The Juggle

So today's the first day we had two shops running at once, and my employee in the ss15 shop is still new (as in its his 3rd day) so you can imagine how hung up I was to my phone incase anything happens, which was really not cool the fact that I didn't charge my phone overnight !

Anyways, had to start my day at 7.30 AM, prepping for the booth cause there were so many little things overlooked (mind you I made a list but as usual, some things still gets missed out hahaha). Jumped outta bed without breakfast and rushed to Subang Parade to prep our booth before 9AM. Then we went back home again to take the stuff we realised we left behind after setting up the booth.Then we went to Parade again at 10AM to officially open our booth for the Dessert Fair ! 

I then went back home again to finish designing for the social media updates we had to post for the day (the marketing part of The Skinny Bakers) and then I realised, alamaaaak, terlupa nak beli bananas and strawberries for the booth ! So keluar la and went to grab the fruits to deliver. Then I realised again, aiyoooo, green tea powder and strawberry syrup !! So I went to buy the ingredients at a nearby grocery store. Just as when I thought I was done, tertinggal chocolate ice cream at the shop !! Then went to the shop to grab the chocolate ice cream, and patah balik la to Parade. Worst part of it was when I was running errands in Empire, my parking ticket decided to go missing !! I had to retrace my route nasib baik jumpa.... phew 

Next thing I knew, it was already 12 o'clock ! And the queue for our ice cream sandwich cookie was getting massive !! But as you can see, our menu was not up hanging yet because I had to go Shah Alam to get our bunting stand (oh and now I remember, I took time to print out the menu too before lunch time, no wonder la dah 12 o'clock then) 

So drove to Shah Alam to get our stands etc came back to Subang Parade then my partner (aka mum) told me, "Eh, we need to take plastic from the shop !!", so head back to the shop with the new printed buntings to hang at the shop. Then went back home to grab stuff for the shop (mineral water etc), then stopped by the shop again. Well, I guess the story just keeps on going on and on of the many times I had to go to ss15 then to home then to Parade, suddenly, it was 5PM already ! 

Then my tummy started roaring ! Ya Allah, I just remembered, I was eating only maggi while doing my designing work earlier this morning and munching on pears but I didn't eat properly... So I sat down at McD baru nak order suddenly, the new worker was calling me for something urgent at the shop! Luckily I had Hafeedz (the other worker) to help me settle it through the phone so that I can finally MAKAN ! Then my mum pulak call, "What are you doing?!" So I told her that I was finally having lunch at 5PM and she laughed, hahaha thanks ma. Good to know my pain is your pleasure hahahaha

And then we made a visit to MPH, where I was supposed to just buy my white board marker and leave for home to get a quick nap but then suddenly my adorable niece went like "Mama sha, I want you to read a book for me !" So, we sat by a corner and whilst reading, I realised I might just fall asleep at this little corner in MPH. Creepy tak if you saw a random stranger sleeping there !! hahahaha

So I left and next thing I knew, it was already 7.30 PM yet I was still sleepy so I broke the rule of not sleeping time Maghreb, just for that 15 minutes nap I long needed ! Then around 8.30PM we left for Parade again cause we wanted to catch peak hour time & I wanted to catch a quick dinner fix at Sushi King. Just as when I was sipping on the hot green tea "hah, I'm in zen, finally", my mum called me and said, "Our cookies are selling so fast we're out of stock!!" I was on my 2nd plate of sushi then so I rushed into my third plate and went back home to restock.... 

So that's roughly how it went ! Got a taste of running 2 shops at once but am definitely blessed with such a great team to work with :)) 

It was definitely a day to remember .... although it's not over yet since we're gonna be at Parade for the rest of the week ! *deep breaths* 

Starting Young - All about being Rajin and Focused

If there was one thing I've learnt since the first step I took into starting a business is that you constantly have to be rajin (hardworking) and focused.


