skincare products, local beauty connoisseur Nabella Anuar is a cut above the rest. Through innovative and effective formulations, the products under her Kayman Beauty brand are capable of not only restoring radiance to the complexion but also ensuring the skin’s health.
“I look at Korean and Western beauty industries, and I think, ‘Why can’t we replicate this in Malaysia?’ In fact, we can create skincare like theirs, and even better, because we can create skincare that aligns with our unique environment and skin condition,” Nabella shares.
From then on, her brand has become a household name when it comes to local skincare solutions. Since its start in 2017, it has grown to include a full range of skincare products, from cleansers to SPF.
Nabella says, “In the future, our goal is to produce more products with intensive research and development, revolutionary formulations, and stunning quality.
There are so many avenues we have yet to explore.”
Skincare is not the only thing that piques this founder’s interest, as she reveals that she is open to exploring cosmetics opportunities for the brand. At the moment, it has already expanded into the lifestyle category through Kayman Lifestyle, where fans can find sweatshirts, tote bags, skincare fridges, and more.
As the Chief Executive Officer,
Nabella is a huge believer in sharing her entrepreneurship story and the vision behind the brand. “Anyone can create the same products, but not everyone has the same story as you do.”
“We build spaces that are diverse and inclusive for youth of all backgrounds, through workshops and camps where we equip them with skill set and know-how in order to champion inclusion within their own communities.” JASON WEE
BUILDING EXPERTISE IN COFFEE JOEY MAH 38 Coffee Entrepreneur & Co-founder, Dou Dou Bake
At only 38 years old, Joey is a veteran in the coffee business in Malaysia. His passion for coffee and food has led him to several F&B ventures, where he grows his expertise in the field while learning new lessons along the way.
With successful cafe businesses under his helm, including Three Little Birds, Artisan Roastery, Murky Wines, and the latest venture Dou Dou Bake, Joey’s expertise is creating spaces where people can enjoy quality coffee and food in a welcoming and warm ambiance. Along with his partners, he has grown his businesses substantially despite the challenges of the pandemic.
Previously a journalist, Joey’s foray into F&B was somewhat accidental. He said, “I never saw myself doing so much in F&B, but I really enjoyed tasting and experiencing coffee and food. I was interested in learning more about the industry and it just became a natural transition for me.”
The idea of Dou Dou Bake came about when his partner Keith Koay, fellow coffee entrepreneur and sourdough specialist, spoke to him about an idea for a bakery.
Combining their expertise, they grew Dou Dou Bake from a small bakery to the design-forward, innovative café space it is today.
He says, “For me personally as an entrepreneur, I believe that we should never stop learning and should keep trying new things in the industry so that we can grow. We focus on sustainability by sourcing from local suppliers and building a long-term relationship with them, with an emphasis on true quality to bring the best value and experiences for our customers.”
LEVERAGING DATA AND TECHNOLOGY IN LANGUAGE LEARNING KAI SONG EER 27 Co-founder, GuruLab
Kai Song Eer is one half of the co-founding duo of GuruLab, a data-driven education technology start-up that provides personalised English education with a flexible curriculum.
A powerhouse in championing education from an early age, Kai Song built her first non-profit at the age of 18 to help underprivileged students gain access to tertiary education. After pursuing a Master in Information Engineering with a Machine Learning focus at Cambridge University, she went on to work at the top-tier management consulting firm McKinsey & Company and was also the Chief of Staff to the CEO of an Advanced Analytics start-up in London.
During the pandemic, she realised an opportunity to leverage data analytics in education and decided to pursue EdTech in Malaysia, armed with her technical foundation and graduate education. She shares, “When the pandemic hit, I started doing some pro-bono work trying to support education, given that there was a big gap in the market since everything went digital.”
Upon meeting Vicky Tan, the duo with their shared vision then embarked on their journey with GuruLab, where Kai Song brought her data expertise to the venture.
She says, “I have a true passion in education and I wanted to leverage data and technology to make language learning more scalable. When online learning became the norm, I saw this vast opportunity to capture data whereby every single thing could be recorded and analysed. I wanted to make use of data to make learning more personalised, which is a problem that I have always wanted to help solve.”
CHAMPIONING LOCAL FLAVOURS SOH YONG ZHI 25 Chef-owner, Eat and Cook
While at their previous jobs Soh Yong Zhi specialised in Japanese cuisine and his Eat and Cook co-owner Lee Zhe Xi in French, the pair now pivots to local cuisine and looks for a way to incorporate more of Malaysia’s multicultural taste in their restaurant’s menu.
Yong, as the young chef goes by, says, “We want to introduce Malaysian cuisine to our foreign customers because we don’t want people to think that Malaysian food is just very heavy and creamy. We do have nice flavour pairings based on herbs and spices.” He additionally states that with Malaysia being a melting pot of different cultures, this allows for a greater variety of local and fusion recipes.
