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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvZKisubbuM&list=PLXNUnD-w9bUm9YmvkhNEnRGeat3fkPI73&index=4 KUALA LUMPUR: HABIB, a name synonymous with heritage and luxury, is on a mission to strengthen Malaysia’s position in the global market to ensure that each of its jewellery creation is worthy of international standards. The homegrown jeweller, established 66 years ago in Malaysia, aims to instil a sense of national pride among Malaysians while appealing to a universal audience. Habib Group Executive Chairman Dato’ Sri Meer Sadik Habib said the company is also shifting the stereotype of homegrown products and promoting Malaysian identity globally. “We have a strong Malaysian element in everything we do because we are proud to be a Malaysian brand. We want to be a brand that Malaysians will be proud of first, and then we want to put Malaysia on the map of the world with our culture and tradition weaved into our products. We are working on this,” Meer Sadik told The Exchange Asia in an exclusive interview. In diversifying its approach, HABIB prioritises several key elements, namely quality and creativity, ensuring that every aspect of its products and designs reflects the pinnacle of global standards. “One of our milestones was initiating the production of designs unique to the world. In terms of differentiation, our focus on diamonds as an investment stands out, particularly with certified diamonds that retain substantial value, providing customers with a viable asset,” Meer Sadik said. Touching on the local perception of Malaysian-made products, Meer Sadik said the challenge is to change people’s mindsets about local products. “People think Malaysian brands are not good enough. That is the current mindset. They believe international brands are better and local brands are below average. What we are doing now is changing that mindset. We want to be a brand that Malaysians can be proud of and globally accepted,” he said. HABIB has achieved international acclaim, earning the trust of esteemed names that have selected the brand as their exclusive distributor or collaborator. These notable partnerships encompass Pandora, recognised for its customisable charm jewellery from Denmark; Stephen Webster, a prominent London-based jewellery brand, and Ice-Watch, an affordable luxury watch brand from Belgium. In addition to the jewellery business, HABIB is involved with various other businesses such as Ar-Rahnu Express and Chantique, as well as international brands like Hearts on Fire and Korloff. The group has also invested in real estate, hospitality, as well as food and beverage businesses. Moving on, Meer Sadik expects the gold price to be strong throughout this year. “For the last few years, most countries have created a lot of debt, which has created inflation. And the best hedge against inflation is gold, so people buy gold. The gold price has not increased significantly in the past few years due to high interest rates in the United States; however, there are talks of impending interest rate reductions, which may prompt an increase in gold prices,” Meer Sadik said. He said HABIB anticipates a potential increase in gold prices as rates decrease, depending primarily on the movement of interest rates in the US. “Additionally, fluctuations in the ringgit’s value, which may strengthen if US interest rates decline, could further influence the balance of gold pricing,” he said. Meer Sadik also calls on the government not to impose a luxury tax on jewellery, as many Malaysians, including those in the B40 and M40 income brackets, opt to purchase gold as a means of savings. He said a significant portion of the population also does not have bank accounts, and they buy gold or gold jewellery as a form of investment when they have surplus funds. “I sincerely hope there won’t be any tax implementations on jewellery,” Meer Sadik said. He said that a few years ago, when the option to withdraw funds from Employees Provident Fund was announced, there was a noticeable surge in gold purchases, particularly among the B40 and M40 groups. “While I fully endorse the government’s consideration of imposing taxes for the T20 group, ensuring minimal impact on the B40, our observations reveal a substantial number of B40 individuals, including those in the M40 category, engaging in jewellery purchases, notably gold. “So, the implementation of taxes will determine what happens next. Without taxes, people will probably buy jewellery, especially gold,” Meer Sadik said. HABIB will continue to be present at strategic places and are looking to open a few branches this year. Meer Sadik said an outlet in Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) was recently opened, and the company plans to open another outlet in Menara 118. “We are also assessing our expansion plans, focusing on broader international growth this year. We are venturing beyond Malaysia into various regional destinations within Southeast Asia. We already have a presence in Singapore, the Philippines, Hong Kong and Taiwan,” Meer Sadik said, adding that HABIB is not just about profit and loss. “That is the last thing that we look at. We want to make a significant difference in the lives of people. We are in this business started by my late father. It is because of what he wanted – to be in the business of ‘happiness’. So that is something that we strive for,” Meer Sadik said.