About being focused,
Starting business at 21 years old (okay la, not so old or not too young I guess), I came to realise that there were many times I came across "distractions". Seeing my friends go on trips and for concerts but having to be 'stuck' here due to commitments to work isn't as easy. Looking at people post pictures of them travelling just makes you think twice about everything, if you are doing everything right. Having to say 'No' many times to lepak times with your friends or food hunting isn't as easy either especially if that is something you guys have always enjoyed doing together. And it gets worse when people say, "You're still young, just enjoy it while you still can"

But I guess it all depends on your perspective on things. The best is when you can find the balance between having fun as a youth and taking opportunities that come up to you only when you are not young. Having to balance your time with your family, your friends and time yourself. I am a firm believer to start your own business when you are young cause that's the only time when you don't have huge 'responsibilities' or 'commitments' to your own family for instance, having to come back to spend time with your own kids and at the same time, trying to find time with your parents. And with the current era we are living in, starting a business at a young age is a marketing itself. But then again, to those who are not into 'business' but force themselves into business just because the idea sounds good, cause that's where passion and being rajin comes in.



It is difficult to pull through without being rajin,
You know when you're in your early 20s, that's the best time (and pretty much the only time) you have to wake up late, even if it means at 1PM. But not having discipline and waking up at any time you wish gets pretty hard to go by when you have your own business, unless your business includes you having to be up and awake all night.

Having to say 'NO' to that second plate of delicious Nasi Lemak with Sambal that you know is going to give you collateral damage and make you sleepy all day can be quite difficult to okays... well, at least for me !

If you're really passionate about something, then you wouldn't have a problem about waking up and doing work (unless if you're overworked haha). You would even make sure the long list of things in your 'Must Do list' or 'Urgent list' would be done and dusted.

And the term 'malas' (lazy) does not even help us to get further, the furthest we can. We tell ourselves, "Alaaa, its okay. I can do it some other time, I'm so lazy now and tired and malas"...... That has been through my mind so many times, but I figured if I say yes to it once, I will say yes to it many times. I do take my breaks and chill at times though, but only after I've done as much as I can and reward myself.  It's also good to work around a dateline and try to make it as realistic and achievable as you can. Better yet, go the extra length and miles for your own company if you could.



I believe doing your own business when you're young is good cause of the people you meet along your journey to the 'business world'. The discipline you force yourself into, having commitments and priorities, sticking to the choices you've made and making heavy decisions, isn't as easy as it seems. Being able to 'hire and fire' somebody, finding the right balance as a 'boss and a colleague' can be hard too.

But honestly, beyond all that, the BIGGEST CHALLENGE you would meet is YOU. You are the biggest challenge to your own success, to the business you started off. You have to keep telling yourself to pull through and finish well, to go the extra mile and open your minds to any opportunities. To keep telling yourself that every challenge or problem you encounter (that makes you feel like booking another flight to another country for a 'short getaway) will be worth a while learning from.


The strength has to come from within YOU.


So good luck, and know that whatever it is, you can make it. Go the extra mile. No matter what the consequences are, you'll pull through :)

Poke Bowl !

So, I came across few videos of Poke Bowls on Facebook and searched for it on YouTube (which was definitely not helping with the fact that I watch the videos in the day when I'm fasting haha)

And I decided that today's the day! I'm gonna try making my first Poke Bowl ! 

Okay, I bought avocados specifically for the poke bowl but it was still unripe but since salmon has to be eaten fresh, I decided to still go with it. So first, I cooked the Sushi Rice... using SUMO! You can get it for about RM10 at the Jaya Grocer. I added in water as much as I would for normal basmati rice, and cooked it in boiling water on the hob for about 15 minutes. I added in salt and sugar before boiling it as well. After 15 minutes roughly, when you can see all the water has been absorbed/evaporated, turn off the heat, set it aside while leaving it covered for another 5 minutes

While waiting, I cut my salmon into cubes, making sure that the salmon is clean from any skin. I marinated the salmon using sriracha sauce and sesame oil. Other recipes would encourage you to put more stuff in which I reckon you definitely should but I was low on ingredients and just couldn't wait to get my hands into the bowl hehehe. Make sure you get salmon that is of sushi/sashimi quality, I got mine at Jaya Grocer's market and asked the fishmongers if this was able to be eaten raw (so far tak sakit perut lagi la so it should be good to go I guess)

Throw in some seaweed into the rice (recommended to use seasoned seaweed to give the extra 'wow' factor) and serve it on the bowl. It shouldn't be too hot or too cold. Then as simple as that, it's time to decorate your small bowl! I used roasted seaweed to eat  with the rice for a hint of crispyness but oh how much I wish I had the avocados for a hint of extra cream! Also, am missing out on sesame seed.

