All posts by EZ Malaysia

Captains & Legends, EZ 41, EZ 61 (2), Vol 41

Fair Businesswoman goes for Italian Flair 美丽女企业家转向意大利风情

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Dato’ Dr Wenddi Anne Chong
Owner of Marianis@7
images by Dato’ Kee Hua Chee

At first or even second glance, Dato’ Dr Wenddi Anne Chong looks like an archetypal IT Girl, rich tai-tai or spoiled daughter of millionaire with her 3 supercars. She is neither as she is basically a self-made, self-written success story. Though hailing from a well-off family, she takes great pride in buying the Porsche 911 Turbo S, Ferrari 430 Spyder and Lamborghini Gallardo with her own funds. And entering history as Malaysia’s first and only female restauranteur to own this trio of supercars.

Looking at the fashionably clad, perennial habitant of best-dressed lists, one can scarcely believe Dato’ Dr Wenddi Anne Chong graduated as mechanical engineer! True to form, that did not last long as she preferred visiting clubs and horse races in feathery hats than construction sites in hard hats!

I also modelled as back in the Eighties, you did not need to be 178 cm to model, I wanted to see the world but dad refused to finance a year of nonstop travel and accommodation so I joined Singapore Airlines! ”

Born in Malaysia, her parents moved to Singapore at 8 but she is now Malaysian resident. She joined Singapore’s Ministry of Education as public relations officer after abandoning engineering. While clubbing, she was enamoured with deejaying and with her natural sparkling personality, was swiftly scouted and trained by Juliana’s of London to be Singapore’s first batch of female deejays, spinning tracks at Xanadu in Shangri-la, then Singapore’s hottest joint.

Twelve years later she left as Chief Stewardess and Trainer. “I was Best Trainee of 1996 and my name is still in the honor board of SIA Training Centre.” She decamped to Kuala Lumpur in 1990 to be with her beau and co-founded Damansara Fertility Clinic which evolved into Damansara Women’s Specialist Centre which morphed into TMC Fertility Centre which was public listed in 2005.

Dato’ Dr Wenddi Anne Chong was co-founder, shareholder and executive director of TMC Life Sciences involved in fertility clinics, stem cell therapy, medical storage and laboratories listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia. She implemented training programmes and during her time TMC Life Sciences achieved major milestones of which she is justifiably proud.

She also currently helping to spearhead healthcare tourism with Malaysia’s Ministry of Health, MATRADE, MIDA and Malaysia Tourism Board. She is advisory committee member of Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council, PEMANDU and Negeri Sembilan Chinese Maternity Hospital.

She is a member of International Society for Stem Cell Research, American Society of Reproductive Medicine, European Society of Human Reproduction and Embroyology, Women Institute of Management, Kiwanis Club and Lions Club which awarded her their coveted International Recognition Award by Lion’s International President.

Despite her hectic schedule, she finds time for energetic fund-raising for Yayasan Tuanku Nur Zahirah, Tunku Azizah Fertility Foundation, Rumah HOPE, Ipoh Children’s Home and other deserving causes and charities.

Her list of awards and achievements include ARFF Women Entrepreneur of 2010, Business Excellence Award for Best Company in Science and Technology, ASEAN Technology Business Review CEO Award, L’Oreal Woman of Excellence, Women’s Weekly Woman of Excellence, CHT Entrepreneur Award in Healthcare and Woman of Substance by Malaysia Tatler alongside Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Tan Sri Francis Yeoh, Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong and Tan Sri Tony Fernandes.

She was included in Malaysia’s 10 Most Influential and Stylish Personalities 2010 and accorded Most Stylish Muse 2010.

Now residing in Ipoh, Dato’ Dr Wenddi Anne Chong operates and owns Marianis@7, touted as best value fine dining Italian restaurant in Ipoh.

“I love Italian food, fashion and architecture and my partner Khim used to work for an Italian restaurant chain so opening an Italian restaurant comes naturally. Oh, I also love Italian sports cars!”

