Entrepreneurial Traits of Faiza Bayumi Sayed Ahmad

Initiative

Hajah Faiza is a very initiative person. Even though Hajah Faiza is 60s, she is not the type of people that only will remain silent. She always has her own strategies and initiatives in order to strengthen and expanding her businesses. She has a diploma in sewing field and started to involve in tailoring embroidery and selling the groceries. What is more interesting is with only RM4 of tailoring, she manage to be a successful rice entrepreneur. With RM4 that she got, she started to start her business and sell from one home to another home. Besides taking the sewing orders, she also tried his luck to sell her own brand of spices to the neighbouring houses and shops. She named her brand of spices as “Bunga Raya” that is blended from a variety of spices that she bought in the market. This shows that Hajah Faiza has put so much effort to ensure his business can be expanded. All her initiatives have been paid off until today when she has become a successful rice entrepreneur.

Versatility

When Hajah Faiza realized that her spices business was very encouraging by that time, she started to find another business chances. This shows that Hajah Faizah is a versatile entrepreneur. She tried to find another chances so that she can get involve in another business. From there, she notices that the manufacturing of rice was done by other races. By the chance, she started her small scale of business in manufacturing or rice. She also started to learn about the types of rice existed by that time. Besides that, Hajah Faiza also go from one shop to another to get feedback from them whether they will buy the rice from her is she sell it. She received a positive respond and the she spread her business by applying for a licence to supply the rice. She sold various types of rice including fragrant rice, basmati rice and siamese rice. Her versatility makes she reach the level and stage where she is now.

Decisive

Hajah Faizah is also a very decisive person. She did not afraid of making decision but she confident in it. She took the risks when she decided to involve in rice manufacturing. At the earlier of her business, she was deadlocked when she saw a trailer with full of rice is placed in front of her house. But, she decided to pack the rice with “Bunga Raya” brand and stored it all over Johor. In nine years, Hajah Faiza rice products has gained the place in the heart of the fragrant rice fans. Her business has been spread all over Johor, Malacca and Kuala Lumpur by that time. Then, her business has been converted into a corporate company named Syarikat Faiza Sdn Bhd (SFSB).

Perceptiveness

Hajah Faiza has a very high degree of perceptive. She knows that Malaysia by that time has lived in a not very healthy eating. When she realized the thing, she decided to produce a product that is healthy for Malaysian. Her perceptive was right. She also think that one of the ways to improve the economic in Malays in Malaysia, is by strengthening the relationship between Muslim and Malays. One of the reasons why she built this business was because she realized that the manufacturing of rice has been monopolised by non-Malays and non-Muslim by that time. By building the business, she can contribute something towards her race and religion.

Foresight

In the year 1998, the unhealthy diet among Malaysian has pushed Hajah Faiza to promote the ponni rice from India. Ponni rice is good for health especially for those who have diabetes, obesity and hypertension. This shows that Hajah Faiza is a foresight person. She knows how to make her rice business stay in a long term. To prove the benefit of the rice, she cooperated with Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) to make a test and she got the positive result. She invested a million ringgit for Taj Mahal rice products and ask for an exclusive right from Bernas. The existed of Taj Mahal rice was one the new revolutions in the healthy living of Malaysian. Her company was known as a high quality of product but also all of the products are halal and 100% made by Muslim. Her company nowadays has distributed over one of the 21 branded rice that well known which is “Herba Ponni Taj Mahal”.