SIK: NINE years ago, Zaidi Awang, a wholesaler for cotton pillows from Kampung Kuala Ruman, had no clue on how to use the Internet, let alone use the medium to promote his business.
Today, he sells pillows online and generates sales worth RM1 million annually.
Relating his story, Zaidi, 37, said that he learnt how to use the Internet by attending workshops at Pusat Internet 1Malaysia in his village.
After gaining the expertise, Zaidi started promoting his pillows on the Internet resulting in a big surge on sales.
“After learning to take orders online, I started getting as many as 10,000 orders a month which is way more than the 1,000 orders I used to get using conventional methods in the past,” he said.
Zaidi promotes and takes orders via his website bhsteguh.blogspot.com
“The transformation of my company, BHS Teguh Enterprise started with the Northern Corridor Economic Region’s (NCEA) initiative which conducted a workshop to encourage people to promote their business using the Internet.
“When I made the venture, I did not expect the demand for my pillows to be so great. I even have customers from the United States.
“Since launching my web portal, my productivity has increased a lot,” said Zaidi, who is helped by his mother Bashah Saaidin, 71.
On the raw materials, Zaidi said he imports cotton from Surabaya, Indonesia.
Every month Zaidi orders about 10 tonnes of cotton at a cost of about RM120,000.
Other manufacturing costs include RM15,000 for every 5,000 meters of cloth, including salaries for 11 workers.
“I have a reward system for purchasers who buy in bulk. For a set of two pillows at RM300, each buyer contributes RM30 to a group of 10 people. At the end of 10 months they can use the amount to redeem a set of eight pillows and two bolsters,” said Zaidi.
Zaidi’s pillows are priced between RM25 and RM40 and he also sells mattresses and pillows for toddlers and babies.
On his future plans, Zaidi intends to own a commercial cotton plantation on a 404 hectare in Malau, Jitra, next year.
“The land belongs to the state government and I will prepare a working paper with my proposal for its commercial development to the relevant authorities,” he said.
Zaidi was also the recipient of the Broadband Excellence Award 2013, given by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.