THE PANDEMIC HIT businesses hard. Yet, for one woman, it was an opportune time for her to realise her dream. All this while many restaurants and eateries ceased operations due to the dine-in prohibition during the Movement Control Order (MCO).

This woman is Shirley Saw, an entrepreneur who started Dream Burger, and who found a way to cater to consumers despite the rigid lockdown.

Always considering food as a strong cultural and interpersonal bond, she had dreamt of creating a healthy dining experience that draws people closer to one another. Advertising on Instagram, she delivered her homemade burgers to hungry customers all over Penang. Then, her burgers started making physical appearances at several events. By the end of 2022, Dream Burger began operating at its first physical location: COEX@Kilang Besi.

Empowering Women Entrepreneurs

Shirley was one of the esteemed speakers at the Accelerate Women Entrepreneurship with Exabytes (AWEWE) event, held to help women build self-confidence and to give women entrepreneurs startup advice.

The underlying theme was to highlight the importance of self-efficacy. One way to embark on this is for women to recognise product or service gaps and identify the strengths and weaknesses of their business strategies. Through the event, they hoped that the women in attendance who got to know each other would uplift each other and be each other’s support system.

Gender Equality and Justice

Encouraging women entrepreneurs is essential for a balanced economy where women are properly represented among decision-makers. Currently, it is estimated that only about one in five MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises) are run by women.

The gender ratio for enrolment in higher education has always been higher for women. Women serve a crucial role in challenging society’s perception of what it means to be a business owner. The participation of women can redefine what it takes to be a business owner in predominantly male-dominated industries, paving the way for more women to be a part of it.

However, many women are conditioned into taking domestic roles, such as caretakers and housewives. They also lack the same degree of access to capital as men do due to their lower labour participation and lower wealth accumulation as many rely on their husbands as breadwinners. Their lowered wealth accumulation is also due to the gender pay gap between men and women, which currently sits at RM0.92 to every RM1 earned by men. Furthermore, women entrepreneurs also face bigger challenges in comparison to their male counterparts—they experience greater socio-cultural hindrances within the patriarchal system.

This divide has left them lacking self-confidence. Due to systematic disempowerment, many women often feel unsupported when they try to be entrepreneurs. With sufficient guidance and help, they can step up to establish their craft or ideas through entrepreneurship, providing themselves with a greater degree of financial autonomy and independence.

Making Waves in Business

For new businesses, branding is important not only for brand recognition and expanding the customer base; it is also crucial to gain investor interest. A topic that was addressed during AWEWE pertained to what women entrepreneurs should know to get their businesses up and running.

When asked about the key know-hows of expanding a business, AWEWE speakers gave the following tip: create a short pitch deck that briefly explains the business to would-be investors. Many MSMEs are eligible for government funding from agencies and institutions such as the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI), Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA), Malaysian Industrial Development Finance (MIDF) and SME Corp Malaysia. For a better chance of receiving the capital, women in business were encouraged to take the SME Competitive Rating for Enhancement (SCORE) rating with SME Corp Malaysia to measure their competitiveness. They should also acquire sufficient financial education. Financial skill sets such as bookkeeping, budgeting and investing, which are crucial when starting a business.

When asked about her advice for aspiring women entrepreneurs, Shirley Saw remarked: “Everything may seem difficult until you’ve done it yourself.” She hopes for women to take on this attitude when starting their own businesses, overcoming fear and bolstering their self-esteem.