How a small home business in Penang turned into a brick and mortar one during MCO 2.0

[superadmin]

GEORGE TOWN, April 4 — We have read about — and perhaps even experienced — the devastating impact Covid-19 has had on the local economy.

But it has not been all doom and gloom as some businesses not only survived but thrived.

Ong Leng Hin’s muesli enterprise did so well he opened his own cafe here earlier this month. Quite a remarkable feat when so many businesses have had to shutter in the past year.


It all began with Ong’s craving for fresh muesli for breakfast. Since he was unable to find ones on the market that suit his taste, he started making his own with the help of his mother.

“I was posting my homemade muesli on social media and my friends kept asking me to make extra and sell to them so that was how it started,” he said.

He sold his homemade muesli in small batches under the brand “Wonder Penguin” in late 2019 and it grew organically from there.

He only started pushing his muesli more aggressively when the movement control order (MCO) was imposed in March 2020 and soon, he was getting more and more orders.

“Between October 2019 and June 2020, I sold about 122 kilogrammes of muesli to mostly my friends through social media,” he said.

When the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) introduced the Business From Home (BFH) licence for small home businesses during the MCO last year, Ong applied for it.

He thinks it is a very good initiative as it allows entrepreneurs like him to start out small to test the market first without investing in a physical shop.



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