ICS alumni share entrepreneurial experiences

ICS members come together for “Meet the Young Entrepreneurs” sharing session

UTAR Institute of Chinese Studies (ICS) hosted the first ever Chinese Studies Entrepreneurs Homecoming Sharing Session titled “Meet the Young Entrepreneurs” (中文系创业家首次回校分享会) at Kampar Campus on 3 August 2019.

A joint collaboration between ICS, the Alumni Association of the Department of Chinese Studies, and the Chinese Studies Society of Kampar Campus (CSS), the sharing session provided a platform for current Chinese Studies students to learn from the alumni, who are now entrepreneurs, about the diverse working opportunities available for Chinese Studies graduates beyond the fields of culture, education and media. In addition to sharing their entrepreneurial experiences with the juniors, the alumni speakers also reminisced some personal experiences and interesting encounters throughout their university days years ago.

The session began after ICS Dean Assoc Prof Dr Chong Siou Wei and the Alumni Association of the Department of Chinese Studies Chairperson Sandra Wong Foong Kiew delivered their welcome addresses.  Present at the event were ICS Student Development and Industrial Training Deputy Dean Dr Ling Liong Ngo, Academic Development and Undergraduate Programmes Deputy Dean Assoc Prof Dr Wong Wun Bin, ICS Kampar Campus Chinese Studies Department Head-cum-CSS Advisor Dr Toh Teong Chuan, and other lecturers.

The alumni speakers invited were Founder of Sky Academy & The Sky Language School Lai Chui Mun, Founder of Bookmark Coffee Leow Wei Kai, Founder of Miya Belly Dance Studio Soh Chin Sien, Copartner of Popchuco Homestay Tey Chiang Cheng and Founder of Ceria Sejati Tuition Center Tan Hui Sean.

Lai encouraging juniors to take a leap of faith at times

Introducing the Sky Academy & The Sky Language School, Lai said, “Our school provides simple courses, Mandarin classes and communication skills trainings for adults.” She believes that one has to be daring to try when it comes to entrepreneurship. Therefore, she reminded the juniors not to be indecisive but have the confidence and courage to take the first step when starting a business. 

Meanwhile, she also encouraged the juniors to give back to the community and talked about her volunteering experiences. Using her own experience as an example, Lai also motivated current ICS students to sit for Mandarin teaching qualification exams to improve career prospects. Lai has served as a volunteer in the Malaysian Chinese Museum and part-time Mandarin class lecturer at UiTM. She is also the Founder of ASEAN Import and Export Trade Sdn Bhd (东盟出入口贸易有限公司).

According to Liow, his original intention, hard work and persistence were the important factors in his entrepreneurial journey

Despite not graduating on top of his class, Liow professed that he is someone who knows what he wants in life. After graduating from UTAR, he served as a crime reporter for Nanyang Siang Pau but later found that his life was getting monotonous. He then decided to take the courage to start his own business. Based on his love for words and painting, he founded the Bookmark Coffee.

However the beginning was not a bed of roses as he had a hard time during the early stage of his business. “I was busy almost every day until one or two o’clock in the midnight despite having to wake up very early in the morning to prepare the ingredients. “Such hectic lifestyle had made me question my purpose in life before, but then I never regretted my decision,” he professed. With his persistence and hard work, he finally mastered the art of latte and attracted many coffee lovers to frequent his cafe. Later on, he successfully opened another branch and was able to teach and guide his new baristas on the technique of latte art.

Using his entrepreneurial story, he encouraged juniors and said, “You will be facing all kinds of setbacks and difficulties during the journey. As long as you uphold the original intention of starting your business, coupled with hard work and persistence, you will eventually succeed.”

Soh expressing her happiness for being able to realise her dreams

Soh is a professional belly dance instructor, dancer and choreographer. Before beginning her belly dance journey, she was teaching in Singapore. In the beginning, her decision was not supported by her parents, but in order to pursue her dream, she proceeded without hesitation. Despite enrolling late in the belly dance class, she managed to master the dance and excel in it with flying colours through hard work. She decided to return to Malaysia to start her own business after completing her studies in Beijing. After investing a lot of hard work and effort, her business began to rise. She was invited by the Sultan of Johor in the year 2016 to perform for the royal family. In addition, she also runs two other businesses, namely Is’cream for accessories and Bambino Homestays & Holiday.

Tey said that age is never a hindrance to start a business

Tey believes that age is not a hindrance to start a business. She revealed, “I was a journalist for more than 10 years. I only returned to pursue my degree at UTAR when I was nearly 30.” After graduating from UTAR, she decided to run a “freestyle” homestay business, which offers meals based on the ingredients available at the market for the day. Therefore, “freestyle” became a major feature of her homestay. She has also served as a tour guide for “Muar Roaming” and “Muaryi – Muar Travel Info Centre” to promote Muar tourism.

“Human network is important for starting a business. From my personal experience, the various network gained during my journalism career had indirectly assisted me in the early years when I first started my business,” she mentioned.

Tan’s dream is to provide quality education for students

Tan founded Ceria Sejati Tuition Center in a small fishing village in Tanjung Sepat to provide quality education for the local students. She introduced, “Our Centre has grown from a small class of students to about 700 students currently. Now, I have opened another branch in the neighbouring fishing village. Apart from indoor learning, we also arrange various diverse outdoor activities for the students to broaden their horizons and enrich their knowledge.”

As an experienced educator, she always encourages her students to further their studies after completing their secondary education, and some of her students have continued to pursue their higher education in UTAR after heeding her advice.

From left: Liow, Lai, Soh, Dr Wong Lih Lih, Tey and Tan during the discussion      

To summarise the presentations by the alumni speakers, a discussion was chaired by ICS academic Dr Wong Lih Lih at the end of the session. All five alumni speakers took turns in sharing their personal opinion on the most important criteria for success. They also agreed that the valuable values learned during their academic years as Chinese Studies students played an important part in their entrepreneurial journey. The values included being humane, sincere and grateful, to name a few.

The speakers, alumni and students taking a group photo with Dr Chong (second row, fourth from right)

Dr Wong Lih Lih (left), Dr Ling (most right) and the alumni speakers sharing some light moments during the lunch break

The Chinese Studies juniors happily mingling with their seniors