SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND DESIGN

FOUNDATION IN NATURAL BUILD ENVIRONMENT

MODULE: PRINCIPLES OF ECONOMICS [ECN30205]

PRESENTATION TITLE: A TALE OF TWO BUSINESSES – A COMPARATIVE

ANALYSIS OF 2 BUSINESSES OF SIMILAR INDUSTRY

IN DIFFERENT GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATIONS

LECTURER: CHANG JAU HO

SUBMISSION DATE: 22 MAY 2015

GROUP MEMBERS:

NAMES STUDENT ID

PANG KAI YUN 0319802

SAM WEI YIN 0320364

YEO KAI WEN 0319844

TRACE GEW YEE 0320369

LIEW POH KA 0320424

LEE SHZE HWA 0320053

NG HUOY MIIN 0319097

LEE KAILYN 0320273

0

Content

No. Title Page

1. Key summary 2

2. Methodology 3

3. History of trade in Malaysia 4

4. Brief Description of Heng Furnishing 5

5. Brief Description of The Curiosity Shop 8

6. Comparative Analysis Of The Business Competitive Traits 11

7. Competitive Analysis Summary Table 14

8. Summary Table Of The Differences Between Both Business 15

9. Summary Table Of The Similarities Between Both Business 15

10. Conclusion 16

11. Recommendation 17

12. Appendices 19

13. Attachment 30

14. Reference 31

Key summary

1

In this research assignment, we were required to write a report on a type of trade and

choose two businesses that which had been operating for more than 10 years. We did an

analysis about furniture shops which are in two of Malaysia’s highest population regions,

which are Penang Island and Kuala Lumpur. In a group of eight, we researched and

interviewed two furniture firms of which one of them being a home based business (Heng

Furnishing, Penang Island) and another being a commercial based business (The Curiousity

Shop, Kuala Lumpur). We researched, analysed, compared and contrasted both businesses in

terms of businesses’ descriptions, businesses’ history of the trade, comparative analysis of the

businesses’ competitive traits and recommendations for the businesses.

Methodology

2

To start with, we did some discussions on the type of trade we wanted to research.

With having a trip to Penang Island, we decided to choose furniture shops as our main idea

because Penang and Kuala Lumpur, both of these cities have furniture shops that could be

found easily. Later on, we listed down some possible choices of furniture shops in Penang

Island and Kuala Lumpur which was more convenient for us to go. After that, we have tried

to contact with the owners to make confirmation of the time we plan to leave for the

interview.

We had chosen Heng Furnishing in Penang Island and The Curiousity Shop in Kuala

Lumpur as our interviewees. After arriving in the shops, we had introduced ourselves and

started to interview. We had asked our interview questions and took some photo with our

interviewees before we left. At the end, after collecting the information from our

interviewees, we organized and combine it into the report.

History of trade in Malaysia

3

Over the years, the Malaysian Furniture industry has undergone dynamic

transformation from a traditional cottage operation to a technological driven industry. With

more than 2,400 furniture companies, the furniture industry is one of Malaysia’s biggest

revenue earners, exporting over RM 7 billion to more than 160 countries annually. This is

attributed to a strong manufacturing foundation that evolved from being a provider of raw

materials, an abundance of high quality wood SUPPLIES, skilled workers, excellent design

capabilities and good manufacturing practices.

In addition to local wood furniture, Malaysia offers a rich variety of options,

including furniture from imported woods, plastic, metal, composite and a combination of

materials. To keep abreast with development, Malaysian furniture makers use innovative

mixes of materials such as wood, composite, polyethylene and metal, producing designs that

are both functional and aesthetic.

A common thread that runs through Malaysian furniture are quality designs that suit

the lifestyle and taste of different generations. From regular furniture to designer items, the

variety of creativity in Malaysian design delights even the veteran collector and the

experienced theme decorator. In the effort to go green, Malaysian manufacturers are adopting

green manufacturing methods and incorporate sustainable and chemical free fabrics fibres in

their upholsteries, apart using green wood.

Besides catering for homes, Malaysian furniture is penetrating high end applications

for today’s discerning market. Increasingly, five-star resorts and spas are leveraging on the

evergreen appeal of Malaysian made furniture to imbue their setting with a natural ambiance.

