We have to face reality.”Īzrin does hope to one day go back into the aviation industry as flying has been his passion since young. “Being retrenched wasn’t really upsetting as the situation was just beyond anybody’s control. “Now without a job, I have to do it otherwise how am I going to feed my family?” he asked. There was no slowing down the pandemic, and his initial hopes for the aviation industry recovering by the end of the year just didn’t happen. Getting into the F&B business was never part of his plan. He’s flown for MAS, Firefly, Lion Air, and Malindo Air. So in the end, he said, “Of course, we paid them all.” Not Departing From Aviation YetĪzrin has so far served 20 years in the aviation industry. The stall sold out before night fell that day. With the 50% discount for Kapten Corner’s opening day, they didn’t hesitate to grab a taste of Kapten Corner’s dishes. They’d already been fans of his mother-in-law’s cooking from when she sold her dishes at bazaars and online during the MCO. From the get-go, business soared.įriends were yearning to grab a bowl of Azrin’s dishes. His business went viral and was covered by many media / Image Credit: Azrin’s Facebookīut that wasn’t the case. She’d promised not to collect any rent if the business didn’t succeed. The same applied to the owner of Boom Town Cafe, a friend of his wife’s who offered the space next door where Kapten Corner now parks. “So much so that my mother-in-law had agreed not to get paid for her work until the business was OK,” he said. So cooking is in the blood of the family,” he said.Īn initial fear Azrin had was that it would take a long time for sales to start picking up, if at all. “Her younger sister is a self-taught cook too. Another studied culinary and has served in JW Marriott Hotel’s kitchen in KL. One of his brother-in-law currently operates a restaurant in Nilai. Though, they’ve ceased doing that after her late father retired from service. On top of that, his wife’s family had been in the school canteen business their whole lives. Married Into A Line Of CooksĪs mentioned above, Azrin’s mother-in-law has operated her stall at Ramadan bazaars for several years now. Tables, tents, and kitchen equipment were already in place.Īll they needed to buy were some extra tables and chairs to seat patrons, and ingredients for the meals.Īll was set in stone and ready for take-off. “We already had most of the equipment that was bought for my mother-in-law’s Ramadan bazaar,” he said. What would cost a whopping RM10,000 in capital was backed by resources his family has had for years. “Should we fail, it wouldn’t be a big loss to us either,” said Azrin. It’s a comparatively simple business to start as it doesn’t call for a huge capital outlay. Cruising The Biz’s Success Azrin at work, packing up soup for takeaways / Image Credit: Azrin’s Facebook. We thought it would be very catchy,” he said. “Kapten Corner is symbolic due to my job as a Captain of an airline pilot. The answer? Starting a roadside stall, Kapten Corner. “It was then that my wife and I decided to do something that could put food on the table for the family,” he said. Rumours were circulating amongst coworkers that retrenchments would happen at the start of November. To survive, he and his wife had to break open the savings they’d gathered for their four children’s education. He would sometimes only work for one day out of the whole month and get paid for that single day. I was paid on a per-job basis due to the poor load factor as all international borders were closed. I was no longer on a monthly salary basis. The suffering aviation industry amidst the pandemic has left its staff stranded, laid off with no monthly income to support themselves or families.Īzrin’s income had been badly impacted since the start of COVID-19. I have lost some weight too since our opening day on October 23, 2020,” said Azrin. On days where business goes on till 10.30PM, the family would clean up the store and only arrive home at 11.30 PM. “If we’re lucky, we’ll be sold out early and can have ample time to rest before starting again the next day,” he said. When they arrive, they’re met with the hungry lunch crowd, ready to devour a hot bowl of noodle soup and fruit rojak. The family then prepare the ingredients together before travelling from their home in Shah Alam to the stall in USJ11 by 1PM. In the morning, he would start his day by going to the market to replenish ingredients for the day’s service. “I feel like I’m now working 24/7,” said Azrin about manning his food stall, Kapten Corner.
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