The basics of Mrs Liew's business is that 'she had a recipe' coupled with good business acumen, sheer hard work and perseverance especially during the initial years when she had to handle everything. Through her hard work, dedication as well as her entrepreneurial spirit, Mrs Liew has succeeded in steering the company to make it into the Enterprise 50 list. In addition to that, Anastasia has also received much recognition throughout the years, for instance, she was honored the Public Service Award from the Prime Minister's Office last year.

Company: BENGAWAN SOLO PTE LTD Address: 23 Woodlands Link Website: http://www.bengawansolo.com.sg Interview with Mrs Liew-tjendri Anastasia by Pan Shiying Serene on 02-Jun-2009. Student can be reached at serenepan@nus.edu.sg   Business Profile: Founded in 1979, Bengawan Solo Cake Shop first started out in the kitchen of Tjendri Anastasia's little home kitchen selling Indonesian delicacies. Now, 30 years later, Bengawan Solo has expanded to 43 outlets islandwide, offering more than 100 traditional and "innovative-traditional" premium quality kueh, cakes, cookies and various seasonal products for all festivities such as Chinese New Year, Hari Raya, Mid-Autumn Festival, Deepavali and Christmas.   Interviewer's Comments: Mrs. Liew is exceptionally humble and generous to the people around her. There is certainly no airs about her as she shares with us her entrepreneurial journey, from her home-baking business to the establishment of Bengawan Solo today. Despite her busy schedules at work, she is also committed to social responsibility such as getting involved in the Bukit Batok CCC. I really admire her for her passion and enthusiasm she has for both her business and community work. She is really an epitome of a truly successful Singaporean Entrepreneur!   1. What is the nature of your business? When Bengawan Solo first started off in 1979, the products mainly consisted of cakes, Nyonya kuehs and some cookies. As the business grows, I added other products onto the shelves. Now, I am selling a whole range of cakes and pastries. For instance, we are selling different pastries in accordance to different festive seasons, such as mooncakes during Mid-Autumn Festival, pineapple tarts during Chinese New Year, cakes for baby's first month and wedding celebration.   2. When and why did you decide to become an entrepreneur / take over your family business? NOTE: If it is not a family business, ask: Do your parents have their own businesses too? Have they inspired you in one way or another? (Select appropriate question according to the entrepreneur being interviewed.) Since young, when I was still living in Indonesia, I started learning cooking and pastry making. As time passed, I cultivated a deep interest making kuehs, cakes, experimenting and refining recipes. After I shifted to Singapore where I met my husband, Johnson Liew, my interest in Indonesian delicacies continued in the little home kitchen of my HDB flat. As I was a full-time housewife then, I would occasionally make some cakes and pastries during my own free time and offer my friends and neighbours to sample them. Their feedbacks were very positive, remarking that those kuehs and cakes, for example Pandan Chiffon, I made were very unique in Singapore. Gradually, word of the existence of my tasty goodies got around, and, before I knew it, orders for cakes and kuehs came rolling in. With some recommendations from my friends, I even managed to sell my home-made specialties on the shelves of some supermarkets and emporiums, albeit produced without a food manufacturing license. When officials from the Ministry of Environment finally caught up with me and my unlicensed food production, I was warned and instructed to stop my home-baking business. After that incident which I still remember vividly, I was informed that I need to get a proper food license in order for me to continue my baking business and to get a food license would need me to set up my own shop. There were two options for me to choose. Either I close this business and stop selling my home-made specialties or I take over a shop and to get a food license. My mind leaned slightly more towards the second option as I really had deep passion in baking and cooking since I was very young and it would be a total waste if I were to give it up just like that. Coincidentally, there was a vacant shop nearby my house. Although the location and human traffic flow for that shop were not good, I thought the main focus could be redirected to the sales from the supermarkets and emporiums instead. Hence, I took over that shop pluckily and started the very first Bengawan Solo Cake Shop from there. Like all other cake shops in Singapore at that time, production was carried out in the kitchen at the back of a small shop-house of a block of HDB flats. Over at the first shop, it was a humble beginning - There were only one 5-feet long refrigerator and some domestic ovens and mixers. I did most of the things myself with some help from the employees I engaged with. Do your parents have their own businesses too? Have they inspired you in one way or another? Yes, but they ran a different kind of business. They had a small provision shop back in Indonesia. During festive seasons, my mother would make kuehs. Among my siblings, I have more interests in this area, so I would spend more time helping out and at the same time, learn kueh-, cake-making from my mother.   3. What are your reasons for choosing to do business in this particular industry? As mentioned earlier, I have profound interests in cooking and baking since I was very young. I did not want to stop selling my home-made specialties just because I do not have a proper food license. So when I was offered a chance to start my own business, I took the offer and started the ball rolling.   