F_ 01 Dato' Dr Wenddi Anne Chong wordpress

如果仅凭第一眼感觉，拿督蔣慧瑩看起来就像一个IT女白领、典型富太太或被宠坏的百万富翁女儿，加上3部超级跑车的衬托。事实上，她是自己谱写成功故事的精英女性。虽然出自富裕家庭，但所拥有的保时捷 911 Turbo S、法拉利 430 Spyder 和兰博基尼 Gallardo 系列是靠自己赚回来，成为马来西亚首名配置超级跑车的餐厅女老板。

外表时髦、常年入驻时尚服装榜内，无人相信蔣慧瑩是机械工程专业。不过，比起工地帽，她更喜欢戴着优雅羽毛帽穿梭俱乐部和赛马活动。出生于马来西亚，父母已定居新加坡，但她至今是大马公民，曾在放弃工程后加入新加坡教育部作为公关部官员。在夜店里，她迷恋担任DJ，由于自然闪耀的特质，在伦敦的Juliana’s训练下成为新加坡第一批女性DJ，参与新加坡夜店节目。

“曾在80年代做过模特儿，其实无需178cm身高。”她回忆表示，虽然想看世界,但父亲拒绝资助她每年不间断的旅行和住宿费，所以她加入新加坡航空。12年后，她带着首席空姐和教员的荣誉离开。“我是1996年最佳学员，名字仍挂在新航培训中心荣誉榜上。”她于1990年移居吉隆坡，与伙伴共创白沙罗助孕诊所，再转为白沙罗妇女专科中心，最终演变为2005年上市的丽阳助孕
中心。

作为创始人之一，她同时担任TMC生命科学(助孕中心)的股东和执行董事，业务范畴涵括人工受孕、干细胞疗法，医学存储和实验室，并在马来西亚股票交易所主板上市。她感到自豪的是在TMC期间实施的培训项目跨越重大里程碑。

目前协助马来西亚卫生部、MATRADE，MIDA和马来西亚旅游局的医疗旅游项目进行推广。她同时是马来西亚医疗旅游委员会、PEMANDU和森美兰州华人接生医院的咨询委员会成员。

她也是国际干细胞研究学会、美国生育医学协会、欧洲人类生育与坯胎学、女性管理学院、Kiwanis Club的会员，而作为国际狮子会成员，她获得梦寐以求的国际认可奖，由国际狮子会总会长颁发。尽管繁忙，她还是为Tuanku Nur Zahirah基金会、Tunku Azizah助孕基金会、希望之家，怡保儿童之家等公益事业与慈善机构出力或筹募基金。

她接受的奖励与成就包括2010年ARFF最佳女性企业家、科技领域最佳公司-商业卓越奖、东盟科技商业评论CEO大奖、欧莱雅卓越女性奖、每周女性卓越女性奖、CHT大奖保健领域企业家奖，《尚流》杂志马来西亚版选为实质女性，并与前首相敦马哈迪医生、丹斯里杨肃斌，丹斯里林梧桐和丹斯里Tony Fernandes等相提并论。

她也曾入围2010年马来西亚十大最具影响和时尚风格榜。蔣慧瑩目前定居在怡保，并经营一家名为Marianis@7，深具口碑的意大利餐厅。“我热爱意大利菜、时尚与建筑，而我的拍档Khim曾在一家意大利餐厅连锁店工作，所以经营一家意大利餐厅好像理所当然。哦，我也喜欢意大利跑车!” 而她固定穿梭于怡保-吉隆坡，家中有6只狗狗，享受着温馨的生活。

“我热爱意大利菜、时尚与建筑，而我的拍档Khim曾在一家意大利餐厅连锁店工作，所以经营一家意大利餐厅好像理所当然。哦，我也喜欢意大利跑车!”

Cover Story, EZ 41, EZ 61 (2), Vol 41

Celebrating a decade of contemporary luxury with ESSENZE 与《ESSENZE御智》一起庆祝當代奢華的10年

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Impressively contemporary and bold, leading lifestyle magazine, Essenze, celebrated its 10th Anniversary this year with a strong presence taking root in Australia through Essenze Australia.

