FYE 30 JUNE 2024 SENG FONG HOLDINGS EXCEEDED RM1B IN REVENUE

His father, Er Hock Lai, 69, started working for his family owned rubber trading business in his teens. That was 1982. In June 1986 Hock Lai and his brothers founded a modest factory called Kilang Getah Hock Guan. They decided to go into rubber processing besides trading of crepe rubber and house grade rubber. In 1989 exports began. Hock Lai looks back at 42 years in the business with some pride. The vision for Seng Fong (SF), of which he is the majority shareholder (60%), is to be the leading exporter of natural block rubber from Malaysia to the world. Currently SF exports block rubber to 16 countries, principally to tyre manufacturers. For FYE 30 June 2024, SF achieved for the first time revenue over RM1 Billion (RM1.14B) and pre-tax profit of RM74.8 million. 

At 69, Hock Lai is mentoring his two sons to run the business. 

Elder son, Er Tzer Nam, 47, is Executive Director of SF. Tzer Nam holds a BA in Business Administration from the University of Central Oklahoma, USA. He has a certificate in Internal Quality Auditing to ISO 9001 issued by Inter Technology Link Consultants obtained in June 2001 where he learnt to assess the effectiveness of the quality management system in the organisation. He commenced his career in marketing with Sern Kou Furniture Sdn Bhd (“Sern Kou”), a furniture manufacturer, in 2001, where he was responsible for procuring orders and managing the after-sales services. In late 2003, he left Sern Kou to work as a freelance sales agent where he assisted clients in procuring furniture directly from factories. Subsequently, Er Tzer Nam established his own furniture company under Furncrest Enterprise in April 2004, then Furncrest Sdn Bhd (“Furncrest SB”) in November 2004, where both are exporters of home furniture, mainly dining, living and bedroom sets. He was actively involved in procuring the furniture sets from local manufacturers and thereon exports them overseas until he joined SFGroup in December 2017. He took on the responsibilities of overseeing the operational and administrative aspects of our Group since December 2017 when he was appointed as director of both SFT and STG. Tzer Nam has resigned as a director of Furncrest SB in February 2020. He is a board member of Malaysian Rubber Exchange since 12 December 2022.

Younger son, Chen Aik, 45, is a Senior Manager in the purchasing Department leading the team in the purchase of cup lumps and synthetic rubbers for the Group. He has been with SFGroup for 21 years since he first joined in 2003. Upon completing his Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (“SPM”) in 1998 from Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan St. Andrew, Muar, he was first exposed to the rubber industry under the guidance of his father, Er Hock Lai where he shadowed his father in the workplace until October 2000. Then he ventured into the F&B business in November 2000. He then returned to the rubber processing industry when he joined STG in July 2003 as a Rubber Purchaser in the Production and Purchasing department where he assisted the supervisors in the production line and purchasing of raw materials. He was promoted to his current position in our Company on 1 January 2020.  

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Seng Fong Holdings Berhad. 2024 Annual Report. https://disclosure.bursamalaysia.com/FileAccess/apbursaweb/download?id=237321&name=EA_DS_ATTACHMENTS
The CEO. Anne Majumdar. https://digitalmag.theceomagazine.com/er-hock-lai/?r=asia
The Edge Malaysia. 26 April 2022. Izzul Ikram. https://theedgemalaysia.com/article/rubber-firm-seng-fong-gets-scs-nod-main-market-listing