THERE was a time when Datuk Steven Sim probably did not think that it was possible to have his cake and eat it too. When he set up the first Secret Recipe outlet in SS2, Petaling Jaya, 14 years ago, he was not thinking about building an international lifestyle cafe chain. “Initially, we thought we would be very happy if we could succeed in growing a network of outlets in Malaysia alone,” he recalls.
He must be ecstatic these days. There are now 270 Secret Recipe restaurants, with more than 3,500 employees in eight countries, namely Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, China, Brunei and Australia. Operating on a casual dining cafe concept, Secret Recipe serves appetisers, pasta, fusion food, cakes, baked desserts, ice cream and beverages. According to Sim, the annual revenue for the chain is over RM400mil.
