| James Kon |
FOLLOWING years of success as well as challenges, Syarikat Komala Tyres and Motors Sdn Bhd has continued to be one of the leading one-stop centres for car tyres and maintenance today,
The local company that was established in 1981 celebrated its 35th anniversary at its first branch located at Jalan Gadong and the guest of honour who attended the celebration was Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Ali bin Haji Apong, the Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism.
Also attending the celebration were Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Abdullah bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar, the former Minister of Communications along with prominent local figures in the business community.
On hand to welcome the guest of honour was Ken Kho, the Managing Director of Komala Tyres and Motor who started the business after noticing there were vast opportunities in the Brunei market.
As the first one-stop car service centre, the first branch was located near Gadong’s wet market where customers would leave their car for servicing before heading to the market.
Recalling the history of Komala Tyres and Motors, Ken Kho said, “During those times, we were the first one-stop service centre in Brunei however not many people knew this. After years of promoting and speaking with customers about the concept, people started to spread the word about our quality of service and our shop became famous with the nickname “Rumah Kuning”.
Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Ali bin Haji Apong, the Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism with Ken Kho and Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Abdullah bin Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Haji Bakar as well as guests in a group photo. – JAMES KON
He continued, “During those days, people would just leave their vehicle at the workshop and walk over to the Gadong market. Due to limited competition and quality mechanics, our business was very good.”
Ken Kho also revealed that every month, the shop imports 10 containers of tyres for Komala Tyres and Motors as well as supply to every tyre shop in Brunei. One of the best record was importing 20 containers of tyres to Brunei in a month.
However faced with increased competition and cheaper tyre brands, Komala Tyres and Motors started selling Chinese tyres and became the sole agent for tyres from China.
In 1998, Ken Kho managed to strike a deal with the Korean Hankook Tyres after meeting with the general manager. With the successful meeting, Komala Tyres became the sole distributor for Hankook Tyres in Brunei Darussalam.
He recalled, “Korean tyres had difficulty penetrating the Bruneian market because there were doubts about the quality and other tyre brands were sold at the same price.”
Fortunately, he said “after increasing awareness that Hankook is the No 1 brand in Korea and it provides one-year warranty, customers are willing to try the new brand. The Korean brand received acceptance after four years and the customer base started to grow and established itself as a reliable brand in the country.”
The post Syarikat Komala celebrates 35th anniversary appeared first on Borneo Bulletin Online.