Well, I couldn't really decorate mine much since I was pretty low on ingredients but the rice turned out so good my niece couldn't stop eating it :)) Go crazy on the seaweed in the bowl of rice cause my niece loved it and  kept saying, "Nak Daun! Nak Daun!" but she only wanted the seaweed in the rice, not by itself 

Anyways, it's kinda easy to make so you should definitely give it a try! Although, the ingredients might be a bit pricy but its definitely worth a tryyyyy 

Here's the video I referred to for the Poke Bowl, hope it helps :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byQt5Itfig4

Setting Up Your Own Cafe

Hi there ! 

I know its been awhile (in fact, a bit too long), been a bit preoccupied with setting up the shop and catching up with Raya orders for our cookies. But then I thought, I should spare a few minutes sharing my experience and what I've learnt throughout the process, hoping to guide others (especially the younger generation) on the basics on what you should expect in...... Setting Up Your Own Cafe !

First is,

1. Register your company to SSM (Suruhanjaya Syarikat Malaysia)

This is really important since you really cannot progress anywhere without a Company Registration number. Its better if you give them a call and ask them on what documents you would need to be prepared with if they acquire any before going there straight :)

Then,

2. Find a great location !

Location plays a really important role in this process. And you would need to have a location of the shop first before applying for permit or license or anything else, so find a place to rent. It can be through the internet or even by driving around scouting. We managed to find our location through propertyguru.com and iproperty,com.my but I'm pretty sure there are so many other ways to find places as to where you can set up your shop

Next,

3. Register for license from MPSJ/MPPJ etc 

It would most likely take an average of 10 days for the license application to succeed but this also depends on how fast you manage to fill in and complete the forms. They would expect you to go for certain courses, but no worries, they have the checklist of things you would need to complete before submitting it in ! (Note that this stage might be a bit costly). And for the Training, you wouldn't be expected to have any preparations before the class since the class is very direct, but you would be tested at the end of the Course. (It was hilarious how I had to go for a class with my mum, never thought I'd ever have to go for a class with my mum! One thing for sure though, she was definitely competitive in scoring better at the test than me hahaha)

We had to through a "Basic Knowledge Training" which took up to 3 hours, but it was quite interactive so it was alright. We took ours at Bandar Sunway, but you can take the Training at any location nearby your area really.

4. Start constructing your shop

Planning, planning and planning. That's definitely the most important thing I've learnt throughout the whole process. My dad thinks I don't pay attention to what he says, but I definitely didn't especially on how much he emphasized on, "If you fail to plan, it means you are planning to fail". So, plan ! Allocate the amount of money you have, plan the dates you wanna order your stuff, finding for contractors etc. It took us about 2-3 weeks in planning to set up the shop, researching the right POS for the shop, floor planning of the shop etc and our shop is only a 1/3 lot. Our contractor is taking about a week to build up the place so the target is to complete everything within 1 month and a half, so make sure you plan and try to reach the target ! The longer you take, the more money you pay for the rent of the shop without getting any returns. Do try to target for an Opening Date :)

5. Stick around for a while

Most of us give up the moment we haven't been receiving much profit the first few months. We expect our Return of Investment to be recovered within the first few months, but it doesn't work out like that with everyone. Especially if it costs a lot more to set up your shop. So, if things don't seem to work out at the start, find out ways to make it turn out! InsyaAllah, you'll be fine. I'm still setting up my shop but have been asking around other cafes on how they make it, and they usually say, you'll have to pull through, not to expect easy and quick profit at the beginning. 

That's it for now :)

Will try to share more of my experience throughout the whole process. Hope this helps ! xx