CYBERJAYA: Being brought up in a house without books is a sad thing, but it needn’t condemn children to a lifetime of not reading. Jacqueline Ng is proof of that.
Her parents could not afford books for their children. She was 14 when she borrowed a book from a friend and took it home. That was the first book she had ever read cover to cover.
She quickly fell in love with books and reading, and it always struck her that it was unfair when kids were not able to have easy access to good books just because their parents didn’t have the money to buy them.
This thought and her love for books led her to dream of opening her own bookstore to promote reading through selling books at cheaper prices. She was also interested in finding out if price was the major reason why so many Malaysians do not buy and read books.
In 2006, she realised her dream – together with her husband Andrew Yap, she opened her first bookshop. They called it BookXcess.
“In the beginning, it was hard. Our margins were very low, and we didn’t have many resources,” the 49-year-old told FMT.
The couple had to start from scratch. Neither of them had any business experience or a wealthy family behind them to provide funds to start the business.
They only had RM15,000 which they used to rent a shop, pay for books and second-hand bookshelves, and all the other unexpected costs of starting a new venture.
They began by selling remaindered books. “When publishers and distributors let unsold books go at lower prices, that’s when we go in and buy. We save the books from being destroyed and offer them to the public at 50% to 80% off the original price.”
Customers started to trickle in to her tiny 500 square feet shop in Amcorp Mall, Petaling Jaya, and the encouragement that she received from them kept her spirits up during the tough times.
Demand built and there came a time when business was good enough to open a second store.
It was like a dream come true, she laughs, still amazed. “I was getting to share my interest, my madness over books, with so many people.”
Looking back at the hardships that they endured in the early days of the business, Ng said she never imagined that it would last this long or grow so big.
“It was only me and my husband at first, but now we have almost 200 staff.
“I keep customers who have been with me since the early days close to me. We have become friends through books and they give me feedback and suggestions to improve the business.”
Today, Ng is the proud owner of seven BookXcess stores nationwide.
Her newest store is the biggest one yet at 37,000 square feet, stocking half a million books. Located in Tamarind Square, Cyberjaya, it is Malaysia’s first 24-hour bookstore to sell affordable books.
It was opened this month by Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s wife, Dr Siti Hasmah Ali, who signed a plaque bearing the words: “A book warrior and a true believer in the power of reading.”
Ng is still as passionate as ever about encouraging young people.
“It warms my heart to be able to open the store for 24 hours so students can come in here when they want to do their assignments.They can stay as long as they need to. We are happy to provide a safe place for them.”
BookXcess also runs what they bill as the biggest book sale in the world. Big Bad Wolf book fairs have so far been held in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines. These fairs stay true to Ng’s original and enduring ambition of getting children to read.
Such success isn’t bad going for a girl who read her first book at 14. But Ng remains modest about her burgeoning empire.
“It’s not just about growing the business but the lives that you touch and the friends that you make along the way.” - FMT
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