News From : DagangHalal.com (03 Aug 2010)
KUALA LUMPUR, July 30 (Bernama) — AYS Sdn Bhd, which produces Malaysia’s first microwaveable halal frozen ready-to-eat Malaysian meals, under the Sri Kulai brand, aims to penetrate the Australian market soon, says its Chief Executive Officer, Liow Ren Jan.
Liow is scheduled to go to Melbourne next month to explore the market as part of the company’s plans to tap overseas markets especially in areas where a large number of Malaysian students or workers reside.
“We also have received some invitations from Thailand and China to market our products there,” he told Bernama in an interview.
He said AYS was also eyeing the United Arab Emirates market.
Based on a study conducted last December, Liow said he found that UAE would be an excellent market for the company.
Although AYS has been in existence for only two years, Liow said he had great plans for the company to grow big.
The range of ready-to-eat Sri Kulai (named after Liow’s hometown) meals that AYS offers include a variety of meals which can be served within minutes.
“They are pre-cooked, and require only some heating,” Liow explained.
“We currently have 130 different recipes and all are Halal certified,” he said.
On the local front, Liow said in the next five years AYS planned to set up about 100 Sri Kulai Lifestyle Concept outlets operating on a franchise system within Malaysia.
Liow said this microwaveable halal frozen food is a new category in Malaysian halal food industry.
“Today we are the supplier to some major retailers and also one of the airlines,” he said.
Liow said AYS produces above 100,000 packs of Sri Kulai meals monthly from its factory in Bandar Sri Damansara.
He said AYS paid more focus to serving the urban areas particularly in the Klang Valley where microwave is widely used.
Liow said they would be expanding to either Johor Bahru and Penang soon, where “we have received positive response.
“Our Sri Kulai meals are also slated to enter Sabah and Sarawak market as we do have some enquiries from both states.”
Meanwhile, the company is currently promoting their limited edition festive meals, “Ayam Gulai Lemak Tradisional” and “Ayam Kurma Tradisional”, which are only available for three months, starting July.
“We believe that during the Ramadhan, these products will be useful for breaking fast in the morning because it only takes six minutes, from freezer, to microwave and to the table, without any cooking,” Liow said.
The “Ramadhan Special”, a limited edition as well, meanwhile will be available only at Sri Kulai Lifestyle concept outlets and Tesco stores.
AYS has a tie-up with Tesco to deliver their products across Malaysia to make it more convenient for the Muslims during the Ramadhan period.
Liow also said the company was recently awarded the 1-InnoCert Double A rating by the SME Corp and the Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology and was now set to penetrate new channels of distribution for its halal dishes.
— BERNAMA