4. How did you put together all the resources needed to start your business? For example: getting the start-up capital, hiring staff, doing sales and marketing, advertising, etc. As I did not have a lot of money at that time, I was very fortunate to be able to take over a shop that did not cost too much. In addition, I did not spend too much money on renovation either. From what I earned through the orders I undertaken from home and sales from supermarkets and emporiums, I bought whatever that were crucial and capable to afford at that point in time. As such, instead of big ovens, I bought a few domestic ovens and mixers. In sum, I did not need a very huge start-up capital.   5. Could I know why 'Bengawan Solo'? Actually, many people had asked me similar question before. I chose that because at that time, the song - Bengawan Solo was very popular. Most of the people have heard of that song so I chose that because it is easier to remember. Secondly, I chose that because 'Bengawan' is equivalent to 'River' and 'River' is equivalent to 'Water'. It is somehow related to Chinese Fengshui which is symbolizes wealth and prosperity for my company. In my mind, this was the name that first came up and we liked it best.   6. What are some interesting stories you have about your first few customers/first few years in business? The first customer who saw the price my Kueh Lapis jokingly commented that they were more expensive than gold. However, after much persuasion they bought home to give it a try and from then on, every other day, she returned to get more Kueh Lapis and other pastries. She remarked that my products gave them a very homely feeling and nice sensation when consuming them.   7. From what I understand, especially in the 1970s, it was never easy for a woman to have the drive and bravery to start a business, how did you manage to look after your business and family at the same time? It was quite difficult to juggle between both ends. I engaged someone to take care of the house and my children as they were very young still. Although there was a helper who looked after my children, I would always find time to interact with them, trying my very best not to neglect them. Thankfully, as my shop was very near to my house, I could save a lot of time travelling to and fro and enabling me to have more time with them. When I first started the business, it was very tiring for me, both physically and mentally. Everyday, I only had four to five sleeping hours. However, despite the tiredness, my passion motivates me to carry on.   8. What are some of other challenges you faced when you first went into business? How did you overcome these challenges? Please share some specific examples of the action you took to overcome the challenges. When I first went into business, there were not many cakes shops around in Singapore. As such, direct competition was not very strong. During the initial years, I only employed a handful of people to help out although I am already most of the things all the time. At certain points, I was quite vexed when my staffs turned up for work inconsistently as my workload became heavier with such working attitudes. I had to deal with both store front and back end concurrently, managing both sides all by myself with a little help from my staffs. It was really a very tough time for me and I always have thoughts of giving up flashing in my mind. However, I tolerated and pushed such negative thoughts to the back of my mind and bear all the problems. Next, when products were produced in a centralised kitchen, customers feared that quality might drop. Upon hearing that, I started wondering where could be the root of the problem. Was it a psychological problem or was there really a problem in the line of production? I suspected it was a psychological problem initially because at that time, I was very much involved in the entire business, from production to delivery and I did not sense anything going wrong. Nonetheless, I investigated and found that the temperature of the fridge on the van actually affected the quality of the coconut milk. However, after adjusting to a more suitable temperature, the fears of customers were soon eradicated. Topping up with a little historical background on this centralised kitchen, as the little shop-house space was limited, it could no longer function to supply kuehs and cakes sufficiently to the five outlets in operation. As a result I built my first central kitchen on a 9500 square foot piece of private property at Harvey Road in the MacPherson area. The centralised factory production was featured several times in the local papers as it was the first of its kind in the confectionery industry and was later emulated by others in this business.   9. Can you remember your worst day in business or a time when you felt like giving up? What happened that made you feel that way and how did you triumph over it? Yes, of course, especially the first few phases when I first started out. I remember an incident that occurred before Chinese New Year vividly. The process of making Kueh Lapis is actually very tedious, you have to do it layer by layer. During that season, customers swayed me to accept their orders by remarking that they were only adding one more Lapis onto the existing orders I had on hand. In the end, when I told the staffs that there were still a lot of undone orders, they replied that they were tired and wanted to go home. So, I had no choice but to take over their jobs. Luckily, there was one staff, who is still working for me today, stayed behind with me and worked together. The orders were simply too big to handle, I was so upset when I knew I would not be able to complete the orders. In the end, I wept while doing the Kueh Lapis! Fortunately, there were some considerate customers who understand my plight and agreed to come and collect after their reunion dinner. Even my dad came down and said that it must have been very difficult for me to work so hard for my business to the extent that I had to skip the reunion dinner just to make sure that I can complete the orders on time. Starting a business is never an easy job. But, you need to have the patience and perseverance to help you overcome all these challenges.   