In this episode, Michelle from Paranoid Founders talks with Alison, CEO of Curves Malaysia, who recounts her unexpectedly entrepreneurial journey to bring the women-only fitness franchise from the U.S. to Malaysia. Initially a corporate professional, Alison’s venture into fitness was influenced by her mother’s health experiences and a healthy lifestyle visit with family in Australia. Awarded the franchise rights for Malaysia, Alison’s mission focuses on empowering women through accessible fitness. The discussion covers her management of business expansion, pandemic challenges, financial strategies, and the importance of maintaining strong core values and culture within her team. Emphasizing resilience, mentorship, and community support, Alison reflects on her motivating experiences and the impact of her work in strengthening women both physically and psychologically.

In this episode of Paranoid Founders, brought to you by Contingent, Kevin sits down with Eric, the Co-Founder & COO of Firmus, a leading cybersecurity company in Malaysia. Together, they delve into the intricacies of building a cybersecurity business from the ground up, discussing everything from the early days of establishing a foothold in an emerging industry to becoming a recognised authority in cybersecurity. 🔍 Eric's Journey – Starting with Firmus over 16 years ago and the challenges faced in an era when cybersecurity was hardly a priority. How his first venture, E Corp, evolved into Firmus and what made that transition significant. 🔒 The Growth of Cybersecurity in Malaysia – The evolution of cybersecurity awareness over time, particularly in financial sectors and how compliance-driven growth has shaped the industry. 🛡️ The Role of Trust in Cybersecurity – Why trust is the bedrock of the cybersecurity business and how building long-term relationships played a crucial role in Firmus's growth. 🚀 Innovating and Adapting – How Firmus stayed ahead by constantly innovating and introducing AI-driven solutions, while also maintaining a balance between service offerings and technology. ⚖️ Tackling Competition – Insights on managing competition in an ever-growing industry, with a unique perspective on why collaboration is essential in cybersecurity. 💡 Challenges in Building a Team – The difficulties and rewards of growing a team from 40 to over 100 employees, and the importance of maintaining company culture, diversity, and core values. 🌐 Scaling Beyond Borders – How Firmus expanded into Singapore and why Eric trusted an intern-turned-employee to lead the way. 👩‍💼 People and Leadership – Real talk about what it takes to manage and grow a successful team in a highly technical field and how Firmus invests in the development and retention of talent. 🔑 Incident Response and Managing Breaches – A deep dive into how Firmus handles real-life cybersecurity breaches, incident response best practices, and why adhering to a structured playbook is critical. Cybersecurity is a trust business – Building strong relationships is essential. Proactive vs. Reactive Security – Understanding that many businesses only prioritize cybersecurity after an incident, and how Firmus’s approach addresses this challenge. The Importance of Adaptability – How evolving with market demands has kept Firmus relevant. Managing Growth and People – Insights into leadership, maintaining core values, and fostering a collaborative work environment. How Eric and his team navigated the pandemic and used it as a growth opportunity for Firmus. The crucial role of mentorship and empowering employees, even allowing former interns to lead new ventures. Eric’s take on risk management and how Firmus prepares for the unexpected in a rapidly changing digital landscape. Eric emphasizes the importance of trust, relationship-building, and staying ahead of the curve in a constantly evolving industry. He shares valuable lessons on leadership, people management, and what it takes to succeed in cybersecurity.

In this episode of Paranoid Founders, hosted by Kevin from Paranoid Founders, Kevin is joined by his close friend Jun, CEO & Co-Founder of Mossery. Celebrating Mossery’s 10th anniversary, they delve into the challenges and breakthroughs experienced over the past decade. The conversation covers Mossery’s origins as a self-funded, design-driven, personalized stationery brand founded by Jun and Vivian, their journey from side project to full-time commitment in 2014, and the evolution of their product lines and business model. Key insights include the principles guiding their business decisions, such as focusing on professional presentation and customisation, transitioning from international to local markets, leveraging social media influencers for marketing, and maintaining a strong brand ethos. They also discuss cash flow management, the importance of core values in building a cohesive team, and the complex dynamics of founder relationships. Additionally, the episode highlights the transition to more advanced operational systems, internal manufacturing, and the future direction of Mossery, including potential equity crowdfunding.