A publication by MarketSource, under the main CHTNetwork, this magazine is one that is aimed at showcasing a lifestyle of lavishness, a world of arts and travel, leaders of industries and impressive leisure activities.

The very first edition of Essenze was published in 2005 to fill a niche for luxurious lifestyle magazines that not only informed, but also highlighted world medicine, art, travel, leisure, fashion and significant people and personalities. The publications evolved throughout the years from a new little-known magazine to become one of the leading international lifestyle magazines in Malaysia.

Today, Essenze is not just a magazine but an important component in the ever-growing network of business connections and friends under CHTNetwork. It has become the glue that brings connections together, an important component to draw people and brands together and a formidable publication to be reckoned with.

Essenze Australia was introduced early this year 2015, again, to fill an important niche for a luxury lifestyle magazine in the land down under. The introduction of the bilingual magazine outside of Malaysia is one that led to a showcase of international supreme brands and the people behind some industry, thus, creating connections between brands, businesses and people.

Both magazines will continue to forge new paths in the publishing industry, to bring across clients’ message to the targeted audience in Malaysia, Australia and other countries, including China.

 

当代引领生活方式、作风大胆且令人留下印象深刻的《Essenze》杂志，在大马稳健扎根多年后，今年将迎来创立10周年纪念。

《Essenze》杂志是由 CHTNetwork 旗下的 MarketSource
出版，锁定的内容是展示奢华的生活方式、一个艺术及旅游的世界、业界领袖的意见及给人深刻印象的休闲活动。

首期《Essenze》杂志是在2005年出版，
当时，市场上并没有一份杂志是主打奢华生活方式的。《Essenze》的诞生，不仅仅是做表面上的报导，而是强调在世界医药、艺术、旅游、休闲、时尚、重要人物等。经过这些年的努力，《Essenze》已从当年一份鲜为人知的新杂志，成为马来西亚引领国际生活方式的顶尖性杂志。

如今的《Essenze》，不仅仅是一份杂志而已。CHTNetwork的业务蒸蒸日上，而《Essenze》从中扮演犹如「胶水」般的角色，将CHTNetwork与其商业伙伴及友好紧紧相系一起，并且将品牌及人物串联起来，是一本强大的杂志内不可或缺的力量。

《澳洲Essenze》则是在2015年年初推介，同样地，《澳洲Essenze》的面世也是因为市场上并没有一本主打奢华生活方式的杂志。至于在马来西亚以外的地区推出双语版本，是为了推介国际高级品牌及这些品牌背后的人物，这也让品牌、业务及人们之间产生联系。

这两本杂志将继续办下去，为印刷开业开拓新路，同时，也可通过杂志，把客户的讯息传达给位于马来西亚、澳洲及其他国家，包括中国的目标群众。

Beyond Boundaries, EZ 41, EZ 61 (2), Vol 41

Ducati Scrambler Italia

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Produced as a limited, numbered edition of only 1,077 bikes, the Ducati Scrambler Italia Independent offers an original and unique interpretation of the Bologna-made motorcycle, sophisticated and elegant at the same time, while maintaining all the key characteristics of the Ducati Scrambler.

This latest collaboration between this new Ducati brand and Italia Independent showcased a perfect combination of a creative and stylish company that blends fashion and design, tradition and innovation.

The Ducati Scrambler Italia Independent is each embellished with an aluminium plate laser marked with the bike’s serial number, features the Ducati Scrambler-Italia Independent logo and is characterised by fuel tank side panels and both the Night Copper-coloured frame and wheels.

Other unique features include the black engine with machined cylinder head fins and other machined details in full view, the Termignoni exhaust with black pipes and silencer covers, the low tapered bars and low-slung aluminium rear view mirrors. Moreover, the short front mudguard, the “café racer” nose fairing and leather seat with Night Copper stitching with an embroidered Italia Independent logo on the back emphasize even more the unique style of this edition.

