Despite this, StrategiCom believes that ASEAN SMEs have a lot of potential and most of that potential is untapped and unfulfilled. StrategiCom Group Principal Consultant & CEO, Dr Wilson Chew, said, “ASEAN has plenty of potential and Malaysia is a key member of ASEAN. Every time I come to Malaysia, I can feel the tremendous potential of Malaysia and Malaysian companies. I know this because our clients who do business in Malaysia or with Malaysian companies tell me the same thing.”

Since it set up its Asia headquarters in Singapore in 2004, Kuala Lumpur has been viewed with a keen eye to fuel its expansion in the South East Asian region. Wilson continued by saying, “SMEs in Malaysia remains important to its economic development and remains a major engine of Malaysia’s economic growth.

SMEs including micro-enterprises form a significant source of domestic employment across all economic sectors. Malaysia presents a handsome market for StrategiCom as we remain focussed on the B2B sectors”. In view of its specialisation in the B2B sector, StrategiCom has also appointed B2B branding expert Stefan Pertz as its country manager for Malaysia. Stefan graduated from the Lincoln University in England with a First Class Honours Bachelor’s degree in International Management Studies. He received the Dean’s Prize for Distinguished Performance in International Management, finishing top of his cohort. Born and raised in Germany, Stefan spent a good number of years in his career in Asia, including Hong Kong, Australia, Singapore and Malaysia.

Throughout his career, he has worked in B2B companies and understands the importance of a strong brand for B2B companies because a B2B purchase tends to much riskier. According to Stefan, “When you buy a consumer product, even if it is an expensive item like a car, there is risk but the risk is restricted to you. If you buy a car that gives you a lot of problems, you can always change it. But when you buy something for your company, you cannot afford to buy the wrong thing or your business would be affected. For example, if you buy a supply chain management system or hire an IT company, your business might ground to a stop and you might lose a lot of money.

That is why a B2B purchase is so risky. And that is why B2B companies, believe it or not, need stronger brands because a strong brand is like a performance guarantee.” On his appointment as StrategiCom’s country manager for Malaysia, Stefan said, “I am honoured to be part of the StrategiCom team for Malaysia. We are excited about the economy of Malaysia. We believe it has tremendous potential for growth and we want to work with B2B companies in Malaysia to help transform them from good Malaysian companies to world class brands.”