Hence, Malaysia supplier do not only cater for the end user, but also SUPPLY for contracts

and institutional users such as hotels, stadiums, conference centres, schools, hospitals and F1

lounges. Malaysian furniture companies have progressed from original equipment

manufacturer (OEM) to original brand manufacturer (OBM), with some penetrating the

premium original design manufacturer (ODM) segment for all types of furniture applications.

Having enhanced capacity and capabilities in producing furniture of quality,

innovative designs, coupled with aggressive marketing and brand development, Malaysia is

amongst the leading global producer of furniture with a wide variety of offerings for all

industries.

Brief Description of Heng Furnishing

4

Heng Furnishing is currently located in 23-E Mk13, Jalan Ayer Itam, 1500, Penang. It

is a family based business. It had opened 42 years since 1973 by Yeoh Hun Beng. The name

of the Heng Furnishing is named after the owner, Yeoh Hun Beng. He started to do this

business because of the demand of the local. As he grew older, he inherited his business to

his son, Yeoh Tze Xiang. Heng Furnishing is a sole trader business which means that this

business have one branch. Previously, they had own another branch not too far away from the

current shop. Unfortunately, the shop is closed 4 years ago due to rental issue. There are 4

employees which hired by the owner. All the employees are local and one of them is their

beloved uncle.

Heng Furnishing opens daily from 9am to 9pm. Heng Furnishing sells all kind of

furniture such as dining table, coffee table, bed room set and mattress. They also do interior

decoration and it is taking a new step into furniture buying experience. They are combining

both interior decoration and ready-made furniture under one roof to give you a new shopping

experience. Moreover, they also provide standard services just how normal furniture shops

will do such as delivery service.

This business has an annual revenue figure of roughly RM 800,000.00. Their sales are

depends on festive seasons. The business usually has a cycle in a year. If is in a good season,

they have average 30 customers in 1 day. If is in a bad day, there won’t be any customer

coming in. According to Mr. Yeoh, most of their customers are people who live nearby. They

usually are long-term customers.

Furthermore, there would be new product release in every month. Mr Yeoh said that

they are searching for new product every day. If they discover some new furniture that is

5

sellable, they will take it and sell to the customer. Whenever the product release, he would

suggest to his customers when his customers come in.

Heng furnishing's future plan is to monopolize the mattress because his father is

interested in mattress. He plan to open a purely mattress base store somewhere in Penang in 2

or 3 years.

Some of the furniture sells in Heng Furnishing.

6

Sofa Rectangle dining table

Round dining table Bed

Mattress Cupboard

Brief Description of The Curiosity Shop

7

The curiosity shop is currently located in No.134, Jalan Sungai Besi, 57100, Kuala

Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur. It is a commercial business and it was founded

in 2005 by Danny Ho and his co-partner. According to Danny Ho, he said that at first they

started this business with their hobby. They name the shop as ''The Curiosity Shop'' because

they want the customer to be surprise when they walk in the shop. When there is a “surprise”,

there will be a “curiosity”. Therefore, they decided to name ''The Curiosity Shop''. They have

two employees in the shop assisting them. They have a warehouse which is located at Sungai

Besi nearby HELP University.

The Curiosity Shop opens daily from 10am to 10pm. The furniture sell in the

Curiosity Shop is very rare and unique because they sell vintage furniture. Besides furniture,

they also sell decorative objects, lighting, collectable item, painting and fabric. Although it is

just a small shop, but they provide different services to their customer such as restoration,

recreate, redesign, interior design, mass production, rental and consignment.

The customers of the Curiosity Shop are in different types. First are the regular

customers that directly deal with them. Second are the designer, developers and restaurants

owner. These are the main customers of the shop. They need to pay visit to the café and

restaurant to deal with them.

Actually, the Curiosity Shop is in break-even condition. Mr Danny told us that they

had face obstacles when they first started their business. They started their business in an old

8

house located in Changkat, Bukit Bintang. They do not have exposure to the customer

because the building is not visible. They had no sales in a month so their business is losing

money for 6 years. They decide to continue to run their business because they have project on

going. They do not want to disappoint their customer.

The Curiosity Shop's future plan is they hope to build a better and strong team.

Moreover, they want their business focus on the quality of their product such as supply.

