fnbe interview

1. SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND DESIGN
FOUNDATION IN NATURAL & BUILD ENVIRONMENT
Report Title: A Comparative Analysis of 2 Businesses of
Similar Industry in Different Geographical Locations
GROUP MEMBERS: Michelle Tung Man Kaye (0324175)
Boon Li Ying (0323839)
Gillian Chong Yeong Lin (0323941)
Principlesof Economics [ECN30205]
LECTURER:Tay Shir Men
SUBMISSION DATE: 19th January 2016

2. Table of Contents
No. Title Pages
1. Key Summary 1
2. Description of history of the business 2 - 3
3. Brief Bio of the Business 4 - 9
4. Comparative Analysis of the
Businesses’ Competitive Traits 10 - 13
5. Recommendation 14 - 15
6.
Appendices 16 - 21
Appendix 2 22 - 25
Appendix 3 26
7. References 27

3. Key Summary
Throughout our research, Bak Kut Teh restaurant is a common
business that is known everywhere in within the food industry in
Malaysia. In this report, we have chosen 2 Bak Kut Teh restaurants.
Both Bak Kut Teh restaurants are situated in two entirely different
locations, the geographical difference between the two create many
differences in terms of the taste, texture and overall dish altogether.
This adds to our advantage as it creates multiple points of comparison
for us.
The first restaurant we visited is located at SS14 in Subang Jaya,
Selangor a bustling district well-known for its higher educational
institutes around the area. The restaurant is located facing the busy
Persiaran Kewajipan and NPE Highway in Subang Jaya, opposite of
SS15. The notable restaurant, Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh is a frequently
packed during dinner hours and is quite well-knowned. Secondly, the
next restaurant we visited was Restaurant Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh. It is
located in the small but growing city of Seremban, Negeri Sembilan.
The restaurant is located along a quiet area with just a few shops.
Although it’s located in a secluded place near an industrial and also
housing areas, the exquisite restaurant offers mouth-watering Bak Kut
Teh. Therefore, in our opinion, Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh is more
commercially successful because of its taste of food and the strategies
they used.

4. Descriptionof History of The Business
Klang, a popular shipping hotspot, not only that everyone who has been
there would say that the best Bak Kut Teh is served here and those who have not
been here would be eager to go and have a bite. It still remains a debate on
whether it is the best Bak Kut Teh that is served in Klang Valley. There are those
who would swear by a particular shop that they frequently patronise and others
who have tried a few shops here and there and stuck to the best of the lot. These
food lovers will scrutinise every single aspectofthe dish, down to how strong the
herbal taste should be in the soup or how thick the gravy should be. We found
this to be true as certain people who enjoy this dish only frequent their favourite
shop and do not go to other shops.
Bak Kut Teh is believed to have originated from the Fujian province of
China. The introduction ofthe dish to Singapore and Malaysia is attributed to the
Hokkien immigrants who moved to this region in the 19th century. The dish is
said to have been popular with the Chinese coolies as a hearty breakfast before
starting their backbreaking tasks for the day. To describe in detail, Bak Kut Teh
is a soup based dish consisting of different cuts of pork meat simmered in a herb
based broth for hours. Most shops will normally use pork ribs, but they are also
known to include other cuts ofpork into the herbal broth as well. Meat from other
parts tend to be softer and delicate compared to meat from the pork ribs, though
most of it will just melt away as soonas it is spooned into the mouth. The herbs
and spices that are normally used to give it that distinct taste are star anise,
cinnamon, cloves, female ginseng (locally known as dong guai), fennel seeds and
garlic, which are boiled for hours together with the selected cuts of meat. The
meat becomes infused with all the flavours from the herbs and spices, and the
sweetness from the meat seeps into the broth, mellowing the tangy and sharp taste
of the herbs. Other ingredients commonly found in a bowl of Bak Kut Teh are
mushrooms, fried tofu puffs, pieces of dried tofu and iceberg lettuce. There are
numerous variants of Bak Kut Teh with its cooking style closely influenced by
the prevailing Chinese enclave of a certain geographical location. Singapore Bak
Kut Teh has three popular types which are the Teochew style, which is light in
color but uses more pepper and garlic in the soup. The second being the Hoklo
(Hokkien), who prefer saltier food, usemore soysauce resulting in a darker soup.

