For ice skating champion Kimberly Wan, e-commerce based on the two fields is the new cool, writes Amalina Kamal
THIS might come off as strong but millennials are the key to strengthening the socio-economic climate.
Much like senior leaders in the industry, our youths have the potential to offer game-changing ideas — with moral support.
Success knows no age and ice princess Kimberly Wan proves just that. Wan was the country’s youngest female to attain the highest skating level and her triumph was recorded in the Malaysia Book of Records when she was 12.
Today — at 22 — the diligent go-getter is a social science graduate and has already skated her way (at a different arena this time) to pursue another dream of becoming a champion in the ever-changing realm of e-commerce.
Together with an equally tenacious business partner and fellow Monash University graduate Azlan Alam Malik (who is also in his 20s), they are out to push the frontiers of online trading through their startup, Otomate Me — a platform that integrates behavioural science and predictive analysis to simplify users’ shopping experience.
REWARDING HABITS
Shopping practices have evolved over time — from paying bills to buying groceries and placing meal orders, our lives have been made much easier thanks to e-commerce.
However, in a progressive world, even the convenience of such an avenue is looking less attractive as more people are fighting for the luxury of time.
“Today’s hectic lifestyle tells us that people have more to do. Parents especially are often forced to bring home their work and don’t get to spend time with their family as much as they want to. With concerns growing, that is where Otomate Me comes into play,” said Wan.
The platform allows frequently used products to “flow” to their household like a utility (such as electricity and water).
This simply means that we don’t have to tediously prepare new checklists — or go through the trouble of doing routine shopping — to restock essential goods.
“Azlan and I wanted to give parents such flexibility and freedom of shopping for recurrent needs simply because it’s the simplest form of activity that can buy them back lost time,” she added.
The co-founders first started their endeavours by being a service to automate the purchase and delivery of personal care goods. They later pivoted to specifically manage the needs of young parents with infants — from baby milk to diapers, bathing products and more.
“In the initial stages, we offered everything under the sun from toiletries to food but it just became overwhelming for the two of us to handle,” said Azlan.
“Changing the direction of our marketing and distribution seemed crucial at the time to strengthen the structure of our service and make it more workable. So we decided to focus on baby care.”
“After an experience attending baby fairs while conducting consumer research, we realised it is an area that we are confident to tap into,” added Wan.
“Of course, the ultimate goal is to expand on other verticals but we want to get a good grasp of the niche that we are concentrating on now.”
A DOSE OF ALGORITHM
Otomate Me (https://www.otomateme.com) — launched late last year — is a standalone platform with a core fundamental aspect that quantifies its users’ shopping habits and forecast them.
“As an end user, you get a reminder telling you a specific item (purchased through the site) is about to run out, followed by a request to enquire if you would like the said item to be delivered to your doorstep,” said Wan.
“Once a request is confirmed, an invoice is sent, payment is made, and the product is delivered. It’s as seamless as that and you will save time.”
The intelligence that backs Otomate Me was fully developed by Azlan, a mechatronics engineer.
“The are a few algorithms we use to track our shoppers’ behavioural patterns based on collected data — we also referenced online case studies and localised them to meet the needs of our users — that are paired with mathematical analyses,” he said
“We ask users on their product usage to learn the individual bespoke cycle. All kinds of variables are factored in our analysis to come out with proper timelines (for reminders) to suit our customers.”
When asked to identify the most significant behavourial pattern of local consumers, he said: “It’s a trade secret because it is one of our competitive advantages. But we do, of course, share them with our partners.
“People don’t usually merge social science (psychology) and technology — in e-commerce at least. The utilisation of the areas seems to go on divergent paths but we want to bring the two together with Otomate Me.”
Validation is among the top priorities the duo set out to achieve throughout the development of the platform.
“You can have a great product but if you have no users that support or believe in it — then it’s back to the drawing board. So it was all about getting feedback of customer experience and we made sure we listened. In retrospect, some of the most insightful comments came from unconventional situations,” said Azlan.
POWER OF VISION
When asked what it takes for young minds to be empowered and inculcated with entrepreneurial skills in an age where there is stiff competition, the two agree that enthusiasm is key.
“There are no standard requirements for someone to pursue his/her ambitions like what is hyped in many articles today. I believe that there is a different way of looking at it - telling someone to be confident just for the sake of success does not determine the outcome. What’s important is that when you put your mind to something, just do it. You don’t need any set of characteristics to dictate your dream,” said Azlan.
“Don’t be afraid of failure — it may be a cliché but there is a lot of truth to it. You will not be able to achieve anything without learning from your struggles,” added Wan.
In order to engage talent, businesses should not overlook the next generation.
The bottom line is that millennials do have strong opinions that have the potential to influence how we develop business strategies and articulate organisational goals. When the partnership among our youth is right, it can also prove to be an asset.
“A month after Otomate Me was launched, we were among a handful of startups to participate in the five-month Cyberview Living Lab Accelerator programme in partnership with Finnext Capital. It brought us to Cyberjaya in a collaborative effort of turning it into a smart city.
“It helps us out with tailoring the programme based on the needs of individual startups and hosts events that enable us to get in touch with experts in various fields.”
On Otomate Me’s outlook for the year, Azlan said: “We hope to cross into different regions and/or countries by the end of the year.”
GETTING CANDID WITH KIMBERLY WAN
HOW OLD WERE YOU WHEN YOU STARTED ICE SKATING AND HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN SINCE YOU’VE DONE SO PROFESSIONALLY?
I started figure skating at 6. I stopped at 16 and transitioned into ice hockey and joined the first women’s national team last year. So I suppose, it hasn’t really stopped.
FIGURE SKATING OR ICE-HOCKEY?
Ooh, tough one. Figure skating to foster and instil discipline and perseverance as an individual; ice-hockey to foster the importance of teamwork and coordination.
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO STUDY COMMUNICATIONS?
I’ve always had an interest in networking and learning about the world, culture, behaviours and personalities. Communications is a natural means to understand the theoretical concepts behind the behaviours of others.
WHAT IS THE MOST PRECIOUS GADGET YOU HAVE?
At present, it’s my iPhone as it connects me to all corners of the world. (:
FACEBOOK, TWITTER OR INSTAGRAM? WHY?
Facebook because of its more informative nature. On Facebook, you can share educational information, which can lead to stimulating discussions and debates. Twitter for its useful bite-sized information. Instagram, while useful for gaining a following, has its downsides with it being curated — much of it is masked advertising and retouched photos which set unrealistic expectations to those who view and follow.
WHAT WAS YOUR LAST SEARCH ON GOOGLE?
Just a couple of image searches for a partnership proposal for Otomate Me!
WHAT WAS YOUR LAST ONLINE PURCHASE? AND WHAT MADE YOU BUY IT?
An audiobook on Audible called The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman as narrated by Brian Holsopple. I purchased it because I wanted to learn to control my emotions and leave things that are out of my control out of the scope of things that can affect me.
WHAT IS THE MOST EMBARRASSING DIGITAL HABIT ARE YOU GUILTY OF?
Surprising, I don’t have one that I’m embarrassed of. Haha!
WHAT EXCITES YOU?
Yummy and delicious food!
WHAT SCARES YOU?
Flying cockroaches!
IF YOU COULD TIME WARP YOURSELF TO ANY POINT IN HISTORY, WHEN WOULD IT BE AND WHO WOULD YOU HANG OUT WITH?
It would be the 1930s as that was when the Blues started to pick up. I would like to hang out with Robert Johnson as he was one of the pioneers of Mississippi Delta Blues music.
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