In light of various social issues that arose from volatile geopolitical, social enterprises and the entrepreneurs responsible for such organisations behind the scenes have faced challenging conditions in their mission to make the world a better place. This has not only brought more awareness to the public on the impact that one could make with a little bit of effort, but it also inspired more social entrepreneurs to take a bold step forward in coming up with initiatives that would contribute to improving the lives of the underprivileged community. A good example of this would be Rebekah Yeoh, granddaughter of late billionaire Yeoh Tiong Lay, who is the founder of Malaysia’s largest conglomerate, YTL Corporation. In an exclusive interview with The Exchange Asia, Rebekah shared how her parents – including her father and Executive Chairman of YTL Group, Tan Sri Francis Yeoh Sock Ping – had always exposed her and her siblings to the reality of financial illiteracy among the underprivileged communities in rural areas. According to Rebekah, her parents believed that it was necessary to reveal the hardship of living conditions of other people outside of the ‘cosy lives’ of the privileged few. “This effectually had a long-term impact on my interests and life direction. I did my economic bachelor’s thesis on microfinancing for neglected communities and I had always dreamed of pioneering a sustainable charity engine,” she said, elaborating on how her grandfather and father had built the empire of YTL Group from humble beginnings, which encouraged her to fuse the aspect of business and charity together. “With that, Recyclothes was born, which was also influenced by my ‘passion for fashion’ and my sister, Ruth’s fight against environmental wastage,” added Rebekah, who is also the Corporate Finance Director of YTL. For her current role in YTL, she oversees cash management responsibilities while also supporting mergers and acquisitions (M&As), accounting and project financing activities. She has also assisted in undertaking several corporate exercises for over 10 years as the group seeks ways to expand, grow its global footprint, and sprawl into evolving industries relevant to the shifting norms of today. When asked about her decision to join YTL Corporation, Rebekah answered with, “I believe it was the natural progression of realising one’s potential through the support of family members which was the main appeal. Education played a very integral role in my family’s upbringing, considering my grandmother was a teacher most of her life, and our family invested a lot into the importance of education. With such efforts, Rebekah said that the best way to put all that education to good use is by channelling it all back to the people, which completes the circle of life by honouring the people who had given so much to mould her to become the person she is today. However, the professional responsibilities she has with YTL Corporation never distracted her from her mission to bring about positive change, especially for those who could not afford to do so for themselves. Reaching Out With Nimble Fingers In 2015, 18-year-old Rebekah founded a sustainable empowerment programme to help children develop talent and entrepreneurial skills in Cambodia, dubbed Nimble Fingers Cambodia. “The programme adopts a three-pronged methodology constituting micro-finance, enterprising and sustainable giving that ultimately aims to instil an early culture in children to accumulate disposable income and savings instead of squander it away. “Through the programme, they could use profits to be reinvested into their own ‘mini enterprises’ so that they learn about capital spending, savings and value-add. The children can be trained from a young age to monitor their finances and cultivate conservative financial etiquette,” Rebekah explained. She said that Nimble Fingers Cambodia is an initiative that she holds close to her heart because of the children that are involved in the programme. “I fell in love with the children the minute I met them. They have such pure hearts, so willing to share despite having so little, and they treat each other like family. The childcare centre raised them to heal others through love. “I felt they deserved a chance to build their lives through practising sound financial etiquette, and this program empowers them from a young to reach beyond minimum wage by giving them the confidence to pursue work encompassed around their genuine interests,” Rebekah said, adding that the programme is also able to provide the initial ‘push’ for the children to explore their future career paths and discover their talents. Moreover, Rebekah said that the programme teaches them about team coordination and shared stakeholding within a business. “They were beholden to the poor education system in Cambodia which lacks the basic practical skills of finance and book-keeping. Business knowledge combined with a good heart is unformidable!” she continued. Making a Difference With Global Shapers Apart from being an active philanthropist, Rebekah is also an alumnus of the Global Shapers Community Kuala Lumpur – an initiative that allows anyone and everyone to give back through a series of projects with causes revolving around the homeless, children, women and/or education. “I am a strong admirer of Jeffrey Sach’s research in economic scarcity. I agree with him wholeheartedly that ‘perpetual charity is not a sustainable option to eliminating poverty’, and I am convinced that enterprise is a more effective way of unlocking the potential of these individuals to create wealth for the long term, and this is what Global Shapers has pioneered over the years,” Rebekah explained. She said that Global Shapers became an outlet for her to let her inner economic creativity run wild when it comes to community projects. According to her, there were infinite planes that people could achieve, and the best way to do it than with other shapers who contributed a diverse range of manpower, knowledge, experience, and support. “I was submerged into a pool of professionals who had ventured into their own social projects taking various natures and forms. I was the weak link as I had the most to learn. “The best part about