来自意大利的精品重机车厂杜卡迪，这次和时尚眼镜品牌Italia  Independent合作，推出Ducati Scrambler Italia Independent，全球限量发布1077辆。

杜卡迪与 Italia  Independent 的跨界合作，成果是完美的。此车款仍保留Ducati Scrambler主要的传统特点，但同时间却能通过结合时尚的现代设计，让重机也能展现时尚感及创意。

Image courtesy of image.net

Attitude & Style, EZ 41, EZ 61 (2), Vol 41

Runway Revolution 时尚伸展台大革命

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Jakarta Fashion Week is a driving platform for Indonesian fashion industry. As the major fashion week in Indonesia, Jakarta Fashion Week aims to provide direction for Indonesian fashion industry and demonstrate the talents and creativity of the fashion workers in the country. This year fashion designer Rinaldy A.Yanuardi stood out as one of the most creative designers. Invited guests were amazed by the models walking down the runway with Rinaldy’s latest new contemporary collection with a touch of traditional yet dramatic creativity.

雅加达时尚周为印度尼西亚时尚界开启了时尚平台。雅加达时尚周是印度尼西亚的主要时尚活动，因此借这个机会为印度尼西亚时尚界引领进入时尚的新趋向。除此之外，更想让那些本地具有天赋和创意的时尚爱好者有机会在伸展台上发光发热。

本地著名的服装设计师 Rinaldy A. Yanuardi 获得了今年度最创意设计师的荣誉。被邀请的嘉宾们都被他所精心设计的作品感到惊喜。Rinaldy 把现代时尚混合了一些复古的元素，产生了戏剧性的火花。

Image courtesy of image.net

EZ 41, EZ 61 (2), People Culture, Vol 41

All On Board 船艇盛典

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The Chief Minister of Penang YAB Lim Guan Eng recently launched the inaugural Maritime International Showcase Malaysia (MIS.M) that was organised by Reissiger Marine, together with Pen Marine Sdn Bhd, STYLO International, and Boatshed Asia. Mercedes-Benz, Airbus and Dassault Aviation were the sponsors. Among the highlights of the event is the maritime forum which featured some of the leading names in international maritime speaking on topics related to the growth and potential of yatching market in Asia.

Later in the evening, the MIS.M Gala Dinner took place at Penang’s historic Suffolk House. During the event, the organisers presented ASEAN Maritime Development Award to Dato’ Seri Tengku Dr. Zainal Adlin, BakriCono Shipyard won the ASEAN Maritime Company of the Year, Julian Chang was presented the ASEAN Maritime Personality of the Year and Grand Bank’s Yatchs took home the MIS.M ASEAN Maritime Company of the Year.

槟城首席部长林冠英国会议员最近出席首次在槟城举行的“马来西亚国际海事展览”(MIS.M)，这项由Reissiger  Marine、Pen Marine，STYLO国际和Boatshed  Asia联合主办的船艇盛会，同时是由梅赛德斯-奔驰，空中客车与达索飞机制造公司热情赞助。而展览会亮点是由国际知名航运机构主持海事论坛，主题为亚洲游艇市场的增长和潜能。

而MIS.M的晚会在槟城历史悠久的瑟福屋举行。晚会上，主办方颁发东盟海事发展奖予拿督斯里Tengku Dr. Zainal Adlin，BakriCono造船厂获得东盟海事公司奖，而Julian Chang也颁发东盟海事年度个性奖，还有由大银行游艇捧回的MIS.M东盟海事年度公司奖。

EZ 41, EZ 61 (2), People Culture, Vol 41

Ducati & Italia Join Forces 杜卡迪和独立意大利携手合作

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Ducati Scrambler and Italia Independent presented their new creations in Miami during the week of the prestigious contemporary art exhibition “Art Basel”. The two luxury brands launched a new limited edition Ducati Scrambler and a collection of dedicated sunglasses inspired by the “Land of Joy,” the theme that characterizes the iconic motorbike made in Bologna, Italy.

This three-years global partnership would see Ducati and Italia for the first time creating an incredible mix of Made in Italy style and creativity. The focus of the collaboration is Ducati Scrambler, the brand created by Ducati to interpret the values of the iconic 1970s motorbike, introduced in the United States and shortly after achieving international acclaim. A special logo, representing the union of the two different souls from which the project originated, has been designed to characterize the products that will be developed together. It is expected that great care and attention to detail from a combination inherent characteristics of Ducati and Italia Independent to amaze those that of exquisite taste.