Some of the furniture sells in The Curiosity Shop:

9

Lighting Collectable item

Decorative objects Painting

Wooden rocker Sofa

Comparative Analysis Of The Business Competitive Traits

10

Competitive traits Heng Furnishing The Curiosity ShopNumber of competitors

6. There are total of 6 competitors according to the owner. The three main competitors are Kingkoil Corporation Sdn Bhd, Newton & Furnishing Interior and Dekea Furniture Design Centre.

4. The main competitor of The Curiousity Shop is Stanzo Collection, Harvey Norman and Stoolicious.

Brief bios of competitors

Kingkoil Corporation Sdn Bh Stanzo CollectionKingkoil Corporation Sdn Bhd located in Ayer Itam. Kingkoil Malaysia was incorporate in 1989.The name "King Koil" has been synonymous with quality, comfortable, high-value mattresses and foundations. They provide many choices for the customer to choose. It is well known in the market.

Stanzo Collection is located inside 1 Mont Kiara Mall. It is one of the furniture shop in the mall. Stanzo Collection produced stylist home and office furnishing while The Curiousity Shop sells theme old furniture which is very different with Stanzo Collection.

Newton Furnishing & Interior Harvey NormanNewton Furnishing & Interior located in Jalan Air Itam, which is the same road as Heng Furnishing. Newton & Furnishing Interior produced modern furniture. Business services includes furniture dealers and retail.

Harvey Norman is located at the same floor with The Curiosity Shop in 1 Mont Kiara. As a giant provider of a wide range of household products with heavy presence around the world, Harvey Norman stresses on 4-in-1 concept and carries a huge range of products ranging from the latest home entertainment systems to the most innovative home appliances.

Dekea Furniture Design Centre StooliciousDekea Furniture Design Centre located in Jalan Air Itam, which is also the same road where Heng Furnishing is located. Dekea Furniture Design Centre use flyers to promote their business. This is the reason they have new customers every month.

Stoolocious is located at the lower ground floor of 1 Mont Kiara. The shop sells all sort of colourful stool, from adult stools to baby stools. It also sells baby chair, coffee table, trolley and corner rack.

11

Strategies to compete with competitors

1. PricingThe prices are reasonable and affordable.

The prices are quite expensive comparing to others furniture because most of the furniture is vintage furniture.

2. Service and product differentHeng Furnishing provides standard service that every furniture shop has such as delivery service. They also provide interior design for customers.

The Curiousity Shop also provides a lot of service such as as restoration recreate, redesign, interior design, mass production, rental and consignment to customers. Besides furniture, they also sell decorative objects, lighting, collectable item, painting and fabric

3. Quality of Service.Heng Furnishing provides very good quality service. The owner of Heng Furnishing is very friendly. The worker at there will communicate with customers and understand their needs and provide advices for customer. They also provide delivery and help customer to set up their furniture.

The Curiousity Shop also provides excellent quality service. The owner and his partner will treat their customers with respect while interacting with them in a friendly. They will listen and understand what their customers want and need.

4. LocationHeng furnishing is located in Jalan Air Itam, Georgetown. There are 6 competitors on the same street with Heng Furnishing. It’s easy to find their shop because the shop lots are just located by the roadside. Their shop is nearby residential area. Most of their customers are people who live nearby there, which is also their long term customer.

The Curiousity Shop is located inside 1 Mont Kiara Mall. It is not visible so it is hard to find. Moreover, there are very few people coming to this shopping mall.

12

5. Brand Name SelectionHeng Furnishing is named after the owner’s father. It was an easy name for their customer to remember their shop’s name.

The Curiousity Shop is named with no special meaning. They want the customer to be surprise when they walk in the shop. When there is a “surprise”, there will be a “curiosity”. Therefore, they decided to name ''The Curiosity Shop''

Obstacle faced by new businesses who wish to enter their markets today

The obstacle faced by new businesses who wish to enter the markets is lack of capital. To start a new business, you must have enough capital. Furniture businesses require a huge amount of money to purchase product, renting and first few month or can be year there are no guarantee return in profit. Besides, you need to find a good location that is visible and easy to find but the rental for good location is quite expensive. Location is very important because people will walk into your shop when they see all the beautiful furniture inside the furniture.

Nature of their markets

Both furniture shops are in a perfectly competitive market. There are a lot of furniture shops at the same area selling the same product. The furniture shops have no barriers to entry. This means that new firms can enter and exit the market freely. Besides, the furniture shops have no pricing power. They have no pricing power because the products sold in the market are standardized products, they are all the same. Therefore, the customers treat all products as the same and will buy only at the lowest price.

