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Kawan Food Berhad

Humble Beginnings
Kawan Food Berhad’s inspiring journey began in the bustling wet markets of Malaysia in the 1970s. The young Gan Thiam Chai, now Chairman Emeritus, cultivated his entrepreneurial spirit, inspired by his parents’ hard work selling homemade delicacies. As a schoolboy, Mr. Gan sold nasi lemak to his classmates, quickly learning the value of hard work and early lessons about franchising and distribution.

After secondary school, Mr. Gan became an electrician. However, with limited formal education, he felt his growth prospects were constrained. Knowing he needed to carve out his own path, he turned to the food business he knew best. Thus, he started Kian Guan Trading, named after his childhood nickname, supplying popiah skin to local stores.

From its first factory on Old Klang Road in Kuala Lumpur, Mr. Gan’s eye for innovation drove Kawan’s early success. He reinvested profits into machinery to scale operations and married a partner devoted to growing the business.

Pioneering Global Expansion
Gradually, Kawan’s parathas made the brand a household name. Mr. Gan’s persistence paid off as Kawan’s paratha soon became a staple in overseas markets, providing Asian expatriates and global consumers with a taste of home. In response to growing demand, Mr. Gan established a new manufacturing facility in Shah Alam and won multiple awards for exceptional manufacturing standards and business practices, including the Enterprise 50 Award by SMIDEC and Accenture, the Malaysian Honesty Enterprise Keris Award by the Entrepreneur Development Association of Malaysia, and the International Award for Best Performance by the UK-based Council of International Awards.

The recession of the mid-1980s became a turning point. Mr. Gan realized the need to expand beyond Malaysia’s borders. With this vision, Kian Guan was transformed into Kawan Food — a name meaning “friends” in Bahasa Malaysia, reflecting the company’s mission to bridge cultures through food.

Mr. Gan’s commitment to reinvesting profits into technology paid off, and Kawan’s paratha became the flagship product. By leveraging the first automation process, Kawan set itself apart in the global frozen food industry. “Not many people know that I created this process. These days, our competitors are using our first-generation machinery while we have moved on to the fourth generation,” he says.

A Publicly Listed Company
Over the decades, Kawan grew from a regional supplier into a publicly listed company on Bursa Malaysia’s Main Board in 2005. Today, Kawan’s state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in Pulau Indah, Klang, demonstrates the latest in sustainable practices, including solar power, rainwater harvesting, and the country’s largest cold room warehouse using an automated storage and retrieval system. Mr. Gan was adamant that sustainability be integrated into the new plant.

Today, Kawan offers a wide range of products under two brands: Kawan and KG Pastry. Its portfolio varies from parathas and chapatis to spring roll pastry, puff pastries, oriental buns and desserts. This diverse portfolio caters to evolving consumer tastes and maintains the company’s reputation for authentic flavors.

Looking Forward
Kawan’s growth from a small family venture to an international company has been marked by resilience, innovation, and a commitment to quality. With its sights set on the future, Kawan remains dedicated to expanding its reach while preserving the values from the start — making food traditions more enjoyable and accessible than ever, by nurturing a greener, more wholesome, and connected world for our children.

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