意大利顶级摩托车品牌杜卡迪和著名太阳眼镜品牌独立意大利联手合作，在迈阿密的“巴塞尔艺术展”上推出了他们所打造的全新产品。意大利两个高端品牌共同发布了这款全球限量版的 Ducati   Scrambler 摩托和一系列启发自“Land of Joy”的时尚太阳眼镜。这个主题把出产自意大利博洛尼亚 Ducati   Scrambler 独一无二的特征带出来。

经过三年的全球伙伴关系，杜卡迪和独立意大利第一次携手推出了这个创意独特而蕴涵着意大利时尚精髓的产品。这次的合作主要是为了推广Ducati   Scrambler，这个品牌的诞生完美的把70年代附有代表性的摩托车普及至整个美国，而且在短短的时间内，已获得国际性的认可。一个精致的徽标代表着这两个完全不同品牌的结合，一起为市场创造出这个具有代表性的制作。为了打造一个独特而附有细节特色的产品，杜卡迪和独立意大利两大杰出品牌联手合作，相信将会吸引更多懂得品味人生之人！

Image Courtesy of image.net

EZ 41, EZ 61 (2), People Culture, Vol 41

Babor at BamBi Awards 芭宝聚光斑比奖

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Around 800 well-known guests from society, show-business, media, politics and economy joined the glamourous night of the 67th BAMBI Awards. The German luxury skincare brand BABOR exclusively showcased its effective ampoules at the after-show party of the BAMBI Awards 2015 in Berlin. Celebrity guests such as Hilary Swank, Rita Ora and Heidi Klum curiously gathered around the stylish presentation.

At the end of the glamorous evening, all guests received a 7-day treatment packaging of the tiny elixirs and could see and feel the almost magical effect for themselves. Isabel Bonacker, who is part of the BABOR owner family and personally attended the event, enjoyed the party together with VIP guests like Toni Garrn and Sylvie Meis. BABOR CEO Michael Schummert explained the connection between BABOR and the most important German media award: “BAMBI stands for grand style, glamour and emotions and for a little golden deer that has quite some radiance. Very similar to our little, only 2ml small highly concentrated ampoule that makes every skin glow with youthful radiance – also after a long BAMBI night by the way.”

约800名来自影视、媒体，政治和经济界的名人嘉宾参与了第67届斑比奖。在这个魅力四射的夜晚，德国高端护肤品牌芭宝（BABOR）专门展示其高效精密安瓶（Ampoules）品牌，这项2015年斑比奖在柏林演出后的派对盛会，处处可见名人嘉宾Hilary   Swank, Rita Ora 和 Heidi Klum聚集的身影。

在迷人夜晚结束之际，所有客人都收到了7天疗程小包装芭宝美容液，亲身体验这不可思议的效果。来自芭宝家族的 Isabel Bonacker亲自出席此次活动，与 VIP 贵宾 Toni Garrn与Sylvie   Meis等一起享受欢愉派对。芭宝首席执行员 Michael Schummert 解释芭宝和这个德国媒体大奖之间的联系：“斑比奖代表着强烈风格、魅力和情感，金色小鹿散发着漫长的光辉，这与我们的产品相似，只有2毫升浓缩的精密安瓶，使每一个肌肤焕发青春光彩。”

Image Courtesy of image.net
EZ 41, EZ 61 (2), People Culture, Vol 41

CAPSULE COLLECTION by ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA AND MASERATI 玛莎拉蒂携手杰尼亚打造Capsule系列

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Ermenegildo Zegna and Maserati have created a special capsule collection of fine leatherwear and accessories designed to honour the release of the Ermenegildo Zegna trim package available on all Maserati Ghibli and Quattroporte models. Following the footsteps of the Maserati Quattroporte Ermenegildo Zegna Limited Edition with its Zegna-designed interior, Zegna’s master craftsmen have created a pure silk fabric with an extremely high visual impact for the cockpit and seats in what has been described as the ultimate expression of style and exclusivity.

