THE ENTREPRENEUR: ROBERT KUOK HOCK NIEN

I choose Robert Kuok Hock Nien because he’s amazing story of rising up from poverty and becoming Southeast Asia’s richest person has become a shining inspiration for a lot of people. Robert’s philosophy in business can be summed up into four words: work hard, work smart. So, from a very young age, Robert has not only learned the value of diligence and hard work, but he has also discovered that it takes brains to become successful in the business world, and life in general.

            Robert Kuok Hock Nien born October 6, 1923  in Johor Bahru, Johor. He is a Malaysian Hockchiu entrepreneur who made his money in sugar, palm oil, shipping, and property. He currently resides in Hong Kong. He was youngest of 3 brothers,  Robert Kuok graduated from Raffles Institution, Singapore. He worked in the grains department of Mitsubishi, a Japanese industrial conglomerate between 1942 and 1945. After his father died in 1948. 

            In year 1949, Robert Kuok and his 2 brothers founded Kuok Brothers Sdn Bhd, trading in agricultural commodities. Under the new post-colonial government, Robert Kuok started in the sugar business alongside the government. He established the Malaysian Sugar Manufacturing Company in 1958 collaboration with Mitsui Bussan Kaisha Ltd and Nissin Sugar Manufacturing. In 1964, he built the first sugar mill Malaysia, Malayan Sugar Manufacturing with a monopoly of the government. In year 1961, Robert Kuok made a coup by buying cheap sugar from India before the prices shot up. He continued to invest heavily in sugar refineries, controlled 80% of the Malaysian sugar market with production of 1.5 million tonnes, equivalent to 10% of world production, and so earned his nickname "Sugar King of Asia".

            After achieving success in the business of sugar refining, Robert Kuok quickly moved into other businesses, and establish the largest flour mill in Malaysia. His company hold investments in other countries including Singapore, Thailand, China, Indonesia, Fiji and Australia. Business in China including 10  bottling company for cola-cola and ownership of the World Trade Center, Beijing.

            In year 1971, Robert Kuok built the first hotel in the Shangri-La Hotel and Resorts Chain in Singapore. His foray into the Hong Kong property began in 1977, when he acquired a plot of land on the newly reclaimed Tsim Sha Tsui East waterfront. Here, he built his 2nd hotel, the Kowloon Shangri-La. In 22 November 1985, Robert Kuok won the Golden Pyramid award that made him the Malaysian Entrepreneur for 1985.

              In year 1993, Robert Kuok's Kerry Group acquired a 34.9% stake in the South China Morning Post from Murdoch's News Corporation. After April 1, Robert Kuok officially retired from the Kerry Group and currently resides in Hong Kong.

          He also holds a degree of influence in the political scene. He played a significant role as an intermediary in organising meetings between the Malaysian and Chinese governments to create complete diplomatic cross recognition between both countries.

            According to Forbes his net worth is estimated to be around $14.7 billion on Feb 2012, making Robert Kuok the richest person in Malaysia and second richest in Southeast Asia after Dhanin Chearavanont of Thailand, according to Forbe's List of World Billionaires 2013 which Robert Kuok was placed 76th. As of December 2012, According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Robert Kuok has an estimated net worth of 17.3 billion making him the 40th richest person in the world. 






Sources:
1. http://malaysiafactbook.com/Robert_Kuok
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Kuok
3. http://www.myworklife.my/interactive/malaysian-talents/robert-kuok/