5. The third being the Cantonese, with a soup-drinking culture, add medicinal herbs
to create a stronger flavoured soup.
Malaysian’s own variant of Bak Kut Teh, is usually in a dry form and has
also recently become increasingly popular, especially in Klang. Although called
dry, the broth is in fact reduced to a thicker gravy, to which other ingredients such
as wolfberries, dried dates, dried chillies and dried squid are added. Unlike the
original rib soup, the dry version has a tangier, sharper taste and is more akin to
a herbal stew than the classical broth. It is often recommended locally in Malaysia
as an excellent hangover cure. A less fatty variation ofBak Kut Teh is made with
chicken instead of pork is called Chik Kut Teh. It also serves as a halal version
of the dish catered to Muslims, whose religion forbids them to consume pork.
Throughout the years, creative traders have come to realize that some patrons do
welcome the idea of having side dishes along with the main dish. It is now
common to find these restaurants now offering dishes like blanched iceberg
lettuce drizzled with a mixture of oyster sauce, fried shallots and a little bit of the
oil from the fried shallots and other dishes to their customers. Therestaurants also
offer additional ingredients like enoki mushrooms, chicken feet, fried strips of
dough or locally known as youtiao for dipping into the soup or even meatballs at
additional prices. It is normally eaten with fragrant rice and sprinkles of fried
shallots and raw garlic. Some shops also serve it with yam rice as an alternative
to plain rice. To pique the interests ofBak Kut Teh lovers, another version of this
dish was introduced. It is fascinating to see how a simple dish like this became a
famous and widely eaten staple in Malaysia. This dish was supposed to be a
nourishing dish for Chinese coolies who came to Port Klang to work during the
British colonial era. Herbs and spices said to be good for health were gathered,
with porkadded to add flavour to the broth, resulting in this dish. Hot tea is always
drunk together with this meal as it is believed that the high amount of fats in the
dish is removed because the tea is able to flush out excess oil from within the
body. MostBak Kut Teh lovers will request extra bowls of soup. Someshops are
very generous with their soup, obliging customers with their repeated requests.
Others will kindly but firmly tell the customers that soup refills are limited as it
is very precious. There are even rumours that some of the soup pots are
continuously refilled with fresh soup every day, to keep the intense flavours from
the day before inside the pot, thereby making it even more mouth-watering.

6. Brief Descriptionof The Business
Business 1: Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh
Current Location: No.66, SS14/2, 47500, Subang Jaya, Selangor.
Business hour: 10.45am – 12am
Number of branches: 0
Number of employees: 7
Main products sold: Klang bak kut teh, braised pork’s leg, chicken wine
soup, black pepper stomach soup, home steamed fish head
Estimated current number of customers: <100

7. Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh was founded by Ivy Chong, whom we
managed to interview and has been established since 2006. The design
of this restaurant looks like a normal restaurant, there is no any special
design.
The capital required to start their business is around RM100,000.
Their business’ annual revenue figure is not more than RM500,000.
There have no any specialized field of knowledge they need to run this
business. They only learn some medicinal materials that are related to
bak kut teh. The reason of they chose this location to start the business
is because it is near to their house and it will be more convenient to
them in running this business. They have no any others branches and
this is the only shop they have.
Their target customers consist of family, students and office
workers. This restaurant has 6 competitors in the same area.
Nevertheless, the feature of this restaurant is they will not use any
strategies to compete with their competitors. The reason is all of them
use different medicinal materials in cooking the bak kut teh. They will
discuss together if one of them want to increase the price and they will
increase the price together if one of them decides to do this. No matter
how, it is an illegal activity for them to do that.
The most challenging part in this business is when the business is
bad. They have no any recent development and also will not often
release a new product.

8. Products sold by Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh:
There are different types of food and tea:
 bak kut teh
 dry bak kut teh
 braised pork’s leg
 chicken wine
 black pepper stomachsoup
 home steamed fish head
Famous Klang Bak Kut Teh and
their special Dry Bak Kut Teh

9. Business 2: Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh
Current Location: 347, Taman Yoon Fook, Jalan Tampin 70450,
Seremban, Negeri Sembilan.
Business Hour: 9.30am – 2.30pm (Closed on Monday)
Number of branches: 0
Number of employees: 4 (Tuesday to Saturday), 5 (Sunday)
Main products sold: bak kut teh, braised pork’s leg, chicken wine soup,
clay-pot chicken rice, herbal tea
Estimated current number of customers: > 150

10. Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh was founded by Siew Kon Sin in 1981.
The person who accepted our interview is Siew Kon Sin’s son, Ken
Siew. Their restaurant looks like a traditional shop, there are a lot of
medicinal materials arranged orderly in a glass frame cabinet. This
restaurant is well equipped with different sizes of cooker along with a
hygienic place.
The capital required to start this business is around RM20,000.
Their business’ annual revenue figure is approximately RM200,000.
The thing that they need to run this business is good interpersonal
relationship. They also need to have the knowledge about some
medicinal materials. The current location of this restaurant is the first
shop of them and they have no any branches.
This restaurant is specialized in traditional favour of bak kut teh.
Their target customers is family and office workers. They are famous
and sometimes, will have some Hong Kong Stars come and taste their
cooking.
They are the only one restaurant sells bak kut teh in this area so
they have no any competitor sell the same types of food with them.
Their competitors are nearby food court and tea restaurant. The most
challenging part in their business is the location of their restaurant.
They located at a remote area, not in the centre of a town or city. They
have no any recent development but they have plan to renovate their
restaurant like paint and do some interior decoration.