杰尼亚 (Ermenegildo Zegna) 为玛莎拉蒂豪车创造代表性皮革与配件，其中玛莎拉蒂总裁轿车(Quattroporte) 和Ghibli轿车所有车型将选配奢华内饰套件。杰尼亚Capsule系列采用精致材料搭配，顶级工匠创造出一种极具视觉冲击力的真丝面料，为驾驶座舱打造时尚奢华风范，活力和现代感兼备，不愧为玛莎拉蒂最具代表性的车型之一。

Cover Story, EZ 40, EZ 61 (2), Vol 40

Cooking His Way to the Top

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Martin Yan
International Celebrity Chef

“As an Asian, I feel that I have a responsibility to promote Asia and to inspire young Asians all in the spirit of ‘Yan Can Cook’.”

Many years before the term “celebrity chef” were coined, there is one familiar chef who appeared on TV regularly sharing easy to follow recipes. Chef extraordinaire Martin Yan of “Yan Can Cook” is almost a household name due to his successful series that had spanned decades. Here, the chef shares his success story with ez and talks about the challenges he faced before receiving international acclaim.

He first started by helping a friend in a restaurant in Canada located near the TV station and one day, he was asked to fill in for a chef that didn’t turn up for one of the TV shows. That was Yan’s big break in TV and a few years after that fateful day in 1978, PBS debut “Yan Can Cook” with Yan as the host. The rest, as we say, is television history as Yan went on to become a phenomenal success and today, he has more than 3,000 episodes of “Yan Can Cook” under his belt.

The series was such a success that Yan became a well-known celebrity chef the world over and currently, he also hosts the “Martin Yan – Quick & Easy” series. However, easy as it seemed, Yan admitted it was a tough road to travel before he reached such success.”I came from a very poor family and my mother sent me off to study in Hong Kong at the age of 12 but the one thing my mother told me, that I will always remember, is to always be humble,” he said.

Yan may have travelled around the world and have rubbed shoulders with other celebrity chefs like Anthony Bourdain but he is determined to keep his feet strongly planted on the ground. “There is this Cantonese saying “people are afraid of becoming too famous and pigs are afraid of becoming too fat” so I always tell people that there are so many great chefs out there who are much better than me,” he said. His down-to-earth demeanour and humbleness has earned him many close friendships and almost guaranteed his continued popularity as a celebrity chef.

Yan took a trip to Malaysia for his upcoming travel and food programme “Taste of Malaysia” recently. The China-born Hong Kong-American said he visited all the states in Malaysia to showcase not only the food but also the places of interest.”I am proud to be an “ambassador” for Malaysia to showcase its wonderful food and its beautiful destinations,” he said. On the 26-episode programme, Yan said it will place more emphasis on traditional fare of the Asian culture and how it has evolved over time.

“Taste of Malaysia”, which will be aired on NTV7, 8TV and Asia Food Channel (AFC) in Malaysia, is expected to reach a wide audience of up to three billion people worldwide when it is aired in September. “As an Asian, I feel that I have a responsibility to promote Asia and to inspire young Asians all in the spirit of ‘Yan Can Cook’,” he said. The upcoming series is more than a cooking show but a promotion of local flavours, heritage, culture and arts, Yan said.

Yan has not been to Malaysia for over 18 years until middle of this year and he finds that the country has much to offer in terms of variety of food, culture and traditions. “Malaysia is different from other countries I’ve been because it has diversity due to its multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and multi-religious society,” he said. Yan visited Penang for five days, documenting the local hawker fare before he went on to other states in the country.

When asked if he will consider retiring soon, Yan said his “work” is not done and it will never be done. “What I’m doing now is not a job but a passion and there’s no retiring from my passion in life,” he said. The 67-year-old added that he has friends in their 80s and 90s who are still cooking so there’s no reason for him to stop cooking and hosting his cooking, food and travel shows.

After Malaysia, Yan will continue his work as an international food ambassador by visiting more countries to showcase their food while at the same time sharing his passion for food and Chinese cooking.