Finding inspiration from the authenticity of Japanese and French cuisines, which he believes owe their immense global popularity due to how deeply rooted in culture and traditions both cuisines are, Yong wants Malaysian dishes to be celebrated for their cultural roots too. With him born in Taiping and fellow chef Lee hailing from Teluk Intan, they try to include as much Perak flavour in their cooking as they can, while also dipping into other local cultures for a more diverse offering.
“Remember your roots, understand your flavours, and know your direction. Always believe in your own palate and skills,” he advises aspiring chefs, sharing his recipe for finding success at such a young age. Apt advice from a man who, in his mid-20s, co-owns the first ever Malaysian restaurant to win the American Express One to Watch Award. Eat and Cook was named the 2022 recipient of the said award by Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants earlier this year.
“Remember your roots, understand your flavours, and know your direction. Always believe in your own palate and skills.” SOH YONG ZHI
“We’re on a mission to help migrant workers from all sectors and various source countries find safe and dignified work abroad, so that they can improve their livelihoods.” SOPHIA ALIZA JAMAL
HELP FOR THE HELP SOPHIA ALIZA JAMAL 29 COO & Co-founder, Pinkcollar Employment Agency
Having been raised by an Indonesian domestic worker, who has remained in her family’s employment for approximately two decades now, it is second nature to Sophia Aliza Jamal to regard migrant domestic workers worthy of dignified, safe and humane work. Unfortunately, not every household shares her belief in humane treatment of domestic workers.
She discovered the harrowing truth in her late teens, and in trying to seek better treatment for them, she became acquainted with Zenna Law and Elaine Sim, who shared her passion and mission for improving the employment experiences of domestic workers. Together, the trio launched Pinkcollar Employment Agency in 2019.
Sophia left her full-time job at Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund, Khazanah Nasional Berhad, to focus on the agency, which promotes ethical recruitment and fair labour practices for migrant workers. Her background in anti-human trafficking and anti-modern slavery, which she became exposed to during her time as a student abroad, provided her with the experience and knowledge to run the agency efficiently and effectively.
Currently serving as Pinkcollar’s Chief Operating Officer, Sophia has plans to expand its services to migrant workers from other sectors, other than just domestic ones. “We’re on a mission to help migrant workers from all sectors and various source countries find safe and dignified work abroad, so that they can improve their livelihoods,” she states. Most recently, Pinkcollar was awarded a grant of USD200,000 (approximately RM890,000) from the Global Fund to end Modern Slavery, which will greatly support Pinkcollar’s growth and expansion plans.
TURNING PASSION INTO SUCCESS KEITH KOAY 30 Barista & Co-founder, Dou Dou Bake
Keith Koay is a baker, entrepreneur, and three-time Malaysian Barista Champion.
The co-founder and co-owner of Dou Dou Bake is also the founder of One Half Coffee and Transparent Coffee.
Keith began his entrepreneurial journey back in 2016 when he started One Half Coffee. Besides his passion for coffee, he also loves eating bread. Since he doesn’t enjoy the mass-produced bread found in the market, he started learning how to make his own sourdough and other breads. When the breads started selling very well, with some help from his partners, he decided to open a full-fledged bakery: Dou Dou Bake.
As a conscious entrepreneur, Keith says, “At Dou Dou Bake, we always try to reduce food waste in our production by making full use of all our ingredients instead of throwing them away. We also stick with the same farmers and local suppliers over the years to build a symbiotic and sustainable relationship.”
While Dou Dou Bake focuses on quality bread, coffee, and an atmosphere where people can dine comfortably, One Half Coffee and Transparent Coffee focus on offering premium and exclusive coffee for true connoisseurs.
On his success, Keith shares, “I always believe that we should do what we love and have a genuine passion that our customers will appreciate. Something that I always tell the younger generation and my staff is that we should be proud of every single thing that we sell in our cafés, so that others will benefit from it too.”
SOLVING PROBLEMS IN EDUCATION THROUGH DATA VICKY TAN 29 Co-founder, GuruLab
Vicky Tan is the other complement that makes up the co-founding pair of GuruLab, a data-driven online learning start-up run by passionate and qualified educators that enables students to learn more effectively.
Her passion for education started at a young age when she used to tutor during the school holidays. After completing her MSc in Education at Oxford University, she decided to set up Veritas Academy, an English learning academy with the goal to bridge the gap between secondary and higher education.
“While I was a teacher and Managing Partner of Veritas Academy, I realised that a lot of students struggled with learning English, which led to limited job opportunities in the future. I knew back then that education is the space that I have always wanted to build a career in, with an aim to solve problems, because of the pain points that students and parents are facing today. With this in mind, I continued exploring ideas in EdTech, which eventually led to GuruLab.”
