KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 26): Three ophthalmologists who started in government service before going into private practice now call themselves “accidental entrepreneurs”.
Dr Khaw Hoon Hoon, Dr Kenneth Fong Choong Sian and Dr Manoharan Shunmugam were often asked why they traded established clinics for worries about investment and risk to open OasisEye Specialists on Jan 2, 2020. Two months later, Covid struck — something even the savviest business mind could not have foreseen.
Khaw remembers those uncertain early days. “If you think about the cost, you cannot sleep at night. So, you don’t think too much, just carry on day to day and hope things will be okay.”
“We had the funds but still, it was personal money,” Fong adds.
Clearly, a mindset centred on their vision, a sound business model, decades-long experience and loyal patients who had been seeing them for years pulled these partners through. Find out more in our cover story this week.
If you are still looking for ways to welcome the Year of the Snake in style, make haste and bag one of the four precious tables at the Jom Celebrate Reunion Dinner, held in Kuala Lumpur’s historic Chinatown from Jan 25 to Feb 16. Seong Ying Chai, a 90-year-old bakery, has taken on the mantle of being co-organiser of the event, jointly initiated by Persatuan Rakan Budaya dan Pelancong Kuala Lumpur & Selangor, and supported by Bukit Bintang Member of Parliament Fong Kui Lun. The even brings together 18 of the district’s renowned restaurants, bakeries and street food vendors to create a unique menu that fuses culinary heritage with the age-old tradition of gathering as a family.
As demand for matcha reached an all-time high, its close cousins have also stepped into the limelight. Hojicha (roasted Japanese green tea) as well as genmaicha (green tea with toasted brown rice) are two of the most common, though more niche variants can be found in some specialty tea rooms and cafés. Need pointers for the places in the Klang Valley that take their tea seriously? We’ve curated a list just for you.
Read more in Options of the Jan 27 issue of The Edge Malaysia weekly.
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