Coming back to excite Sarawak’s business scene

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Liew observes that the large international chains, which are geared towards offering personal care
as opposed to pharmacies, sell items at really cheap prices – thanks to their business model.

Sam says the merged strengths between him and his father Peter Wong play a significant part in developing projects together under RH Group.

Liew delivers a speech during a TEDx Kuching talk on ‘The Art of Going Home’, describing how he came to realise Kuching was where he wanted to live his life.

The proudest point for SHiNE Pharmacy can be felt through its impact, having conducted more than 160 free community health screenings exceeding over 1,650 hours and reaching out to as far as Lundu and Santubong.

MORE often than not, we hear stories of students going overseas searching for better education – only to hear of them settling down there after graduating.

Indeed, it is common to hear of families migrating out of Sarawak in a bid for a better life, a new start elsewhere. Hence, the infamous term ‘brain drain’ was coined a few years ago to describe this scenario – the lack of talents returning home after studying overseas.

But how many can proudly say that they’ve done all that, and decided to come back home to build up our state from the ground up?

Charles Liew is the one who can.

The Sarawakian was born in Kuching in 1985, went to study in Australia in 2002, graduated at the end of 2007 with a law degree, and did his practical legal training in Sydney as a prerequisite to becoming a lawyer. By the end of 2008, Liew was admitted to the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

“It was truly fascinating climbing the corporate and legal proverbial ladder in Sydney.

I started at a small firm in the city and after one year and eight months, I found myself in the biggest law firm in the state of New South Wales,” he tells The Borneo Post.

So then, why did he come back to Kuching?

“I get this question all the time. I was already an Australian permanent resident (PR) with a dream job. Having built my life there – in terms of church, friends, professional networks and so on – why did I come back?

“To me, it was one of the easiest decisions to make — Australia is not home; Sarawak is.

“For some, home could be where their parents or spouses are; there are also those who may feel that being away from these people is where they feel most at home.

“That’s all fine, so long as you get that feeling – that sense of belonging, that sense of ‘home’.”

Eyeing healthcare Upon coming back, Liew took to heart his search for a way to make Kuching better, and also the obvious gap within the healthcare industry – a market he knew nothing of then.

“Healthcare in Australia – it’s not perfect, but I believe it to be better with more access for the people across the spectrum.

When I returned home about six years ago, I noted a few interesting things about the pharmacy market here.

“The large international chains, which are geared towards offering personal care as opposed to pharmacies, sell items at really cheap prices – thanks to their business model.

“On the other hand, we have traditional pharmacies that are not able to compete with these international chains, but they make up for it by giving one-to-one customer service – something that international chains find hard to do due to their size, systems and procedures.

“Another observation I made at the time was that a lot of people actually did not know the status of their health because they would be so fearful of going to clinics or blood laboratories for simple check-ups.

“It was a clunky hard-to access system that I felt could be turned around; that people would at least know roughly where they stand health-wise without having to jump through too many hoops.

“With my partner Christina Wong being a pharmacist at the time with Sarawak General Hospital, I thought: ‘Alright, why not set out to right this wrong?’ That, I did.”

Liew and Christina then founded SHiNE Pharmacy and in five years, their venture has positioned itself at the forefront of the pack with two outlets in Kuching.

Amidst many challenges, the pharmacy has conducted more than 160 free community health screenings, exceeding over 1,650 hours and reaching out to as far as Lundu and Santubong.

“It has grown so much within the space of five years – I think many can see that the pharmacy is not one that sets out to make money.

“Ingrained in every member of our staff is the desire to make meaning, to make a difference and to solve the problems of every person who walks through our doors.

“I think the people of Kuching can see the meaning and value that we bring, and we are deeply touched every time our health events get populated by Kuchingites,” he said, attributing the success to his dedicated team.

On his advice to hopeful youths thinking of coming back, Liew simply says: “If Kuching is home, come back to build it.

Come back to do your part.

“If Kuching is where you feel that sense of belonging, a place where you feel safe and secure at, then come back. Once you’re here, do something you feel most at home at. End the pursuit of money. Start the pursuit of meaning, because the latter would inevitably bring you home.

“And maybe, just maybe, Kuching could be lucky enough to have you call her ‘home’.”

Redefining property scene JW Sam is another example of a Kuchingite returning to his roots in the hope of building up his home city. He is the son of Peter Wong and Mabel Lee — two respected members of the community well known for their kindness and charitable deeds.

The senior Wong’s occupation as an established civil engineer led to an extensive portfolio of construction projects under his belt covering road, bridge, highway, airport, infrastructure and development works across Sarawak.

A few notable project mentions are Sarawak’s only barrage, China-Kuching Friendship Park, Bintulu water supply, Kemena and Tatau bridges, as well as Sibu Airport.

All this eventually led to Sam’s venture into Kuching’s property scene.

Sam first moved overseas at 16, encouraged by his parents’ choice of giving him freedom in deciding his education and career path. Ultimately, this led him to landing jobs in Auckland, Hong Kong and Los Angeles.

“My working life overseas consisted of living across three cities simultaneously. I was a strategy consultant for lifestyle luxury businesses ranging from FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods), automobiles to hotels.

“My work entailed formulating customised business strategies and forming effective partnerships, both domestic and international.

Once the businesses got fine tuned and the time was ready, the plan was to expand to Los Angeles.

“The majority of our investments came from companies in Hong Kong. My working life entailed travelling between these three cities in rotation, so it was both exciting and tiring.”

On his decision to come back, Sam relates: “I was walking through the Americana Mall in Los Angeles one day when I realised that this could very well be Kuching — if there were to be vision, drive and inspiration; if enough people believed in the possibilities.

“My moment of hope gave me the courage to believe that I could contribute, no matter how small a part, into making this vision a reality.

“Here I am – four months after coming back home and now, working towards that vision.”

According to Sam, his education in business management and politics, combined with his father’s experience in civil engineering has led to their merged strengths today in developing projects together under the RH Group.

“Together we have the vision of improving the lives of the Kuchingites through property development as we understand how different developments can impact the lives of the people.

“This shared vision has given rise to the new company slogan — ‘Building Projects, Building People’ — that perfectly captures our sentiment.”

His advice to Sarawakians thinking of coming back?

“The landscape of Kuching is changing rapidly. Never in history had the younger population been as politically active and aware as they are today. This is a microcosm of a much larger paradigm shift that is taking place in Kuching, which embodies an optimistic change.

“We need, however, to consolidate and do this together, as one – not as segregated communities divided by race, economic bracket or colour.”