10. Can you share some of the lessons you learnt from overcoming your own business challenges that you think will help other businesses? During festive seasons, our orders are always very high and it is always a tough job to get your workers together as one and hit the target. So, one very good way to motivate them to work as one team would be to join them in the production line personally. Even though you may not help out a lot, your mere presence is already a very good motivating factor to them. Telling them that you are with them and providing them morale support to go the extra miles. Even now and then, I would also be around the factory during night shifts or festive seasons to boost their morale. I truly believe that this is a very important factor which could help you to overcome challenges.   11. What are some business ideas you have implemented that created great results in your business? In the past, customers would have to load and carry tens and hundreds of baby's first month cakes into their automobile. I feel it was a very tedious job for them and unknowingly, the quality of the products may be affected along the way. As such, to minimize customers' unnecessary workload, we started selling vouchers. In fact, we were the first company to start selling vouchers. In this way, customers could use the vouchers to collect the cake at any of our outlets. Additionally, because the voucher is of a certain amount of value, they can also use it to exchange for other products they would like to get. Thus, there is no restriction with what customers want to get and they could utilize it whenever they like. It is a win-win situation for all of us. In addition, to have new concepts and something different, we have also started concept shops where customers could sit down and enjoy their kuehs, cakes and newly created kaya toast, bread, tea and coffee. It has become a place for them to meet and have their meals. All the newly introduced items were specially manufactured by Bengawan Solo. For example, unlike other brands of bread, Bengawan Solo's bread has its very own unique fragrance that is very well-liked by a lot of customers. To mention a few that are a must-try would be the Iced-Avocado Coffee, Chendol and Kaya Toast. All of these are the end products from my personal experimentations and have been very well received by my customers.   12. What are your business philosophies? As an entrepreneur, I have to maintain high standards for my products to maintain goodwill. Even at later stages when products were produced in a centralised kitchen, I continued to use the traditional methods of production and used the finest ingredients and prepared the products without preservatives. One of my business philosophies is that only the best and natural ingredients should be used for my products. I will also never cut corners or sell products that are not fresh to my customers. For example, even though it was hard work to extract essence from pandan leaves, I will never resort to the use of flavourings for my Pandan Chiffon. One of the biggest satisfactions would be the times when I hear compliments from my customers complementing that they loved the things I made for them. This is one of the principal motivating factors which keep me in this business till now.   13. In your opinions, what would be the recipe for success of Bengawan Solo? For Bengawan Solo, we are pretty much focused on the freshest and we will also use the best ingredients for our products. In addition, I am constantly improving existing and introducing new recipes to Bengawan Solo. I firmly believe that if you manufacture the best products people will patron you and spread the goodness through word of mouth which is more effective than spending money to market your product. I think that the main contribution to Bengawan Solo's success today would be the willingness to give and use the best for our products. Even though the cost of production may be high due to the usage of such premium ingredients, quality of products will always be the priority on list, never money-making. I must give the best I can to all my customers. As mentioned earlier, profit making is not what that made me happy but customer satisfaction. If customers are unhappy with my products, I am more than willing to refund them. In addition, I believe the environment and policies of Singapore also contributed to my success today. A simple example would be the road condition; there is hardly any serious congestion in Singapore. So the deliveries of products to the outlets are usually smooth sailing and products could also be maintained at the highest quality due to short delivery time.   14. What motivates you to have a second outlet? Being a perfectionist, I would constantly make refinements to my products from various sources of opinions, such as feedbacks from customers to better suit their likings. My products were also promoted in newspaper in the year 1981 and after people knew about my shop, customers started coming from different parts of Singapore. As a result, business started to pick up steadfastly from there. Many times, managements from shopping malls expressed their wishes to have my shop at their malls. On top of that, I also heard views from customers that they hope to have an outlet in the central district area so that they could enjoy a shorter travelling distance to get my products. As such, I opened a second outlet at Centrepoint. Opening the second outlet is a natural process that occurred without much serious considerations.   