In this episode of Paranoid Founders, co-host Michelle sits down with Yap Sue Yii, co-founder of Komuniti Tukang Jahit (KTJ), a social enterprise dedicated to empowering the B40 women community in Malaysia through upskilling and job opportunities in sewing. Sue Yii shares the story of how KTJ pivoted from her initial startup, Royale Demure, to become a community-driven enterprise that now provides sustainable income to women working from home. She discusses the hard truths of entrepreneurship, including the moment she knew her first business model wasn’t viable, and how KTJ was born from leveraging the strengths of her previous efforts. This conversation dives deep into the challenges of balancing a social mission with profitability, managing a growing team, and the responsibility of maintaining sustainable livelihoods for the community. Sue Yii also opens up about KTJ’s journey through the pandemic, the operational hurdles they faced, and how they stayed agile through rapid changes. Key Highlights: How Royale Demure pivoted into Komuniti Tukang Jahit and the lessons learned along the way. The importance of recognizing when a business model isn’t working and knowing when to pivot. Balancing social impact with profitability in a social enterprise. The impact of COVID-19 on KTJ’s business and how they thrived by innovating with timely products. The challenges of managing supply and demand with gig workers and ensuring sustainable orders for their community of tailors. Sue Yii’s leadership philosophy, including “flexible stubbornness” and the importance of leading, not just instructing, her team. Tune in for: Insightful discussions on pivoting business models, maintaining a social mission in business, and practical strategies for scaling impact while navigating operational challenges. Guest: Yap Sue Yii, Founder of Komuniti Tukang Jahit (KTJ)Host: Michelle, Co-host of Paranoid Founders and part of the Contingent About Komuniti Tukang Jahit Komuniti Tukang Jahit (KTJ) is a social enterprise that empowers the B40 women community consisting of single women, single mothers, the OKU group, and stay-at-home mothers. They provide certified upskill training and job opportunities for home-based tailors to earn a sustainable income through sewing orders. For more information, visit https://ktjmalaysia.com/ About Contingent | Digital Business Insurance Solutions for SMEs in Malaysia Contingent is a digital-first insurance provider, specialising in affordable and customizable business insurance solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia. Leveraging over 40 years of industry expertise through its partner company, Contingent is committed to simplifying the insurance experience for business owners with a focus on transparency, speed, and ease of claims. Their tailored solutions cover fire, burglary, group personal accident, public liability, and more, ensuring that businesses are protected from everyday risks. Contingent combines modern technology with deep industry knowledge to offer seamless digital insurance services that empower Malaysian businesses to grow with peace of mind. For more information, visit ⁠⁠www.contingent.com.my⁠⁠.

