Furniture firm in Brunei looks to venture overseas

“We have plans to go out to neighbouring countries like Malaysia and Indonesia, but it’s not confirmed yet. This is because Brunei’s (furniture retail market) is going to be saturated,” said Andrew Liow, executive director of Court Pioneer Company.
He said the company has 11 branches across the sultanate.
“We have no branches outside the country. In our showroom, 70 per cent of our products are locally produced and 30 per cent are imported,” said Liow.
He is positive that penetrating foreign markets can boost the company’s sales.
He said while the company has succeeded in gaining a foothold in the domestic market, it can’t be complacent given the unpredictable demand for furniture.
“Thirty years ago, it was a golden time for furniture businesses in Brunei. Our sales figure quoted by the company’s founder at that time was $200,000 sales in a day. But that was long time ago,” said Liow.
But he said some factors need to be taken into account before venturing abroad.
“We need to consider the local competition in that particular country. We need to know the players because they are our competitors,” he said.
He said the company also needs to consider the government regulations that might affect its business operations in a foreign country.
When asked about the company’s current plan, Liow said Court Pioneer has been active in its research and development to provide the most suitable furniture to local clients.
He said whenever the factory is designing new tables or chairs, the company’s R&D team will first conduct a market analysis to find out whether the new designs are suitable to Brunei’s market.