15. What do you see for your business in the next 5 years, and does it include any plans for expansion? Just recently, we have bought over a company next to this building so that we can have more production lines for different products. So this building will be merged with another building through a bridge/link that has been constructed. Locally, we already have 40 odds outlets around Singapore, which is quite saturated in some sense. However, I would like to have outlets in the university like NUS and/or NTU. I hope to bring our products closer to the younger generation, and to let them know more about Bengawan Solo. Besides this, I also see a great potential in expanding my business overseas. We have been receiving a lot of enquires about franchising from Hong Kong, Brunei, Malaysia, and even China and Japan. If you do not know, a lot people from Hong Kong know about our brand and products. Just recently, we were broadcasted by a show under TVB channel in Hong Kong, showcasing the products we have in Singapore. I am very happy to know that people from Hong Kong love my products. In addition, even Hong Kong's celebrities like Aaron Kwok, Chow Yun-Fat love our Pandan Chiffon cake and other signature products. The products at our Changi Airport's outlets are always out of stock as they would always buy dozens or hundreds back to their country. As such to avoid disappointment, we will always need to replenish our products many times a day to ensure that the goodies are always available. Just recently, delegates from different countries who came to Singapore for the IE Europe Reverse Mission, sampled our products and almost instantaneously, very positive remarks were given. Bengawan Solo is also pleased to receive an invitation to participate in a food festival held in London this year. On top of it, from a local Chinese newspaper, I learnt that even foreign students would buy our products as souvenirs before returning back. As such, I see a lot of potential for Bengawan Solo and if we were to move overseas, Hong Kong would very much be our first place to target. As such, there is still a very big room for Bengawan Solo�s growth in the markets.   16. From what I gathered, I came to know that you had received many awards over the years, such as being Winner of the first Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 1998 and more recently, in 2008, you had received a Public Service Medal. As such, what are some of your proudest business achievements to date? Awards, to me, are sources of motivation. However, actually my proudest business achievement is not the awards but the recognition of Bengawan Solo among most Singaporeans. I am very happy to know that Bengawan Solo has become a household brand that everyone knows.   17. What are some entrepreneurship qualities that you have which has helped you come this far? Other than those that I have mentioned earlier, like perseverance and determination, I have always loved challenges. Even when I was in school, I would always compare results with my friends and classmates. Although there may be setbacks, I am never defeated. Setbacks are actually a source of stimulus that allows me to do better each time. Similarly, this characteristic has helped me to aim for the peak of the mountain. I am also someone who does not save on ingredients. Unlike other businessmen whose priority is to make the most money, I would rather spend more money in getting the finest ingredients than to save money by using substandard items. Besides, I think I am also a risk taker. If I did not take the first step to acquire that shop at Marine Terrace, I believe there will not be any Bengawan Solo today. I have to admit, at times, I am quite bold in my decisions. I feel that it is perfectly alright to make mistakes because everyone makes mistakes. Every mistake I make, I learn something new. I am also a perfectionist; my business philosophy is that every task, whether in retail outlets or the centralized kitchen, must be performed perfectly, or nearest perfection. Likewise, for every item of Indonesian and local kueh or cake, I insist on making it better than others. If the thing does not taste good, I would rather not sell it. Unless the product really tastes good after a series of experiments, I would put on the shelf. On top of that, I am an innovator. Even though there are a varied of products Bengawan Solo are selling, I am still not contented with the present products in the market. I would relentlessly make improvements on existing products and introduce new recipes into the markets so as to retain old and attract new customers.   