Competitive Analysis Summary Table

13

Competitive Traits Heng Furnishing The Curiosity Shop

1. Number of Competitors

6 to 7 3 to 5

2. Barrier to Entry No barriers to entry. This is because new firms can enter and exit the market freely.

No barriers to entry. This is because new firms can enter and exit the market freely.

3. Differentiated or Standardized Products

Standardized Products Standardized Products

4. Pricing Power Price taker. They have no pricing power because the products sold in the market are standardized products, they are all the same. Therefore, the customers treat all products as the same and will buy only at the lowest price.

Price taker. They have no pricing power because the products sold in the market are standardized products, they are all the same. Therefore, the customers treat all products as the same and will buy only at the lowest price.

5. Other Characteristics -Release new product within 1 month

- Provide interior decoration

-Update their website frequently

-Provide a lot of service such as restoration, recreate, redesign, interior design, mass production, rental and consignment

6. Verdict Perfect competitive Perfect competitive

Summary Table Of The Differences Between Both Businesses

14

Heng Furnishing Differences The Curiosity Shop1973 When it was founded 2005Yeoh Hun Beng Founder Danny Ho1 Number of Founder 2Demand of local What prompted to start

this businessHobby

Heng Furnishing is located in a double storey building at Jalan Ayer Itam, Penang

Location The Curiousity Shop is located in a commercial building at Mont Kiara, Kuala Lumpur

Eight hundred thousandRM 800 000

Annual Revenue Figure Break even

0 Number ofwarehouse

1, at Sungai Besi near HELP University

4 Number of employees 2Around 30 Number of customer -People live nearby Who are the customers Designer, developers and

restaurants owner6 Number of competitor 39am-9pm Business Hour 9am-7pmMattress Future Plan Build a strong teamModern furniture Type of Product Vintage furniture, decorative

objects, lighting, collectable item, painting and fabric

Services and quality Strategy Different product and services

Home base Business Operation Commercial

Summary Table Of The Similarities Between Both Businesses

Heng Furnishing Similarities The Curiosity Shop

0 Number of branches 0

Furniture Main Product Sold Furniture

Lead by the owner Leader Lead by the owner

Depends on season Best Seller Depends on season

Conclusion

15

Based on our analysis of both businesses, the business that is more commercially

successful is Heng Furnishing. This is because Heng Furnishing has been established earlier

than The Curiousity Shop. Even though Heng Furnishing does not have any branches, it has

many long-term customers who live nearby. There are not many people will choose modern

furniture to decorate their house instead of traditional furniture. Heng furnishing’s business

hour is longer compared to The Curiousity Shop and this shows a strong advantage in order

to attract more customers. The pricing of funiture for Heng Furnishing is not too costly

compare to The Curiousity Shop because The Curiousity Shop is selling those rare furniture

and decoration which are quite expensive while Heng Furnishing is selling normal furniture

such as mattress, dining table, sofas and etc. Therefore, Heng Furnishing is more

commercially successful than The Curiosity Shop.

Recommendation

16

Heng Furnishing

1. Provide private parking for the customers

Heng Furnishing is located at the roadside. There is no parking at the roadside. There

are plenty of places to park in front of the shop but it is always full. When there is no parking,

people will just pass by. Although they noticed the shop and they have interest to stop by and

have a look, when there is no parking, they will just give up and walk away. Besides, it is

also very dangerous to stop at the roadside to wait for parking. It will also block the traffic of

the main road.

Heng Furnishing should prepare private parking for the customer in front of their

shop. When they prepare private parking for the customer, they will notice that this shop has

good service so they will have good impression of the shop. When they have good

impression, they tend to buy the furniture from this shop.

2. Expand their shop

When we walk inside Heng furnishing, the walkway is very narrow because the shop

is full of furniture. We need to be very careful when we are observing the shop because we

scare we will break the furniture. Moreover, the shops look very messy because there is too

many furniture inside and it is not organize. You can’t walk near to the furniture to have a

proper look. You can just observe the furniture from a far distant. Furthermore, the signboard

of the shop is quite small and hardly visible.

Heng Furnishing needs to expand their shop so that they can display their furniture

neat and tidy. This makes the customer to have a clearer look of all the furniture of the shop.

