Megat Azim Jamil always wanted to be an entrepreneur, but little did he know his business would involve rearing cows.
Although he boasted some business management experience, it had nothing to do farming. In fact, no one in his family ever planted a single tree or had livestock, he said.
“However, I bidan terjun, jumped in with both feet into the agriculture programme with zero experience,” he told Vulcan Post.
Here’s the story of how the IT grad ended up running his own dairy business, MUULK.
In pursuit of a peaceful life
While still studying, the ambitious Malaysian had started a small IT business that had seven staff members at one point.
The gig brought in good income, but could be stressful due to the fast-paced nature of technology.
“By the time I left uni, I had several projects going on,” Megat revealed. “So, I never had the chance to join the working force or experience the corporate world.”
In 2012, about seven years into his IT company, a senior from Victoria Institution approached Megat with an opportunity. This senior had a piece of land, and Megat decided to help around during the weekends to enjoy the peaceful kampung life.
He would spend these weekends in the barn without ever having to go to the grocers—it was a very peaceful, self-sustaining life.
“But I needed to start generating income,” Megat pointed out.
His partner had goats, but his cash flow was bad—live goats sold for over RM1,000, while imported frozen carcasses cost less than RM400 at that time.
So, Megat suggested investing in a dairy cow. Yes, just the one.
However, this one cow brought in sales daily. Its raw milk was being bought by other farmers on the same day. Many more cows later, Megat and his partner parted ways.
“The Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) saw my determination in the dairy programme and offered me a small incubator to process milk,” Megat said.
From there, history was made.
Til the cows come home
To learn the tricks of the trade, Megat would visit other farms, including ones in Indonesia and Thailand. After purchasing his first cow, the DVS also sent him for free courses organised by them.
Since Megat was utilising the land owned by his senior, no rental was involved which lessened the startup capital required.
Of course, he did have to invest some money for the cows and to start the dairy project. With this, he was made a company director, with the profits being shared between Megat and his senior.
“There is risk in whatever we do,” Megat shared. “Just calculate it well, know what you may lose if you fail, and if you are willing to face it if that actually happens. Same concept in investing. You invest only money you are willing to lose.”
Eventually the DVS offered him a bigger land with affordable rental. Today, though, Megat is still looking to purchase even bigger land, perhaps a 100-acre one.
Currently, MUULK sells directly to Klang Valley homes by online purchase, fulfilled by inhouse delivery. The brand also has freezer placements in about 12 public areas, including parks, zoos, and cafes.
“We sell only under the MUULK branding,” he said regarding any white-labelling opportunities. “B2C is much more lucrative because we don’t have to share margins.”
Ice creamery
During the COVID-19 lockdowns, Megat ran into some trouble selling raw milk, which led him to open a processing plant and a new vertical in his business—ice cream.
“Fresh milk shelf life is 14 days, so making it into ice cream will drastically extend the shelf life more than a year,” he pointed out.
Manufacturing the ice cream in a small shop lot in Shah Alam, MUULK started bringing in high sales volumes, so much so that Megat occasionally had to source milk from fellow farmers.
They started out by selling in Taman Tugu, but have stopped selling there to focus on bigger events.
Sales have been a lot slower since the pandemic era, though, Megat revealed. “That was a time when people stayed at home, not needing to pay bank loans from six to 12 months, so spending it online was fun to do,” he pointed out.
Recently, the team has opened a new cafe in MAEPS, and plans to have 50 more freezer placements across Semenanjung.
Megat also revealed that he plans to have an outlet in a major city mall by the end of year. Which one? We’ll have to wait and see.
Competing with the big guys
If you shop for dairy regularly, you might think that it’s quite a saturated market. But Megat pointed out that Malaysia is importing 96% dairy products, and is thus still not self-sufficient.
In any case, he also believes that MUULK’s commitment to fresh and pure products sets themselves apart.
He explained, “If you observe our ice cream flavours, it may look all the same. Because we do not differentiate using colours.”
Some other ice cream sellers may use gelatine, synthetic stabilisers, and other means to prevent the ice cream from melting too fast, but MUULK is steadfast in keeping away from those ingredients.
For now, Megat has been maintaining sole ownership of MUULK. “Being in business with partners is very distracting especially if they do not share the same vision and mission,” he said.
That said, he shared that they have been approached by a semi-government agency for joint-venture opportunities to expand the business.
“We would like to maintain a small business, however there is so much potential and the business is ready to expand exponentially,” he said about the future of MUULK.
A bigger company would allow for a higher volume of sales, which leads to better income.
And with that, MUULK may be able to contribute more to the community. They’re already doing so through in-kind giving to several sports teams.
In any case, Megat is an entrepreneur true-and-true with a good eye for market gaps. So, regardless of what happens, he’s sure to milk the opportunities he’s presented and do good for the community as he goes.
- Learn more about MUULK here.
- Read other articles we’ve written about Malaysian startups here.
Featured Image Credit: MUULK