ENTREPRENEURS OF THE YEAR

TOP ENTREPRENEURS OF THE YEAR AWARDS 2021

DATO’ SRI HAJAH SITI NURHALIZA BINTI TARUDIN

CTDK HOLDINGS SDN BHD

Entrepreneur of the Year

LESLIE GOMEZ

THE OLIVE TREE GROUP

Excellence in Leadership

YH DATO’ SRI HJ KADIR BIN HJ MOHD SHARIF

KZACT GLOBAL (M) SDN BHD Halal-Prenuer of the Year

DR. HANAFIAH YUSSOF

ROBOPRENEUR SDN BHD

Technopreneur of the Year

DATO’ FAZLEY YAAKOB

SUKA SUCRE BISTRO

Celebrity Entrepreneur of the Year

ASHLYN NISHA GURUPATHAM

REBEL SDN BHD

Youth Entrepreneur of the Year

SHAHRUL ANUAR BIN ZAIN

ANUAR ZAIN NETWORK SDN BHD Lifetime Achievement Award in Music Industry Presented by CELCOM BUSINESS

DATO’ SRI HAJAH SITI NURHALIZA BINTI TARUDIN

CTDK HOLDINGS SDN BHD

Entrepreneur of the Year Dato’ Sri Hajah Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin is Malaysia’s queen of entertainment, beloved by both young and old alike. Her singing talent and pleasant personality have made her a Malaysian icon, particularly among the younger generation. She rose to fame at the age of 15, quickly becoming Malaysia’s No. 1 entertainer. She instantly gained notoriety in the music industry, inspiring millions of fans to pursue a career as an artist.

Dato’ Sri Siti debuted in the business sphere in 2006, when she founded a family business that encompassed a wide range of interests, including music and entertainment. Her cosmetics line, SIMPLYSITI, debuted in 2010 and soon became a national and international sensation. In 2016, she co-founded Creacion, a Muslimah fashion company, with Malaysian textile entrepreneur Jakel. CTDK Holdings has grown from its humble beginnings in 2020 to become a significant FMCG player. CTDK Holdings has established itself as one of the top distributors of Halal cosmetics and beauty products through its subsidiaries SimplySiti, BeauSiti, and Beautyra. The brand is highly marketed and has a large consumer base. It is positioned as a premium Halal brand with comparable quality to international names. It maintains an affordable yet sophisticated character that appeals to a wide range of market segments.

Under her directorship, Dato’ Sri Siti Nurhaliza has bagged Brandlaureate – SME Chapter Awards: Most Promising Brand 2010 The BrandLaureate Tun Dr. Siti Hasmah SME’s Women of The Year 2010, UDC Business Awards’ Best Upcoming Beauty Products 2011, and Malaysia Book of Record’s Dermagic - Biggest Transformation Programme.

www.simplysiti.com.my

LESLIE GOMEZ

THE OLIVE TREE GROUP

Excellence in Leadership Leslie Gomez, Founder of The Olive Tree Group, has established himself as a pioneer in the Malaysian hospitality industry. Leslie Gomez founded The Olive Tree Group in 2003 and has since taken it to greater heights. Leslie Gomez presently serves as the group’s Founder and Executive Director. By bringing in international chefs from India and local cooks, Leslie’s reputation for providing exceptional cuisine with superior service to the Malaysian scene has grown.

Leslie Gomez has led the organisation to a significant business reputation, garnering various accolades and acclaim from travel magazine businesses. The company was recognised as one of the best places to visit, eat, and drink, with several awards under its belt from the year 2003 to 2019 The Olive Tree Group operates full-service luxury restaurants such as Frangipaani and Olive Kitchen + Bar, gastro pubs such as Rock Bottom, and clubs such as Temptations and The Beach Bar - was hit particularly hard during the pandemic. The key selling feature of the business was the ambiance.