They can walk near to the furniture to have a proper look. They need to change to a bigger

and attractive signboard so that people can see their signboard from a far distant.

The Curiosity shop

17

1. Do more advertising about the shop.

The Curiosity Shop is located at a corner inside of the highest floor of the shopping mall.

The exposure of the shop is very low because the shop is lack of advertisement and publicity.

We also notice that there are very few people in the shopping mall. Although they have their

official website and Facebook page, but the shop is still unnoticeable. The shop has already

open for 10 years but their business is still break even. Besides, the atmosphere of the shop is

very dark. When we are looking for the shop, we just pass by it.

The Curiosity Shop should put more effort on advertising their shop. Advertising and

publicity can be taken another further step through mass media such as newspaper and

television. This will make more people know about the shop.

2. Rearrange all product based on categories.

The shop does not arrange their furniture properly. They just put their furniture on the

floor. It looks very messy and unorganized. There are a lot of things on the table because they

do not just sell furniture but also decorative objects, lighting, collectable item, painting and

fabric. It is hard for the customers that are searching for the specific category. Moreover, the

cabinet is cover by the decorative objects and collectable item so it is hard to see the cabinet.

The Curiosity Shop should arrange all the products based on categories. This will make

the shop look tidy and neat so that people will be interested to come in your shop.

Furthermore, it is easier for the customer to search the products they are looking for.

Appendices

18

Appendix 1 : Interview Question

1. When was the business started? How many years?2. Why the name of the business is …?3. Who is the founder of this business?4. Are you the sole owner of this business or you have other partners working with you?5. What is the motive of starting this business?6. Can you tell us briefly about the background and history of your business?7. What are the number of branches and employees?8. What are the main products being sold here?9. Which category is bestselling?10. Who are your customers?11. What is the estimation number of customers that visit your business daily/monthly?12. Will there be more customers during festive seasons?13. How much is the rough annual revenue figure?14. Can you please tell us the brief history and recent development of your business? (i.e.

what has the business accomplished or what changes have occurred in the business over the past 3 - 5 years).

15. Do you have many competitors? 16. Is the business constantly facing strong competition from other competitors? What

strategies have they used to compete with you?17. How do you compete with your competitors? What strategies were/are employed ?18. Generally, do you feel it is easy or hard to enter this market? Why?19. How much capital is required to start this business? What, if any, specialized field of

knowledge do you need to run this business?20. How often do you release a new product (this assumes the business sells differentiated

products)?21. Are your pricing decisions strongly affected by your competitors?22. What are the obstacles faced by new businesses who wish to enter the market today? Are

they hard to overcome?23. What is your future plan for the business?

Appendix 2 : Interview question with answer

19

Heng Furnishing

Date: 2nd May 2015

Time: 1.00p.m. – 1.30p.m.

Location: Jalan Ayer Itam, Georgetown, Penang.

Interviewed Person: Mr. Yeoh Tze Siang

Job position: Owner

Office Phone Number: +604 828 8268

E-mail Address: hengfurnishing@gmail.com

Q

:

When was the business started? How many years?

A

:

Heng furnishing is my father business. A family based business. It is been around 1973.

It is about 42 years.

Q

:

Who is the founder of this business?

A

:

My father named is Yeoh Hun Beng.

Q

:

What is the motive of starting this business?

A

:

Indicated to the local, cater to the local. Local demand furniture, simple as that.

Q

:

Do you have any branches?

A

:

I use to have, but I no longer have it anymore because of rental issue. It is not too far

away. It is just further down the road. But now is close for the past 3 or 4 years.

Q

:

Do you have any employees?

A

:

Of course, I have about 4 employees. All are locals. I have my uncle helping me out. My

own uncle.

20

Q

:

What are the main products being sold here?

A

:

Anything from your garden up to your bedroom, up to your kitchen, dining tables, dining

area, everything. Except for build in product, build in furniture like for example people

do the nice match kitchen cabinet. I didn’t do that. That is the only things that I didn’t

do. I just sell ready make product.

Q

:

Which category is the best seller?

A

:

Usually 1 year there is a cycle. Like wedding month will be bed room set and mattress.

Before Chinese New Year is dining table, TV cabinet and coffee table. Than at certain

time like now, is very quiet.

Q

:

Do you have any competitors?