In this episode of Paranoid Founders, host Kevin sits down with Craig Goonting, founding partner and COO of TROOPERS, a gig worker platform that connects employers with reliable part-time help. Craig shares his entrepreneurial journey, from his humble beginnings as a part-timer to leading a company that reshaped the part-time job market in Malaysia. Craig discusses the challenges he and his team faced while building TROOPERS, their vision to create transparency and reliability for gig workers, and how they adapted during key moments like the pandemic. He also opens up about personal lessons learned, the importance of people management, and how his passion for gaming parallels his business mindset. Learn how Craig and the TROOPERS team grew from invoicing RM7,000 for Uber to scaling their platform to a regional business, and the operational hurdles they overcame. Craig also talks about the systems and values they’ve built to ensure top-quality service for both employers and part-timers alike. Key Highlights: The inspiration behind TROOPERS and its mission to revolutionise the gig economy. How Craig’s experience as a part-timer shaped his business vision. The early challenges of launching a tech platform with minimal resources. How TROOPERS scaled its operations and overcame the hurdles of rapid growth. Craig’s insight on the importance of people management and continuous learning. The impact of TROOPERS Protect, their insurance plan for part-timers. What keeps Craig motivated and how he balances work and play as a Dota 2 enthusiast. Tune in for: Inspiring lessons on scaling a business, staying grounded in the gig economy, and balancing operations with a growth mindset. Guest: Craig Goonting, COO & Founding Partner at TroopersHost: Kevin Hoong , Host of Paranoid Founders and Insurtech Entrepreneur About TROOPERS TROOPERS is a digital HR Tech platform for flexible work that aims to grant equitable access to flexible work for all Malaysians to work and earn in a legitimate, transparent, and accountable ecosystem. Since inception in 2017, TROOPERS has grown to become Malaysia's flexible job-matching platform. TROOPERS works with a range of esteemed brands across Malaysia to meet all their flexible manpower needs in terms of on-ground activations, offline marketing, merchandising, in-store promotion, logistics, warehousing, concerts and shared services.As part of its ongoing commitment in building a flexible ecosystem, TROOPERS launched the TROOPERS App in 2021 which has since garnered over 180,000 verified users, generating over RM 20 million in income for gig workers with more than 200,000 shifts transacted on the app.For more information, visit ⁠https://www.troopers.com.my/⁠ About Contingent | Digital Business Insurance Solutions for SMEs in Malaysia Contingent is a digital-first insurance provider, specialising in affordable and customizable business insurance solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia. Leveraging over 40 years of industry expertise through its partner company, Contingent is committed to simplifying the insurance experience for business owners with a focus on transparency, speed, and ease of claims. Their tailored solutions cover fire, burglary, group personal accident, public liability, and more, ensuring that businesses are protected from everyday risks. Contingent combines modern technology with deep industry knowledge to offer seamless digital insurance services that empower Malaysian businesses to grow with peace of mind. For more information, visit ⁠www.contingent.com.my⁠.

Welcome to the first episode of Paranoid Founders! In this episode, co-hosts, Kevin and Michelle, share their journey in building and scaling Oyen Insurance, Malaysia’s first digital pet insurance platform. Drawing on the challenges of navigating a traditional industry, they discuss how they broke through the norms, overcame scaling hurdles, and redefined the pet insurance space. Inspired by the mantra that "Only the Paranoid Survive," Kevin and Michelle dive deep into the lessons learned about protecting both their business and customers. Tune in to hear their strategies for scaling in an industry resistant to change, managing risks, and building innovative systems that safeguard their business. Key Takeaways: Revenue Strategies: The importance of providing excellent customer service to drive word-of-mouth and scale. Early challenges in building a digital-first insurance product during COVID-19. The crucial role of disciplined spending and customer acquisition cost (CAC) management. System Development: The journey from managing claims via email to developing a customized claims management dashboard. Balancing MVPs (Minimum Viable Products) with long-term system scalability. The importance of staying updated with new technologies and continuously improving systems. People Management: Hiring the right people and knowing when to let go. How to retain talent by setting clear goals, maintaining open communication, and creating a supportive work environment. The challenges of handling customer complaints and maintaining a high level of customer satisfaction. Lessons in Competition: How to handle competition with grace—focusing on customers instead of obsessing over competitors. Turning competitive pressure into an opportunity for team motivation and innovation. Insurance Insights: Learn about the risks that come with scaling a business and how business insurance can mitigate these risks. The role of insurance in protecting your revenue, systems, and people. Resources Mentioned: Book: Only the Paranoid Survive by Andrew Grove Close.io - Sales CRM Magical SaaS Tool to build dashboards: Retool Team Documentation Tool: Notion Contact Information: Visit Contingent for more information on business insurance solutions tailored to SMEs