foodpanda GmbH, a leading global online food delivery marketplace, was launched in April 2012. It is headquartered in Berlin. Germany. The start up was incubated by Rocket Internet which is owned by the German Samwer brothers, Marc, Alexander and Oliver. They are incredibly successful digital entrepreneurs. The Rocket Internet website states that the firm “incubates, builds, develops operationally and strategically invests in internet and technology companies globally.” foodpanda is funded by 8 investors and has raised a total of US$749.5m in funding over 8 rounds. It is active in 5 continents and is present in 500 cities around the...

Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach is said to be the most celebrated fable of our time. The entire book is about an ordinary seagull who against all odds trained itself to soar high into the sky and fly like the rest of the birds. He did not want to fly for the sake of fighting for fishheads to eat from the fishermen’s boats. If its short bird life was worth living, he had to be free to be what he wanted to be and to go where he was free to go. “Why, Jon, why?” his mother asked him, “why is it so hard to be like the rest of the flock, Jon?” There are some things mothers do not understand.

During a practice when Jon flew too...

Haji Burhanuddin Md Radzi was enjoying post retirement years playing golf for exercise when his wife, Hajjah Ainon Ariff suggested that he should do something more with his life. Inclined towards the arts, they wanted to produce a drama film together. However, their daughter persuaded them to invest in an animated film. She had three graduate friends from Multimedia University (MMU) who had ambitious plans to put their talents into producing animated films for Malaysians. It would cost a fair bit of money to invest in production facilities but Haji Burhanuddin agreed to put in the capital and give it a go. He said it was his last  kopek...

Seneca (5 BC - AD 65) was a great Stoic philosopher and Roman statesman. He became a royal adviser to Emperor Nero but the latter accused Seneca of a plot to kill him and ordered Seneca to commit suicide. Seneca bled himself to death. True to his beliefs as a Stoic, Seneca was unaffected by the fortunes and misfortunes of life.  

The book - Seneca on the Shortness of Life, is for people who feel that life is short. If people want to know how short their lives are, let them reflect how small a portion is their own.  Seneca advises us to do an audit of our life, how much time we spend in harness (constant labours) or doing frivolous...

This is a heart warming story by Seoul’s acclaimed author, Sun-Mi Kwang about an egg-laying chicken self-named Sprout who when she could no longer lay eggs, was to be culled by the farmer and used to boil chicken soup. All her life her eggs were taken away from her as soon as she laid them. Sprout wanted so much to be a mother, just once to hatch her own egg and watch her baby come out of the cracked shell. Then she could die. But how?  

Sprout decide to fly the coop. It was dangerous to be out in the open field outside the farm. There was a weasel that preyed on the farm chickens. But it mattered not to her. She was going to be...

Tawau born Soon King Yaw, 28, is making waves as a young film maker in the USA. His latest accolade is an animated documentary titled “All I did was smile and say hello” which premiered at the KQED Homemade Film Festival, USA in May 2020. The short film’s background was the rise of anti-asian racism across the country and it was about how Michelle, an Asian American pharmacist responded with the spirit of love and forgiveness to the discrimination shown against her. Working in the front line as a health care worker, she was treated kindly when she was in her white coat but as soon as it was off, she was ridiculed. King Yaw was moved by...

Ayamany Sinakalai, an engineer by training is an eco-entrepreneur who turns fallen palm tree leaves into beautiful high quality eco-friendly dinnerware under his brand, Fallaleaf. The homegrown brand is now established locally and abroad. Fallaleaf products meet international quality standards. No chemicals are used and stringent quality control is practised.  Ayamany was troubled when he saw how environmentally harmful it was to have plastic and polystyrene plates and cups littering drains and various other sites. His passion for sustainable living and his concern for the environment led to his quest to find an eco-friendly alternative...

Uncle Don’s, a chain of fusion cuisine family restaurants and gastrobars  (Dukes & Duchess) with 21 outlets now in Malaysia, was started by Ian Ong Ming Hock and his buddy, chef Don Daniel Theseira. The restaurant group is wholly owned by Uncle Don’s Holdings Sdn Bhd. Its 4 member board of directors include Jahnel Aquaron who is chief operating officer and co-founder and Atkins Risha Abraham who is in charge of all aspects of the IT infrastrastructure of the company.  

The first Uncle Don’s opened for business in January 2016 at SS2 Petaling Jaya at a set up cost of RM400,000. The brand slogan “ Dine like a Don everyday” is now...