11. Products sold by Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh:
There are more different types of food and tea:
 bak kut teh
 braised pork’s leg
 chicken wine
 clay-pot chicken rice
 herbal tea
Herbal Tea Bak Kut Teh Special sauce

12. ComparativeAnalysis of the Businesses’
CompetitiveTraits
Item Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh
1. Competitors There are four competitors in
the area:
(a) Da De Bah Kut Teh
(b) Chuan Chiew Bah Kut
Teh
(c) Ming Siang Bak Kut
Teh
(d) Yu Kee Bak Kut Teh
There are two competitors in the
area:
(a) Restoran Seremban
Garden
(b) Kedai Sin Thow Yuen
2. Brief of
Competitors
(a) Da De Bak Kut Teh
-Their main products is
Bak Kut Teh
-Also one of the oldest
Bak Kut Teh restaurant
in that area
-Their restaurant is
much more newer due to
renovation.
(a) Restoran Seremban
Garden
- This is “kopitiam”
which they sell different
kind of food such as toast,
economic rice and so on.
(b) Chuan Chiew Bah Kut
Teh
-Their main products
is Bak Kut Teh and
some Chicken rice.
(c) Kedai Sin Thow Yuen
-Their main products is
seafood and also
famous for its “Siew
Pao”
(d) Ming Siang Bak Kut
Teh
-Their main products
is Bak Kut Teh and
also Curry Fish Head.

13. (d) Yu Kee Bak Kut Teh
-Their main product is
Bak Kut Teh and
also braised pork’s
feet
3. Competition
strategies
Pricing
-they discuss together to ensure
the prices are the same
-they set its prices higher than
the other competitors
Advertising
-advertised via word of mouth -advertised via word of mouth
Product variety
- 100% Klang Bak Kut Teh
- Dry Bak Kut Teh
- Braised Pork’s Leg
- Chicken Wine Soup
- Black Pepper Stomach Soup
- Home Steamed Fish Head
- Bak Kut Teh
- Chicken Wine Soup
- Braised Pork’s Leg
- Clay-pot chicken rice
Taste of Food
-the taste of the Bak Kut Teh
soup is quite tasteless
-the taste of the Bak Kut Teh soup
is much more heavy compare to
the other
4. The obstacles
faced by new
business
Need to have a large amount of
capital to start the business. It is
difficult to overcome the
obstacle because the standard of
living is very high nowadays.
The location is not crowded. It is
difficult to overcome the obstacle
because it doesn’t increase the
annual revenue of the business.
5. Nature of
their Markets
Perfectly competitive
Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh is
operating at place full of
competitors. If they increase
their price of products, they will
lose a lot of the customer.
Oligopoly
Their competitors will not have a
very big impact to their business.

14. 6. Summary table to compare the similarities and differences between the two
business.
Business (Similarities) Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh
Main products sold Bak Kut Teh Bak Kut Teh
Branches None None
Business (Differences) Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh
Founder Ivy Chong (First generation) Ken Siew (Second
generation)
Location No.66, SS14/2, 47500,
Subang Jaya, Selangor.
347, Taman Yoon Fook,
Jalan Tampin 70450,
Seremban, Negeri Sembilan.
Employees 7 4 on Tuesday to Saturday
5 on Sunday
Customers Less than 100 More than 150
Business Hour 10.45am – 12am (midnight)
Everyday
9.30am – 2.30pm
Closed on Mondays
Annual Revenue Less than 500,000 More than 200,000