As Vicky had also worked in business strategy and venture capital in a previous role, she was able to apply this knowledge to set up GuruLab and raise funding, combined with her passion for education and what she believes English Learning should be all about.
She says, “Data is really important because when you have a lot of students, it’s hard to keep track of what they can master based on a one-size-fits-all approach. GuruLab provides actionable insights for student engagement, which then improves outcomes for students and teachers.”
“I always believe that we should do what we love and have a genuine passion that our customers will appreciate.” KEITH KOAY
“Education is the space that I have always wanted to build a career in, with an aim to solve problems, because of the pain points that students and parents are facing today.” VICKY TAN
“We wanted to give youngsters the opportunity to find their passion and, at the same time, turn that into a career even though they were still students.” HEERRAA RAVINDRAN
MAKING A MEAL OUT OF IT MIA WONG 34 CPO & Co-founder, CookX Asia
Food wastage is the bane of Mia Wong’s existence – so she banded together with two friends to kickstart CookX Asia, a free, all-in-one app where users can share their recipes and purchase premeasured ingredients to recreate their favourite meals.
The app also allows its users to monetise their recipes. “Our creators can create their own Eco-Packs, which are the pre-measured ingredients, or we can take over the fulfilment and they can get a commission off of it,” the co-founder and Chief Product Officer of CookX
Asia explains.
Looking into the pain points for the modern individual, Mia understands that a healthy meal is often a luxury. “With us, there’s no need to figure out what to buy – we provide you with the convenience of our Eco-Packs. At the same time, you also won’t have to face food wastage,” she assures.
At the moment, CookX Asia houses over 100 recipes. Mia, however, is gunning for over 300 shoppable recipes by the end of the year. She is also hoping to bring more variety to the app, so everybody can get a taste of what CookX Asia has to offer.
Speaking of her colleagues, Mia appreciates the differences in their strengths. “We definitely let each other take ownership of our own specialisation, and come together to elevate one another.”
In the future, Mia wants the platform to further enable its users. “We have a studio, and we hope that one day we can help our creators film videos here.”
PROVISIONING A LIFE OF HEALTH RACHEAL TAN 39 CEO, Wellous
A true advocate of the motto “Living life to the fullest”, Racheal Tan has dedicated her career to curating a line of wellness products that are championed by the local scientific community and trusted by consumers. With options across a wide demographic, everyone can benefit from a dose or two of Wellous.
“My goal was to be the pioneer, to create, and to be a trendsetter in this sphere, instead of simply following a path that has always been there,” Racheal divulges.
Coming from a family that runs a food business, Racheal is more than aware of the importance of consuming the right food. “My childhood is what inspired me to venture into not just food, but functional food that can actually bring health benefits and potentially prolong your life,” she shares.
Despite the stigma that she faced in the early years of Wellous, Racheal says that nothing beats results. “Once our users realise that it actually works, they return to us and our credibility just soars.” Now, Wellous is available in 10 countries, including Singapore, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.
With this huge success, Racheal is keen to give back. Loyal customers can look forward to a community-driven programme, as well as a rewards programme. “We will also be launching the Wellous Foundation, where we donate a portion of our earnings to orphanages and those in need. As a company that promotes wellness, we want to spread happiness to the people around us too,” she enthuses.
Speaking more on the future of Wellous, Racheal is excited to explore collaborations with brands and academia to further establish the brand’s status.
COMPOSING THE FUTURE HEERRAA RAVINDRAN 23 Singer-songwriter & Co-founder, Ascendance
Heerraa Ravindran is a true multi-hyphenate: at 23, she is already an accomplished student at Harvard University, a compassionate and award-winning singer-songwriter, and an advisor at Ascendance, a Malaysian youth movement she co-founded that aspires to empower today’s youth through its platform that is rich with resources and guidance on personal and entrepreneurial development.
To balance all these, Heerraa is backed by an agile team. “It’s a team effort, and some sleepless nights for me – but it’s worth it because the impact I can give to people is what makes me wake up every day excited,” Heerraa shares.
Her aspiration of becoming a singer turned into a reality, and she wanted other young people to have access to the same path of realising their dreams, and that is how Ascendance started. Heerraa says, “We wanted to give youngsters the opportunity to find their passion and, at the same time, turn that into a career even though they were still students.”
At Ascendance, they truly believe in the power of the youth – so much so that the team is managed by Gen Z youngsters aged between 10 to 20 years old. Before stepping into the role of advisor, Heerraa was Chief Operating Officer of the movement. To honour their code, she stepped down from the position to make way for the younger talents. “It’s refreshing to have younger people in the team because their ideas are relevant, and it can be something that I’ve never thought of,” she says.
“What keeps me inspired is the drive to want to see the outcome of our effort. If I am not doing something that can contribute to positive changes within my lifetime, I know I will regret it.” CHIA YI SIM