Malaysian entrepreneur turns waste to wealth

Malaysian entrepreneur turns waste to wealth

Jason Cheah, Asia News Network/The Star

Originally from Kampar, Perak, Olivia Lum worked her way though college and earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the National University of Singapore. Shortly after graduation she accepted a job with a multinational corporation in Singapore.

Lum, the chief executive officer of Hyflux, a groundbreaking water treatment company in Singapore, which she founded 15 years ago.

With her keen business acumen and fierce determination to succeed, she took a big risk in 1989, quitting her job and setting up Hydrochem (now known as Hyflux), a water treatment company that now provides a wide range of services across Asia.

Such determination has been with Lum since was brought up by her foster grandmother in Kampar after she was orphaned at a young age.

"Even though she was a very nice lady, she could not direct me in anyway in my future and education. The only people whom I could look up to were my teachers and school principal during that time," Lum said during an interview from Singapore.

"So whatever they said, I took them literally as the ultimate advice that I should follow."

But what was her approach when she first began with HydroChem all those years ago?

"I always wanted to do business, even when I was very young. When I was working with the multinational corporation, I worked as a chemist. Even though I enjoyed my work, I suppose my passion was still for business. My dream was to become a businesswoman."

Lum arrived in Singapore after she completed her Lower Certificate of Education in 1978.

"When I got my results, my principal thought that I should explore better opportunities in big cities like Kuala Lumpur or Singapore. So he encouraged me to leave my hometown, which is a very small town with very little opportunity.

"Of course being a chemist at the time, I was also involved in wastewater treatment for that company. I asked myself that if a rich company like that had to struggle to overcome the wastewater treatment problems, what about all other industries in this region that are not so rich and which could not afford sophisticated treatment?

"And I'm sure that there will be a lot of waste dispatched to the natural resources. So I told myself this must be a sunrise business and I want to get into it.

"During that time a lot of small industries were being set up like summer textile companies, fruit companies and chemical industries around this region. They did not have as much resources to treat their wastewater, so they discharge tons of wastewater. I could foresee that one day, people would have no more fresh water to drink, so I decided to start an environmental business, particularly on water."

When Lum started her company in Singapore in 1989, not many potential customers recognised it because it had no brand name.

"I had to go to Johor Baru and Indonesia to sell my products before going further abroad. It was only in 1992, when I was beginning to make some money, that I thought that maybe this part of the world market is too small; I must find a bigger market. I went to China and set up my company there in 1993."

But what was it like for Lum in those days trying to build the company from scratch? How, for instance, did she overcome potential obstacles and convince people to help and invest with her?

"It was tough, initially, especially. People did not believe me because I did not have a very impressive business proposal. When the banks did not want to lend me any money, I had to sell my car and house in order to start the business. I started the business with S$20,000 (about US$12,500)."

Today, the company is well and on track.

"The time has passed by very quickly. Looking back, although the journey has been tough, it was enjoyable because at every hurdle I was always looking for ways of overcoming them."

Lum still has very clear plans for the future.

"I suppose we can always look at the macro-economy. Environmental problems are getting worse. As I had seen it 13 years ago, many rivers are being polluted, particularly in China and a lot of people are suffering from drinking contaminated water.

"So looking at the macroeconomy, there is still a lot of potential for a company like ours. There is always a big demand and the demand is not going to reduce, it is only going to increase. So I believe as long as we keep focusing on steady growth, we should be able to reach a higher level."