Reinventing kitchenware game

Lai: You can have a great product, a trendy brand and effective marketing, but it will not mean much if you aren’t able to get the product into consumers’ hands. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star

IN the highly competitive consumer goods industry, where shelf space is limited and long-standing, big-name international players dominate, new brands often face an uphill climb.

Breaking into the market requires new entrants to not only offer a distinct value proposition, but also continuously grow its brand awareness, earn customer trust and maintain control over costs.

Daryl Lai, co-founder and managing director of kitchen essentials brand Fukuro Malaysia, says there’s one crucial yet often overlooked component to building a successful consumer brand: a strong and viable route-to-market strategy.

“You can have a great product, a trendy brand and effective marketing, but it will not mean much if you aren’t able to get the product into consumers’ hands,” he says.

Establishing logistical systems, distribution channels, retail partnerships and sales models that will ensure products reach the right buyers is therefore key.

This emphasis has been foundational to Fukuro’s growth journey since its start in 2019.

Lai and his co-founder, Kevin Lau, formed the company after recognising a gap between the high and low-end of the local kitchenware market.

“At the time, customers had the option of very cheap products sold at household retail chains, or international name brands with extravagant price tags in department stores, but not much in the middle,” Lai recalls.

The partners saw kitchenware as a relatively resilient category, and one that was adjacent to the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector – familiar territory for Lai.

After 18 years working within the FMCG industry at companies such as Unilever, Danone, Mondelez, and Reckitt, he sought to apply the concepts and processes of the FMCG world into the kitchenware space through Fukuro.

“Brands in the kitchenware market typically operated in a transactional, touch-and-go way. I thought it was important to integrate the FMCG industry’s operational discipline, distribution networks, stock availability, point of sale materials (POSM) and pricing strategy to ensure the brand would become sustainable,” he says.

Fukuro began with a range of kitchen gadgets and cooking utensils such as graters and peelers. The line eventually expanded into cookware, cutlery and food storage containers, and now spans 180 stock keeping units (SKUs).

Today, the brand is found in around 1,300 retail stores across the country and is on track to see RM19mil in revenue this year, Lai reveals.

Initially, its distribution strategy revolved around supermarkets and hypermarkets, largely due to his background and experience in that realm.

“This is where impulse purchases often happen, while people are doing everyday grocery shopping. Through this channel we’re able to sell products like knives, chopping boards and spatulas.”

From there, Fukuro also began entering departmental stores, which Lai says provides a very different sales environment.

“Here, you have 10 to 20 brands co-existing, and the battle happens on the selling floor. Brands are trying to outdo each other with on-ground activities, POSM, discounts and campaigns,” he explains.

Beyond this, the brand has also built up its presence across hardware stores, mini markets and convenience stores.

Offline retail makes up around 75% total sales, while its online channels – including Shopee, Lazada, TikTok Shop and its own website – contributes about 15%.

“The online side may seem small in comparison to in-person retail, but it is quite a critical component for brand visibility. It also serves to educate consumers, who can search for Fukuro’s products online to learn more about them, and consequently make a purchase via e-commerce or in a physical store.”

Meanwhile, the remaining 10% of sales comes from its business-to-business solutions, which involve corporate gifts and purchase-with-purchase gifts for campaigns.

With an emphasis on kitchen and everyday essentials that are practical, thoughtfully-crafted, reliable and affordable, the company designs and develops its product range, working with original equipment manufacturer (OEM) partners to produce them.

As Fukuro expands, Lai recognises that sourcing the right manufacturing partners will be an increasing challenge.

“Becoming more well-known as a brand means more scrutiny. Every small defect or mistake in our products or packaging will translate into a complaint from a consumer.

“This makes finding strong OEM partners more important than ever before, as standards will be much higher,” he stresses.

Looking ahead, the business has plans to further grow its product range and expand to new categories, while also extending its footprint internationally.

In addition to Malaysia, Fukuro has grown its eCommerce presence in Singapore, and aims to hone in on offline stores there in the next two years.

Simultaneously, it is also working towards exporting its products to Thailand and Indonesia.

While many founders at a similar stage would start thinking about an exit, Lai says his focus remains on further developing the business into one that is sustainable in the long-run.

“Our priority is to build a company that is capable of an initial public offering, regardless of whether we take that step,” he says.

“Personally, I like doing this, the brand is growing and the team enjoys being part of it, so we can keep doing this for a long time.”