Animation student Saiful Zafran Fauzi, 21, has been busy fulfilling orders for his Florentine biscuits and chocolate chip cookies. In the last two weeks, he has baked over 50 tubs of his signature treats to meet the demand for Hari Raya hampers.
Saiful is a youth on the autism spectrum. His mother Haslinda Abdul Rahman, 50, is extremely proud of her son’s ability to earn some pocket money selling his homemade cookies.
According to Haslinda, Saiful – or Zafran to his family – been baking cookies twice a week, in between his classes.
“Zafran uses my recipes because they are simple and taste delicious. We started preparing the hampers last weekend, and we will continue baking more cookies during Ramadan,” said Haslinda who lived in Putrajaya.
In February last year, Haslinda co-founded MySimplyGifted (MSG) with six other parents of special needs children. Its mission is to curate and market products made by their children who have either Autism or Down Syndrome.
Their homemade items such as cookies, muffins, as well as bags, are curated into gift hampers to be sold.
The efforts of the MSG parents are commendable, as they are encouraging their special children to be productive and earn an income for themselves.
“As parents, we know our children and their needs very well. We formed MSG to provide work for them in a suitable working environment with job flexibility. Most of the time, they need one-on-one coaching. They are also prone to mood swings which may affect their working schedules. We are trying to prepare them for the real world as best we can.
“We want to create a conducive environment for them to learn and work. We are planning to set up a space where we can provide basic skills training – baking, basic business skills and also managerial work – for special needs youth. My wish is that one day, MSG will be managed by a group of differently-abled people,” shared Haslinda, a homemaker.
Haslinda is hopeful that her son can gain meaningful employment in the future. But, for that to happen, she feels that there needs to be more awareness among Malaysians about people with special needs, especially those with neurological disabilities.
“They can be productive if they are given a chance and if they are guided. But, there must be social acceptance at all levels.
“The media can play a significant role by helping to educate the public that these young adults have their strengths despite their disabilities. That is why we use the term ‘differently-abled’ to acknowledge them,” explained the mother of three.
Doing what they can
The operational costs of MSG are funded by the profits made from the sales of hampers and gifts. As the MSG entrepreneurs have different abilities, they “contribute according to their skills and availability”.
“Their parents help them acquire the baking and cooking skills they need. The products are mostly produced with their families’ help. They are still learning how to manage orders, bake and package their products. Family members – who serve as MSG volunteers – take charge of marketing the products,” said Haslinda.
“Currently we have 12 entrepreneurs participating in Ramadan and Syawal hamper projects. We accepted their products after going through quality control checks. We gave some guidance in product improvement and packaging. The entrepreneurs earn through the sales of their products,” she explained.
Haslinda uses social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp to market MSG’s products. The parents work hard to upload videos, produce promotional pamphlets and product photos.
Haslinda is thankful her team of parents are willing to contribute their time to the growing platform.
“We created catalogues using the Canva app, and we are trying to improve our skills and learn social media marketing techniques.
“We have limited resources and manpower because most of the parents involved in the project are working or have family commitments. But, we can rely on each other. We came from different backgrounds but by working together, we support each other financially and emotionally.”
Haslinda admits that she’s always on her feet, running the social enterprise and managing her home.
“But I am happy to be able to market my son’s products and help others too. We hope to work with organisations to promote our products and give our children an opportunity to be recognised as productive members of the society,” she concluded.
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