| Aziz Idris |
BRUNEI’S start-up sector has grown in both breadth and depth amid the challenging economic situation and the recent drop in global oil prices with companies displaying regional to global aspirations.
One such start-up is an online pet store called Nimanja Enterprise which started as a marketing solution for the Petlink Group of pet stores since July 2016 but now has expanded to become a distributor and e-retailer of pet supplies.
The online pet store is leveraging on the growth of e-commerce in the Sultanate and was able to expand in just one month, becoming the first online retailer for pet supplies in Brunei.
Now, the company boast some 28 international brands with over 2,000 products on the web store which ranges from pet foods and beverages, pet grooming as well as plant veterinary medicines.
“We are an online pet store offering the widest range of pet products and supplies to pet lovers in Brunei. At Nimanja, our goal is to bring convenience to pet lovers in Brunei by offering a wide selection of quality pet supplies through an online platform,” said 21-year-old , Anderson Lim, Managing Director of Nimanja during an interview with local media yesterday.
Anderson Lim (C) with his team displaying the local pet product under the Nimanja brand. – AZIZ IDRIS
Anderson Lim was a Bruneian swimmer, who represented Brunei in the 2012 London Summer Olympics.
As a family-owned business and pet lover himself, Anderson does not sacrifice his product offerings and customer service for profits. He made it a point that all source products are from reputable suppliers and openly communicate with their customers through all forms of communication channels.
There are no signs of slowing down for Anderson as his company is also supplying a local brand of cat litter under the Nimanja brand. The product is made with natural bentonite, no chemicals, no crystalline silicate, which means no danger to pets.
Anderson puts his trust in a dynamic team of young locals who run and operate the start-up company while he pursues his studies at a reputable university in upstate New York, USA.
Nimanja’s Supply Chain Associate, Wafi Diah ensures stocks are available for the web store while Hazirah Ramli, the Operation Associate is responsible for overseeing the business operations which include monitoring inventory, arranging deliveries, managing records and updating their social media.
Nimanja wouldn’t be complete without the logistics team: Ewan, Ameet and Toni. The three collaboratively work together to perform warehouse and inventory management in addition to the delivery of products to other pet retailers and consumers.
The start-up also outsourced a technology team from Brunei to help develop and maintain their web store. According to sales statistics, Nimanja made their first sale on October 19 and during the first month, sales grew by 100 per cent and by the second month sales rocketed up to 500 per cent.
“This is an exponential growth and we expected to grow more in 2017, especially if we get backing from financial institutions (banks), media presence and support from DARE (Darussalam Enterprise) as we build people’s trust that our platform is safe and secure,” said Anderson.
One of the biggest challenges in running the business for Anderson is the time-zone difference.
“With the 13-hour delay (daylight savings time) between the United States and Brunei, I only get four to five hours of sleep a day, to attend urgent matters or else our whole operations will be halted. On top of that, I have to wake up to attend classes,” he added.
Another challenge faced by the start-up is on its technological aspect.
“I think most e-commerce face this challenge. It’s all a learning process for us and the technology team and there is room for improvement. We always try to ensure the best service especially when it comes to online payments and reward points for our customer,” he said.
Looking forward, Anderson has several plans for expansion, including developing a mobile application for Nimanja. However, this can only be realised once they have a stable customer-base.
He also looks forward to expand the business outside Brunei and supply or distribute pet products to the rest of cities in Borneo. His main aspiration for Nimanja is to expand within Brunei but beyond pet products, similar to eBay.
“One of Nimanja’s vision is to allow people to sell their products on our web store, without carrying any inventory, which reduces our overhead cost but at the same time these ‘vendors’ can access our customer’s reach to fulfil any orders,” he said.
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