15. 7. Conclusion
Based on our analysis, these two business are different in many ways.
Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh need to broaden their knowledge in the area of
medicinal materials, so that they can improve their taste of food. Besides that,
they have a lot of competitors in the same area, they need to create more new
products to compete with their competitors. They can cut off the number of
employees when the normal and only hire more employees in the weekend to
reduce their salary expenses.
As for Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh, their shop need to be relocated in a more
strategic place. This can help them to increase their income and it is more
accessible for their customer. Not only that, they also need to create a new
productin the future, so that they can attract more customer comeand try their
new product. Interms ofits prices, they should decreasetheir price of products.
These improvements can help them to increase their income and the customer
will more willing to come again to their restaurant.
Therefore, in both restaurant, we certainly believe that Tian Hoe Bak Kut
Teh is more commercially successful. The reason is because Tian Hoe Bak
Kut Teh their restaurant is more delicious. This is the main reason why the
customer will come again to their restaurant. The design of their restaurant
will give the customer a traditional feel and is more eye-catching than Chuan
Klang Bak Kut Teh. They also used the right way to reduce their expenses
which are hire one more employee on Sunday only. This is because usually
Monday to Saturday will not have too much customer but Sunday will have
more customer compare to another six days.

16. Recommendation
Based on our analysis regarding to the two restaurants, Chuan Klang
Bak Kut Teh and Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh, we have provided a few
recommendations on improving the competitiveness of each business.
Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh
Current Area of Improvement Recommendation
Enhance the taste of food The owner should concentratemore on
the taste ofthe Bak Kut Teh soup. This
way, it will have their own uniqueness
of taste and also can increase the
number of customer.
Expansion of the space Owner should upgrade and expand the
space of the restaurant. So that the
customer have a better environment
and a comfortable place for them to
enjoy their meal.
Employ Chinese workers Owner should employ Chinese
workers which they can more easily to
communicate and understand what the
customer needs.
Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh
Current Area of Improvement Recommendation
Location of the restaurant Owner should have change their
location or have another branch, so
that it’s more convenient for the
people to access their restaurant.
Increase number of workers During our interview with Mr. Ken,
we found that they have only 4
employees including himself. Mr. Ken

17. should increase the number of
workers. The reason for it is allow its
system to bemore organized, where all
of their employees will have their own
specialized jobs. Thus, when peak
hours it’s enough worker to help
around.
Renovation Owner should renovate the restaurant
although it is full with traditional feel.
This will provide a more comfortable
environment to the customers.

18. Appendices
A compilation of some interview notes, contact details of the
businesses and pictures (e.g. business premises, current owners,
employees, products or service sold, promotional advertisements, etc)
in the process of studying and comparing the two Bak Kut Teh
restaurants and also minutes of the group meetings.
(1)Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh
I. Pictures
The entrance of Chuan
Klang Bak Kut Teh
We’ve tried some of the main dishes
as shown in the picture. 100% Klang
Bak Kut Teh, Dry Bak Kut Teh and
also a famous side dish called “you
tiao”

19. These are Chuan Klang Bah Kut Teh’s nearby competitors, Da De Bah Kut Teh,
Chuan Chiew Bah Kut Teh, Ming Siang Bah Kut Teh and Yu Kee Bah Kut Teh.
The menu of main dishes

20. II. Interview Notes
III. Name Card

21. (2)Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh
I. Pictures
The entrance of Tian
Hoe Bak Kut Teh

22. Theseare Tian Hoe Bah Kut Teh’s nearby competitors, restoran seremban garden
and kedai Sin Thow Yuen.
The menu of
Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh
We’ve tried some of the
famous dishes like “Chicken
wine” and also the must try
dish “Bak Kut Teh”

23. II. Interview Notes

24. III. Name Card
Appendix 2: Survey Questionnaire and Results
(1) Chuan Klang Bak Kut Teh
1) When was the business founded?
Answer: The business founded in 2006.
2) Who are the key founders?
Answer: Ivy Chong
3) What prompted the founders to start this business?
Answer: The main reason is to earn money.
4) How much capital is required to start this business? What, if any, specialized field
of knowledge do you need to run this business?
Answer: The capital required is one hundred thousand. We have no any specialized
field of knowledge, but we need to know some medicinal materials that are related
to Bak Kut Teh.
5) Why did you choose this location to start this business?
Answer: I am living nearby this area, this location is more convenient to me.
6) What are your main products?
Answer: Bak Kut Teh