Mr. Leslie, who self-funded all of his restaurants, experienced financial difficulties for the first time in 18 years due to the COVID-19 epidemic, causing him to approach the bank and request a loan to keep his businesses going and save the jobs of over 400 of his employees. Even though this was unavoidable, he did not concede and continued to move forward to keep his business running. He was recently recognised as the SME of the Year at the SME and Entrepreneurs Business Awards (SEBA) 2021 for his resilience and drive to achieve. He is willing to go above and beyond to save the ship’s crew without sacrificing anyone to the tide.

www.theolivetreegroup.com

YH DATO’ SRI HJ KADIR BIN HJ MOHD SHARIF

KZACT GLOBAL (M) SDN BHD

Halal-Prenuer of the Year YH Dato’ Sri Hj Abd Kadir bin MJ Mohd Shariff is a Multi-Level-Marketing figure who is no stranger to the region. He is the Founder, Principal Investor, and Advisor of Kzact Global (M) Sdn Bhd. Kzact Global (M) Sdn Bhd is a Bumiputera-owned company that sells halalcertified products.

Kzact Global’s marketing strategy is one of the best in the industry since it rewards diligent senior executives and subordinate distributors with bonuses. Kzact Global’s products are of excellent quality and approved by the Malaysian Ministry of Health and other relevant bodies. “Man Jada Wa Jada” (Whoever Tries He Will Get The Result) is the concept behind the Shariah-compliant Tradition Marketing Plan of Kzact Global under the leadership of YH Dato’ Sri Hj Abd Kadir.

The KZ Tradition Marketing Plan intends to be a comprehensive, consistent, and structured marketing strategy with long-term business with a tradition-oriented marketing plan, a profitable enterprise; there is no pressure and no overpayment terms. YH Dato Sri Hj Abd Kadir’s Kzact Global aspires to continuously move forward under three visions: unity, value creation, and strengthening local markets while exploring globally. Dato’ Sri Hj Abd Kadir seeks to make Kzact Global one of the best MLM organisations in trust, transparency, and financial independence. He aims to take the lead in developing products that are user-friendly, safe (Halalan Toyyiba), innovative, and beneficial to all; to achieve the core principles of relevant MLM with the pure values of life. Finally, YH Dato’ Sri Abd Kadir aspires to grow good partnerships within the company and distribution for business.

The company aims to expand and integrate distributor unity while promoting a cooperative spirit to deal with future developments. YH Dato’ Sri Hj Abd Kadir likewise seeks to contribute to the growth of the MLM sector by employing new and competitive sales strategies to help businesses expand and achieve extraordinary outcomes that go beyond their existing capabilities.

www.kzact.com

DR. HANAFIAH YUSSOF

ROBOPRENEUR SDN BHD

Technopreneur of the Year Dr. Hanafiah Yussof is the Founder, Board of Director, and Group CEO of Robopreneur Sdn Bhd. Dr. Hanafiah earned a Ph.D. in Information Science from Nagoya University in Japan, where he specialised in humanoid robots. He holds a prestigious position in the robotics community as the Chairman of the IEEE Robotics and Automation (RAS) Malaysia Chapter, making him well-known among robotics scientists and researchers.

He has been regarded as an esteemed academician, innovator, entrepreneur, and game changer with over 18 years of expertise in robotics R&D and industry. His success in the industry has positioned him as a key player in the push to achieve corporate-wide adoption of robotics technology across all industries.

Robopreneur was founded with the goal of commercialising Dr. Hanafiah’s research on robotic rehabilitation solutions for Autism. Initially, the company concentrated on commercialising a robotic therapy system for the Autism community as well as selling the humanoid robot NAO for research and education. Due to his passion and strong leadership, Robopreneur has grown from a university start-up to a full enterprise robotic company, pioneering the Service Robotics business in Malaysia becoming one of the market leaders in the ASEAN region.

As Robopreneur’s tagline says “Empowering Innovation” in their products and solutions to solve client’s problems and bring value to them. Understanding the customer’s problems is the key, and Robopreneur tailors solutions according to the customer needs. Robopreneur brings about the future by heightening the capabilities of service robotics.

Dr. Hanafiah envisions that Robopreneur will play a significant role in the robotics sector and become a world-class robotics firm with the goal of developing and distributing commercial robots that empower humanity.

www.robopreneur.com

DATO’ FAZLEY YAAKOB

SUKA SUCRE BISTRO

Celebrity Entrepreneur of the Year Dato’ Fazley Yaakob is a Malaysian singer and culinary entrepreneur. His initial claim to fame was the song “Asmara Ini,” which has been on the radio for more than 12 years and was the winner of Astro Ria’s “MasterChef Selebriti Malaysia” competition in 2012. He subsequently studied Pattiserie and Cuisine before launching his own brand and restaurant, SukaSucre Bistro, in Kuala Lumpur.