18. Over the years, who or what motivates and inspires you? MM Lee. He is really someone I look up to and admire. Even now, despite old age, he is still very active in Singapore's politics arena, ensuring that Singapore's future is well taken care of. It is not easy to find someone who is already in his 80s and is still very actively involved with the nation. I am really proud to be a Singaporean. Many foreigners think that Singapore is just a little red dot, but I feel that Singapore is a very powerful red dot that should not be underestimated. Singapore's success is very much attributed to MM Lee's attitude and undying perseverance and determination. So, in a way, he has motivated and inspired me to build up to what Bengawan Solo is to date. Nevertheless, I feel that the strongest motivation and inspiration come from my passion to cook and bake and to deliver only the best to customers. I do more and give nothing less to my customers. So whenever customers are happy with my products, they are a source of motivation for me to do better and strive higher. If they are dissatisfied, I am doubly motivated by them to produce even better goodies to satisfy them.   19. Could you share how Bengawan Solo survived the different crises, for instance, the SARS incident which happened in 2003? During SARS, our business was also badly affected. Especially the outlets at airports and Singapore General Hospital (SGH), sales dropped as the human traffic flow reduced. So, we tried to cut costs by reducing the number of overtime hours which were unnecessary, reduce the amount of food wastage albeit still using the finest quality ingredients. I also monitored the sales of different outlets and motivated my staffs to work harder as a big family.   20. With the changes in the market today, do you think it has become harder or easier to succeed in business? Why do you say so? Needless to say, as compared to the past, it is harder to succeed in business now. Competition is coming from all directions. So the only solution for Bengawan Solo would be to use quality as our weapon. It is difficult for us to vie by reducing our price because we are using premium ingredients which naturally increase our cost of production. So it is important to understand the strengths and weakness of any business and try to augment the plus points and minimize the negative side.   21. From what I understand, young people would always want to start-up their own companies than succeeding a family business, do your children have the same mentality too? Yes and I told them it is okay not to continue this business, I could sell this company and earn a lump sum from the transaction. I told them that they should be lucky that they do not have to work so hard since I have laid the foundations for them already. It is a ready company waiting to be hand over and if they persist in starting up their own companies, I think it is something they will regret in future. It is because practically, I have nothing to lose if they do not wish to take over this business and the last resort is to sell this company away and I can enjoy my life. I am delighted that Henry is interested in continuing this business, so I stayed on in this company to guide him along before I retire. He, himself also sees great potential in this company and he understands that it is never easy to build a start-up that could come so far like Bengawan Solo.   22. What golden words would you give to your successor (Henry)? I told him that he will need to learn and understand each production departments, because he has to know about food quality control. If he does not understand how to control the products, customers will lose confidence in Bengawan Solo in no time and the company would not be able to survive. Consistency in products is the ultimate most important factor in retaining customers' heart. There is no tolerance for any mistake to be made because the company has grown in size and we have to be responsible for our employees' welfare and jobs. Any mistake made recklessly will create leeway to the downfall of the entire company. So since he has decided to take over this business, he has to ensure that he must be serious in doing a good job. He also has to understand the mentality of customers. As Bengawan Solo is a well-established household brand among many Singaporeans' mind, there must be something that differentiates our Pandan Chiffon (for example) from the ones selling at Supermarkets which costs only $2. The expectations from us versus from the ones at Supermarkets are very different.   23. What advice would you give young people who want to start their own business? Most importantly, you must do what you are interested in. So that even upon meeting crises and challenges, you will still be motivated in overcoming the hurdles to reach your goals. In addition, only when you have the passion, you will do well in the area of your business. You also have to be bold in your decisions. If you ponder and worry too much about your decisions, most of the times, you will back out from your plans in the end. As such, once the opportunity knock on your door, gladly and boldly accept it. Otherwise, you may let the golden opportunity slips away unknowingly if you are too cautious or calculative. There is never a smooth sailing path that leads to success. Along the way, you are bound to face some failures. It is very important to learn the lessons and not to repeat the mistakes again. Experience makes a person wiser and a better decision maker. It is also experience that will help you to forecast how will the different market conditions affect your business development and then take the necessary measures accordingly. This is something that you could never learn off the textbooks. In addition, especially during the initial years, you need to put in a lot of hard work, effort and perseverance into your business. You have to be prepared to make certain sacrifices such as shorter sleeping hours, returning home with nothing but weariness in order to get returns in future. You must also have a willingness to give the best and nothing less. Only then, customers will return and they will help to spread the goodness of your products to others. This is a very effective way of retaining old customers and attracting new patrons. I believe anyone who has the above mentioned qualities or attributes will make it to the top.   24. NA NA