A

:

There are a lot of competitors in the market, big and small. I cannot give you an amount

because there is a lot. If you just go down here, down this road, there is about 6 furniture

shop. There are Pakistani, Design Crest, Pandamas and Kong Seng.

Q

:

How do you face your competitors?

A

:

Different product, services. Anyone can sell anything cheap. If I sell anything cheap

people would buy it definitely. But how long enough to stay in the market there is where

we step up. We go by service.

Q

:

Who are your customers?

A

:

People who live nearby here. Long term customer usually.

Q

:

What is the estimation number of customers that visit your business daily/monthly?

A

:

Usually about 1 day, average on good month, if you count per customer not per people

coming in, is about 30. If a bad day is zero.

21

Q

:

How much is the rough annual revenue figure?

A

:

Talking about turnover once is about RM 800,000.

Q

:

Do you feel very easy or hard to enter this market?

A

:

Enter this market is easy. It is really easy, it is not too hard. As long as you have money,

and your money is not needed to turnover a lot. Than u need at least a little bit of skill,

than you are fine already. It is just that how long u can keep going. Like we have been

going along for 40 years, so we have a service line, we have a portfolio, so pretty relax.

Q

:

How much capital is required to start this business?

A

:

I don’t know that. Depending of what kind of market you want about. In KL, they are

entering a specific market, specifically for mattress, specifically for furniture. So it is

depend on what they are going in. For example, they are talking about mattress, most

probably your start up revenue plus rental, I don’t know the rental like in KL, but in

Penang, probably about RM 100,000 or RM300,000. It wouldn’t be a problem,

depending on how big you want to do. It is very subjective when you ask this question.

Q

:

How often u release a new product?

A

:

New product is dependent on whether my supply is as new product so far, but we will

keep searching for new product every single day. If something new and we see there is

sellable, we will take it. If it is not sellable, than we will say like want to give it a goal or

not. So usually within 1 month there is definitely something new.

Q

:

Are your pricing decisions strongly affected by your competitors?

A I can say yes. Before that, we don’t really get affected because we are selling service and

22

: product. Some people are just selling product. That’s the different.

Q

:

What are the obstacles faced by new businesses who wish to enter the market today? Are

they hard to overcome?

A

:

In my opinion, competitive, pricing and sales person. If I hire a sales person is down to

the sales person ability to sell. A particular that he has a product right, he buy a product

from us, sometimes there is problem, how fast can you solve it. Our solving time usually

is 3 days or 4 days. And there is a problem.

Q

:

What is your future plan?

A

:

In future plan this is some plan to monopolize the mattress. My father is interested in

mattress. So in the future, most probably now the market is a bit quite, so probably about

2 years 3 years from now, I was planning to open a purely mattress base store

somewhere in town.

The Curiosity Shop

Date: 13th May 2015

Time: 1.30p.m. – 2.00p.m.

Location: 1 Mont Kiara, Jalan Kiara 1, Kuala Lumpur.

Interviewed Person: Mr. Danny Ho

Job position: Owner

Office Phone Number: +6017 853 6660

E-mail Address: dannyhce@gmail.com

Q

:

When was the business started?

A

:

10 years ago. 2005.

23

Q

:

Why the name of the business is “the curiosity”?

A

:

Actually when we start, we don’t have a direction because the business of nature is old.

When it is old, we don’t have a guide line. What direction we want to go and the product

what you expect. Although you know what furniture is, but you don’t know what year

what period, what is the thing behind for you to. When you come in, it will surprise you.

A surprise mean a curiosity is the question mark. That’s why we create the name

curiosity.

Q

:

Who is the founder of the business?

A

:

Actually me and my co-founder, my co-founder will be my partner. Two of us run the

business.

Q

:

What is the motive of starting this business?

A

:

Actually I started up just because of hobby. During the time I have other business, so I

start up this one as a hobby. Then slowly throughout the year it becomes a business.

Now is already my main business.

Q

:

Do you have any branches?

A

:

So far we have warehouse around KL. I think near HELP University in Sungai Besi area.

Q

:

How many employees you have?

A

:

For this particular shop I only have 2. Both are local.

Q

:

What is the main product sold here?

A Very subjective because we are targeted as furniture, so basically furniture is our main

24

: target. Throughout the year we do make new furniture to compromise to retail

commercial people.