Martine Yan2

Captains & Legends, EZ 40, EZ 61 (2), Vol 40

Standing the Test of Time

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Austen Wong & Kevin Wong

Director & Asst. to Director of Woo Hing Brothers Watch Merchant (PENANG) Sdn. Bhd.

by Jeremy Tan

EVOLVING over the years but staying true to its core expertise, Woo Hing Brothers Penang has forged a truly timeless reputation as a choice purveyor of quality timepieces in the heart of George Town.

First established in 1950 along Campbell Street, one of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed city’s oldest commercial precincts, the family business is now in its fourth generation and attracts a loyal yet discerning clientele.

Austen Wong, who now runs the company as director, has been at the helm since 1978. Son Kevin came aboard a year ago, and together, they constantly explore new business avenues and tap into different markets to keep the success going.

According to the elder Wong, the name Woo Hing Brothers has a long heritage in the Malaysian watch-retailing scene. It all started in the early 1920s when his grandfather started a small shop in Johor amidst the booming luxury import industry.

An unfortunate fire accident saw the business relocated to Singapore by the 1930s, which significantly broadened its client base. Two decades later, his father Wong Siong Toon, along with three brothers and a sister, were running the business and capitalised on an expansion opportunity in Penang. The rest was history.

“Our business was primarily wholesale at first, but eventually focused on importing a range of low to high end luxury watches, purpose-built stopwatches and fine writing instruments.”

“We retailed for many Swiss-made watch brands and had the fun experience of selling and tuning imported, ornate grandfather clocks from Germany and Italy.”

“Over the decades there was a gradual transformation of the business and in 2008 were-invented ourselves as a boutique for two of the world’s most coveted luxury watch brands, Rolex and Tudor.”

“This showroom has been our base since day one, even before Malaysia gained her independence. The building, built much earlier, survived the Japanese occupation and has seen at least three renovations. We will continue to build on these foundations well into the future,” Austen says.

When he first took over, Campbell Street was full of family-run retail and wholesale businesses, dealing in medicine, jewellery, textiles, footwear, general merchandise, watches and more. While some of those still remain today, many have since been replaced by cafes and boutique hotels as the lifestyles of Penangites become increasingly sophisticated.

“Concentrating on our primary expertise has been key to our longevity. Diversifying never felt the right tactic. We know what we do best and stick to it”

-Austen Wong

Kevin, who ‘grew up’ surrounded by clocks and their chimes, is delighted to return to his roots and carry on the family legacy. He left for Melbourne, Australia, for studies a decade ago, and subsequently worked in human resources before deciding to take up the mantle here.

“When you’re overseas, you begin to appreciate things you have at home more, and not many have the option of a family business to be involved in. With it being successful for three generations already, you wonder what else you can contribute.

“While I’ve been around clocks and watches all my life, since I entered the business, I’ve developed a deeper passion in their intricacies. Quality timepieces are well crafted works of art that not only help you tell the time, but also reflect your personality.

“Some enjoy the finer things in life and are able to do so, and we take pride in catering to their needs,” notes Kevin, now 28.

“Our lives revolve around meaningful activities – ranging from leisure to family and work. One thing constant across all those is time, and watches remind us of the precious moments we spend on them.”

– Kevin Wong

Though larger watch outlets and chains are prevalent across shopping centres nowadays, he finds the more personalised experience accorded to customers that comes with being a standalone entity, highly rewarding.

“We seek to build long-term relationships with our clientele. We are able to engage with them personally, address their points of view, and help them make the right choices. Most importantly, they walk away happy.

“Even if they do not purchase anything during their visit, we try to ensure they leave getting something, even if it is as simple as a better understanding or appreciation of their favourite timepieces,” Kevin adds.

Woo Hing Brothers Penang’s offerings encompass a vast range of the two brands’ luxury pieces, and cater to various preferences.

Visit their boutique at No. 96 Campbell Street, George Town, 10100 Penang, Malaysia, anytime between 10.30am and 6.30pm from Monday to Saturday (closed on Sundays and Public Holidays). For more information, you may call 04-2615287.