The spread of Covid-19 has plague businesses worldwide, plunging the economic arena into standstill while countries are fighting to contain and eradicate the virus once and for all. In a recent interview with Top 10 of Malaysia, Marcus Low shares his thought on how his business was affected during this perilous times, and how his company is doing their bits in contributing to the front-liners fighting for the country.
“I think just like many companies in Malaysia, the biggest impact that we faced was working from home, as we have never done it before and we are not prepared for it,” says Marcus Low, who is the co-founder as well as the managing director of KYY Homes. KYY Home provides a one stop property investment and property management solution for Malaysians, especially when it comes to room rental, vacation home and house rental.
Low added that their sales have been declining since January, especially in the vacation house rentals. “Covid-19 has affected everyone globally, not just in Malaysia, but more prominently in China. So the number of tourists has been dwindling and is steadily reducing. We are also worried that most of our tenants may face some financial difficulties in paying their rents.”
Low explains that his company is coping better now compare to when the Movement Control Order (MCO) was first announced. “ZOOM has been a great tool where we can check in with each other where we can have a chat with the team to make sure they are aware of their job-scope. Doing this daily also ensure that we can have the bonding even though we cannot physically see each other,”
“Statistics has also shown that our Airbnb is doing badly, so before MCO was implemented, we produced a few videos for all the properties that we are having and then we can provide an online viewing for potential tenants instead of requiring physical viewing. At the same time, we are also providing two months rental free promotion and guarantee if the tenant rents the room without viewing it prior,” says Low.
Low explains that this is to help all the new tenants to go through the crisis together. Besides that, KYY Home is offering a rental discounts scheme to their current tenants who might be facing financial difficulties.
Also, Low said that the Covid-19 pandemic is a good wakeup call to all Malaysian business owners to change their mindset from running an offline business to an online business. “Not necessary fully online, but we must have the right mindset. Right now, I think everyone can see clearly that any businesses without tech support or online platform will one day be disrupted by a situation such as this.”
“So we have to be able to brainstorm things that can be done online or do sales online. We should mirror after China where people can quickly adapt to an online business model, right after the Covid-19. Lastly, we cannot put our sole focus on the impact that was brought by the current situation, but we must also put our attention in coming up with a solution,” Low added.
Currently, KYY Home is offering free accommodations to all the medical officers who are assigned to Hospital Sungai Buloh, Selangor, as part of the #kitajagakita program. Low is also urging residents, Airbnb providers, and property management companies around the area to help medical officers to find accommodations so that they can continue serving the country. “I think this is the last thing that we can do as a Malaysian. We hope it can help relieve the burdens with these little efforts.”