Q

:

Which category is the best seller?

A

:

Actually, they all have their own need. If you have a house, you definitely need a dining

and definitely need a sofa. So we don’t have a guide line which one is the best seller.

Q

:

What is the estimation number of customers that visit your business?

A

:

For this particular mall, we don’t aspect high traffic. Because it is no matter what it is

still made good more. What we want is quality and quantity. When the customer they

come in, we value them because when they come in, they know what they want, what

they know about our business. For example my business moves to Sunway. Sunway we

have a very rich market there because of they need local and also people they are not

expose to our business. So it is difficult for them to understand our business nature. So

back to dollar we can’t do business.

Q

:

Do you have any regular customer?

A

:

Yes, we do. Our customer got a few types, one will be commercial, residential, directly

deal with them. They will come in buy 1 or 2 pieces and sometimes occasionally come

back. They are not heavy buyer because you can’t buy many furniture in your house

also. So our main repeat customer will be the designer, developer and also restaurant

owner. When they open branches, they definitely need us to supply them furniture. So

like today we go to café, restaurant, sometimes you think that why they have so much of

old piece, why they have something that can make the shop look old. So we are the

people that supply them. So that is how our business running to sustain.

Q

:

Will there be more customers during specific season?

A

:

Yes and No. During Chines New Year very slow, my Christmas time very good . It is

about the season. I can’t say when they have a holiday or festive season, we good sale.

25

We are very determine on the customer.

Q

:

Do you have any competitors?

A

:

Actually not really, for our things very knish and very rare. When we say rare meaning

because is old and you only found that piece that’s all, you can’t find it. Unless I produce

it or is very common old piece that people still can find in their home or hometown.

Q

:

How do you compete with your competitors?

A

:

Services, quality and principle.

Q

:

Do you feel easy or hard to enter this market?

A

:

Actually, we have been in this market a while already. Consider the old batch of people.

I think the hard part is to keep the business. Actually start is easy, who can also start the

business. To maintain it for 10 years is a task.

Q

:

Are your pricing decisions strongly affected by your competitors?

A

:

Not really.

Q

:

Does your business face any obstacle?

A

:

Yes. We can maybe 1 month no sales. During the back than when we rented our old

houses back in Changkat, Bukit Bintang. First they are not visibility. We are just in the

own building itself so we don’t have exposure to the customer. Only people that know us

or saw us from the blog, Facebook, they only will come. We have been so called take

care of this business for more than 6 to 7 years. Just to grow it and make it strong. So

technically 6 years is losing money.

Q What is your future plan?

26

:

A

:

Well of course for everyone the plan is make more money. For us we don’t want to grow

big, we want to grow strong team, we are building team, but we don’t see ourselves open

out a branches or something because this business are quality and also the supply are

very important. When you have more you are out of control. That’s all in quality, no

more.

Q

:

What is the annual revenue figure?

A

:

I can say base on a year, is actually, based on retail itself not my project. I can say break

even. You might say why are we doing it, we have project. For the shop it just a show

and retail. It is a show room. So shop I can’t make money sometimes I lose money. The

advice is shopping mall you technically can’t make money.

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Appendix 3 : Website

Heng Furnishing

Official website : http://www.the73.com/content/home/index/site:the73-link:1427

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Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/The73/timeline

The Curiousity Shop

Official website : http://thecuriousitygallery.blogspot.com/

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Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/thecuriousity/timeline?ref=page_internal

Appendix 4 : Business card

Heng Furnishing

Yeoh Tze Siang

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Yeoh Hun Beng, founder of Heng Furnishing

The Curiousity Shop

Danny Ho

Attachment

Video Link :

Interview two businesses video Presentation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=210ViD7qbIQ&feature=youtu.be

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References

1. MARADE. (n.d.). Furniture. Retrieved from http://www.matrade.gov.my/en/foriegn-buyers-section/69-industry-write-up--products/621-furniture. Accessed on 14 May 2015.

2. The 73 by Heng Furnishing. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.the73.com/content/home/index/site:the73-link:1427. Accessed on 29 April 2015.

3. The Curiosity Shop. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://thecuriousitygallery.blogspot.com/. Accessed on 10 May 2015.

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4. D.Ho (Personal communication, May 13, 2015)

5. TX.Yeoh (Personal communication, May 2, 2015)

33