Born into an average income family and having lost his dad at a young age, Ipoh-born Javendra Kumar made it his life’s purpose to provide his mother with nothing but the best.
“After my father passed away, I felt that it’s my responsibility to care for my mother,” he says.
JavenGlobalEnterprise came about after nights were spent thinking about how he could generate income, refusing to ask his mother for money.
“When my dad was around, I could ask him for money whenever I wanted. After he was gone, I couldn’t bring myself to ask my mum for money.”
“I didn’t really know what this business was going to be, so I wrote everything I could think of, printing, F&B, IT.”
Javendra began his entrepreneurship journey as an agent, connecting companies with potential clients and earning a small commission from every successful client.
Being elected as the vice-president of the student council, he recognised that there was a demand for printing.
“When we conduct events, there’s a constant need for printing. We usually have to print things like shirts, buntings and banners,” he says.
He realised that the students were being overcharged and decided to outsource his own materials.
“I didn’t really have enough capital to start my business. I earned about RM300 being an agent, so I saved the money. I was very frugal with my spending, basically surviving on roti canai,” he laughs.
Being a UKM student, he was able to rent a shop lot in the university at a much lower rate.
“I managed to save about RM3500 from being an agent, so I only did some basic renovation and opened my first printing shop,” he adds.
“I hired students, as students in public universities usually aren’t from high-income families. I pay them by the hour, and on a commission basis. I have about seven part-time staff now.”
Today, he earns a six-figure income.
With his hard-earned money, he bought his mother, Parameswary, her first house, having only lived in their grandfather’s shop lot all their life.
Although it was his dream to pursue medicine, Javendra says that he believes he was placed in UKM and offered the engineering course for a reason.
Javendra believes that it is all about the mindset. “For example, if you’re down with a fever, and you keep telling yourself that you’ve a fever, your body starts to believe you – and you feel weaker. Our mind is much stronger than we know. When my dad passed away, I was broken. He was closest to me, as I’m the youngest child in my family, but I had to think about the future, about my mum. I couldn’t let it affect me,” he says.
Also an IJM scholar, Javendra says that managing a business and excelling academically is not as difficult as it sounds, as it all boils down to time management.
“Classes are from 8am-5pm. Most students choose to spend after-class hours on entertainment. But I had important goals, so I channelled all my extra hours into my business,” he says.
Javendra strongly believes that students must set personal goals for themselves, and not just ‘go-with-the-flow’.
“Surround yourself with the right company and make choices that’ll improve your future. Work hard, nothing in life comes easy.”
He also believes that it is important to give back to the community.
“Give, and you will receive more in return. I’ve experienced that first hand with my business. When I choose to be stingy, I end up getting fewer projects, making lesser profits.”
He helps the community by donating his profits and providing free shirts to various charities.
Asked if he would consider a career in engineering, having graduated as a civil engineer, Javendra says to him his degree is a passport.
“It’s a paper qualification that gains people’s respect, especially when I meet people of high ranks. I might look at real estate sometime in the future, which is why I took up 5 environment modules during my degree. My certificate certainly helps, but no – working in the engineering world just isn’t for me,” he says.
Besides his printing business, Javendra also runs an e-commerce company.
He looks up to Jack Ma and was one of the 30 budding entrepreneurs hand-picked by the Ministry of Education to attend the Youth E-Commerce Programme in Hangzhou, China.
Now, he is looking to expand his printing business in Ipoh but lacks the manpower as he is currently based in KL.
Readers keen on giving Javendra a helping hand can contact him at 011 1148 7983.
Loshni Nair
