From left: Sainin, Leroy, Lie, Tan, Foo, Ngan and Jubaidah at the launch of Mobile Truck takeaway and drive thru business.
KOTA KINABALU: Courtyard Hotel 1Borneo, a member of Sabah SME Mobile Truck Association (SSMTA) today launched its mobile truck takeaway and drive thru business.
The concept of drive through food truck is to provide convenience for those in and around the region to purchase hot fast food and drinks for their meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner).
Mobile truck is a well-accepted business in West Malaysia and is going to be a new model of roadside food stalls and business. The advantages of mobile truck compared to traditional roadside stalls are better hygiene as it is equipped with power, water tank and hot stove. Besides selling food, mobile trucks can also be used for boutique, salon, dental clinic, massage, mobile office (service centres). It can even be a platform to conduct entertainment performance and a moving billboard.
SSMTA understands from some parties that there have been concerns on venturing into the mobile truck business as not many of them are successful. The main issue was that there’s no proper coordination and management of the mobile trucks as a group. Some also face difficulties in getting approvals for mobile truck sites to operate due to the lack of an effective association to act for the group’s interests when dealing with the authorities.
SSMTA therefore was formed in October 2019 to undertake to provide consultation services to members in matters relating to mobile truck businesses and its related businesses. It is hoped that with SSMTA’s assistance, individual mobile truckers can get to operate in a proper approved mobile truck site. To successfully attract consumers to the mobile truck site, there has to be sufficient mobile trucks selling a variety of FNB and services to provide convenience to attract sufficient consumers to patronize the place.
Those members who own mobile trucks are encouraged to contact the association. During this pandemic time, the mobile truck business model could assist those unemployed, especially youths, to gain some income by becoming an entrepreneur instead of waiting indefinitely for the job offer which is hard to come by.
Opening a brick and mortar shop to conduct business would require a bigger capital. The risk of loss is great if the business were to fail with the renovation costing few hundred thousands. But it’s different to start up business with owning or renting a mobile truck; the resale value of the mobile truck would definitely fetch more than 50% of the cost.
It would be good if the government could allocate funds to purchase 100 mobile trucks and offer to rent at a concession rental to those eligible unemployed who have intention to take up the challenge to be an entrepreneur.
This will certainly not just aid in solving the unemployment issues but could also assist in boosting the state’s economy and providing cheaper cost of living. Food items sold by mobile trucks are lower than those sold in shops and therefore helps to lower the cost of living.
The first term Excos of SSMTA are NK Foo (President), KT Tan (Deputy President), Melanie Annol (Vice President), YL Ngan (Vice President), Daniel Shim (Vice President), Mandy Wong (Vice President), Dr Rosalyn Gelunu (Secretary General), CV Lie (Asst. Secretary General), Tracy Chee (Treasurer General), Noor (Asst. Treasurer General), Ivy Ting (Council Member), Jubaidah (Council Member), Sainin (Council Member), Leroy (Council Member), Jenny Ng (Council Member),JW Lau (Council Member), and KH Mak (Council Member).
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