25. 7) Who are your customers?
Answer: Any age, such as family, students and office workers.
8) What is the business’ annual revenue figure?
Answer: Less than five hundred thousand.
9) How many branch offices/stores do you have (if applicable)?
Answer: We have no any branches.
10) Can you provide us a brief history of your business and its most recent
developments?
Answer: No history can be provided and we have no any recent development.
11) Do you have many competitors? Who are they? Who are your top 3 competitors?
Answer: Yes, there have 6 Bak Kut Teh restaurants in this area. The top 3
competitors are Da De Bak Kut Teh, Chuan, Chiew Bak Kut Teh and Ming Siang
Bak Kut Teh.
12) How big is your market share as well as your top competitors?
Answer: I don’t know.
13) Is the business constantly facing strong competition from other competitors? What
strategies have they used to compete with you?
Answer: No, usually we discuss together the method to increase the customer and
if any one of us suggest toincrease theprice of products, we will increase it together.
14) How do you compete with your competitors (i.e. what strategies do you employ to
divert customers away from your competitors?
Answer: We have no use any strategies. We will solve the problem together.
15) Are your pricing decisions strongly affected by your competitors?
Answer: No, because all of us have almost the same price of products, we will not
increase or decrease the price before discuss with each other.
16) Generally, do you feel it is easy or hard to enter this market? Why?
Answer: Hard, because there are a lot of sellers and you are difficult to earn a
higher profit.
17) What are the most challenging part in your business?
Answer: When the business is bad.

26. 18) How often do you release a new product (note: this assume the business sells
differentiated products)?
Answer: We have no release the new product in a certain time.
19) What do you think of this business as the need to improve it?
Answer: Yes, but it needs some times to reach the target.
20) What are the goals that you want to attain in the future?
Answer: Increase my annual revenue.
(2) Tian Hoe Bak Kut Teh
1) When was the business founded?
Answer: The business founded in 1981.
2) Who are the key founders?
Answer: Siew Kon Sin
3) What prompted the founders to start this business?
Answer: To earn money.
4) How much capital is required to start this business? What, if any, specialized
field of knowledge do you need to run this business?
Answer: The capital required is twenty thousand. We only need to know some
medicinal materials and the most important thing is we need to have a good
interpersonal relationship.
5) Why did you choose this location to start this business?
Answer: Because we have a lot of customers from this area.
6) What are your main products?
Answer: Bak Kut Teh
7) Who are your customers?
Answer: Any age, but most of it are older people.
8) What is the business’ annual revenue figure?

27. Answer: Approximately two hundred thousand.
9) How many branch offices/stores do you have (if applicable)?
Answer: We have no any branches.
10) Can you provide us a brief history of your business and its most recent
developments?
Answer: We have no any recent development.
11) Do you have many competitors? Who are they? Who are your top 3 competitors?
Answer: Yes, there are few restaurants around this area but we are the only one
Bak Kut Teh restaurant.
12) How big is your market share as well as your top competitors?
Answer: Sorry, I don’t know.
13) Is the business constantly facing strong competition from other competitors?
What strategies have they used to compete with you?
Answer: No, it depends on customer favour.
14) How do you compete with your competitors (i.e. what strategies do you employ
to divert customers away from your competitors?
Answer: I set a higher price than other restaurant.
15) Are your pricing decisions strongly affected by your competitors?
Answer: No.
16) Generally, do you feel it is easy or hard to enter this market? Why?
Answer: Hard, because nowadays running a business, it needs a lot of capital
and you must have a good interpersonal relationship.
17) What was the most challenging part in your business?
Answer: My shop is located far from the city.
18) How often do you release a new product (note: this assume the business sells
differentiated products)?
Answer: We planning to serve a new dish in the future.
19) What do you think of this business as the need to improve it?
Answer: We will try to improve the taste of food and have a renovation.
20) What are the goals that you want to attain in the future?

28. Answer: Hope that the business is getting more better.
Appendix 3: ComparativeAnalysis Summary Table
No. Competitive Traits
Business 1 (Chuan
Klang Bak Kut
Teh)
Business 2 (Tian
Hoe Bak Kut Teh)
1. Number of Competitors (in ranges
e.g. 2 to 10, 10 to 50, 50 to 150,
etc.)
4 to 6 2 to 4
2.
Barrier to Entry (Weak or Strong?
Why?)
Strong, because
Chuan Klang Bak
Kut Teh are
surrounded by lots
of competitors.
Weak, because Tian
Hoe Bak Kut Teh is
located in the area
which is not very
crowded.
3.
Differentiated or Standardized
Products (if differentiated provide 2
to 3 examples)
Standardized
Products
Standardized
Products
4.
Pricing Power (Price Maker or
Taker? Why?)
Price Taker, because
all businesses have
to accept the price
that is set by the
Price Taker, because
all businesses have
to accept the price
that is set by the

29. market and firms are
not allowed to set
their own price.
market and firms are
not allowed to set
their own price.
5. Other Characteristics (e.g. Any
close product substitudes, mutual
dependence, constant advertising)
No No
6. Verdict (Monopoly?Oligopoly?
Perfect Competition?) Perfectly
competitive
Oligopoly
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