In 2016, SukaSucre Bistro won 11 of the 25 categories in the Malaysia International Gastronomy Festival. He has received numerous accolades, including Most Popular Chef (APO 2016), Top 100 MIYE Entrepreneur, Le Cordon Bleu’s Most Distinguished Alumni (2017), and Anugerah Usahawan Bakat Khas (Special Talent Entrepreneur Award). Under his belt, Dato’ Fazley has ventured into Mala Mala, a restaurant centring Szechuan Halal hot pot, and Bala’s Banana Leaf, which focuses on South Indian cuisines, in addition to SukaSucre Bistro.

Pastry Perfumes (Pastry-inspired perfume and personal care products), HITAMANÉS Artisanal coffee kiosk brand with a local twist, and MENYIRAP (Zero-calorie, sugar-free cordial syrup line) are some of his other ventures that still centre in gastronomy.

Dato’ Fazley has also collaborated with Starbucks to create the first-ever chef collaboration menu, including regional favourites like Ayam Lemak Cili Api & Rendang. Dato’ Fazley was also the first chef to engage with Krispy Kreme to create localised sweets like Puding Raja and Bandung doughnuts.

www.facebook.com/sukasucrebistro

ASHLYN NISHA GURUPATHAM

REBEL SDN BHD

Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Ashlyn Nisha Gurupatham founded Rebel Sdn Bhd in 2019 as a platform for young people to speak up for what is right and make a statement through her apparel brand. Rebel Sdn Bhd was established as a platform for Ashlyn Nisha Gurupatham’s beliefs that many young adults/teenagers feel inept when it comes to political, environmental, and social issues.

When teenagers express opinions that differ from their parents or other adults, they are labelled “rebellious” or impolite by “talking back.” The concept behind Rebel is to create a means for people, particularly teenagers, to express their opinions, ideas, and convictions without speaking them loudly. Rebel inspires young people to speak up and advocate for important causes. Rebel is all about giving youth power and allowing their voices to be heard loud and clear. Ashlyn Nisha Gurupatham seeks to raise the voices of young adults throughout the world.

What sets Rebel Sdn Bhd from other brands out there is that Rebel is a social enterprise. A large percentage of the profit from selling these T-shirts will go to organisations and charities that contribute and support similar causes. Society is moving towards a direction where individuals now see the value in social causes over profit.

Ashlyn Nisha Gurupatham is passionate about environmental issues and human rights, and she frequently participates at events and online about topics such as environmental protection and teen pregnancy, among others. She is the MBDA’s youngest fashion designer, and she also serves as Malaysia’s President at the World Youth Leading Change Forum.

www.rebel4change.co

SHAHRUL ANUAR BIN ZAIN ANUAR ZAIN NETWORK SDN BHD

Lifetime Achievement Award in Music Industry

Presented by CELCOM BUSINESS

www.facebook.com/anuarzainnetwork

Malaysian artist Anuar Zain began his career as a child star over 30 years ago. He comes from a musical family, with his older sister Ziana Zain, who is also a prominent singer. Throughout his prolific career, his persona and exquisite voice captivated audiences. After breaking into the Malay music, film, television, and fashion industries, Anuar Zain has become an icon with a resounding presence throughout Southeast Asia.

Throughout his outstanding career, his angelic voice and charisma have enthralled audiences. Anuar Zain has carved up a name for himself as a Southeast Asian superstar, with a significant presence in Malay music, film, television, and fashion. Only a few of his artistic achievements are “Artis Lelaki Terbaik” - Anugerah Planet Muzik 2017 (APM 2017) (a music festival that brings together performers from Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia.), Anuar Zain 3 Decades of Music Love & Passion Live in Concert (held in 2013), as well as receiving an honour of Best Male Vocal for the song ‘Sedetik Lebih’ from the movie Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa : Most Prestigious Malaysia Music Industry Awards, AIM 2011.

His current musical direction, which focuses on romantic ballads and polished Malay pop, has kept him at the top of the charts. On the other hand, Anuar is open to exploring different genres such as jazz and soul.

Anuar has received numerous accolades and honours from the music industry, but he believes there is still more he can do. He is excited to be true to what touches and inspires him while gratifying his followers and other listeners.