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Malaysian Palace Institute demanded "The Sultan" to change their name, what happened?

By Kelie Wong · 2nd May, 2024

Malaysian Palace Institute demanded "The Sultan" to change their name, what happened? | EasyStore

Everyone desires to sleep like a king - or a Sultan in the Bahasa Melayu language.

Sultera was formerly known as "The Sultan" since its inception in 2018, founded by a graphic designer turned entrepreneur - Ashraf Aziz. They are Malaysians' top choice for home products, including hotel-quality towels, bedding, pillows, and home items. 

The mission of this business was to empower all customers to enjoy 5-star hotel living quality in their own homes with just the addition of their products. The message conveyed is that anyone can live a premium, luxury, and comfortable lifestyle at their own home.

Today, 1 in 10 Malaysians get a good night's sleep with their bantal.

"The Sultan" First Steps

This business came to life through one of the conversations he had at his friend's house. A few months in, they launched their official online store, expanded into key channels like Facebook and Instagram and started their commerce growth journey on EasyStore. 

The pandemic did NOT stop him! 

Their growth accelerated further especially with the launch of Sultera Ambassador Program that empowered all individuals, including stay-at-home mothers, talents who lost their job to the pandemic to kickstart their entrepreneurial journey! 

Soon after, they were invited to be featured on TV Alhijrah and with every rise of a new sales channel, like TikTok, they easily expanded with just a click away on their computer, desktop, and phone at their 5 lot office-showroom outlet located in Shah Alam.

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Why Did Malaysian Palace Institute Step In? 

In 2022, which marked accelerated growth for their business and even garnered attention from the Palace of the Institute! 

After learning about the business, they mindfully advised the business owner to change the brand name in respect for term "Sultan." Then came numerous efforts and brainstorming sessions. Sultera rebranded to Sultae and resubmitted their documents. However, this resulted in a second rejection, as Sultae was too similar to the Kelantanese dialect of "sultan," bringing them back to square one.

 

After much contemplation, they wondered if there was another way to convey their message. Upon reflection on their raw materials and products, they considered silk - 'sutera' in Bahasa Melayu.

Combining 'sultan' and 'sutera' resulted in 'sultera.' This rebranding, which cost them , marked the beginning of their journey towards greater success and followed them through their expansion.

The Sultan, Sultae, Sultera

The brand name, Sultera, then followed them through the highs and never lows.

Collaborations and events that drive awareness:

  • Tujuh Kristal x SULTERA: Collab with Smart home brand
  • Karnival Keusahawanan PKNS 2023
  • Karnival Upin & Ipin 2023

Key achievements:

  • Raya Campaign 2023: achieved highest 7-figure sales record
  • Crossborder: Expanded internationally to Singapore and potentially to Brunei 
  • Ambassadors Program: Recuited 300 Ambassadors Nationwide

Awards that recognized their growth:

  • Top Rising Award by Annum leadership
  • Awarded Top 3 at the Top ECM Awards 2023 by SIDEC
  • Majlis PKNS Usahasn Anugerah Peruncitan Perbaik 2023

160% Revenue Surge

Prior to this business venture, Ashraf worked as a graphic designer. Despite lacking any prior retail experience, he managed to achieve a remarkable 160% surge in revenue with his first retail launch!

Ashraf pointed out an intriguing statistic: while a satisfied customer may share their positive experience with three others, a dissatisfied customer may share their negative experience with eleven.

He emphasized the importance of synchronized branding, streamlined operations, and enhancing customer engagement as key considerations when launching his first showroom outlet.

Here's what he did to prioritize customer experience and uphold their branding.

Sultera Roadmap Ahead

One of the key strategies that has led to their success and will continue to guide them forward is to focus on enhancing their customer experience - facilitating easier checkouts, attracting customers beyond their database, and launching more retail outlets to get on ground with their customers.

Sultera converts first-time shoppers into superfans by providing ease of purchase across online channels and retail outlets, offering options such as buy in-store ship to doorstep, buy online pick up in-store, and same-day order delivery.

When it comes to rewarding customers, Sultera does so through a tier-based membership program that is accessible online and offline, no matter which outlet they visit, by showing their member barcode through the member app.

Another thing the Sultera team does is creating content and campaigns to engage with their community across all social media channels, ultimately directing them to make purchases, all powered by EasyStore. Sultera also aims to expand internationally into Brunei market. 

Confidence Driving Sultera's Growth 

EasyStore is a Unified Commerce Solution that unifies retail and ecommerce business. 

Over 50,000 brands have grown their businesses by embracing unified customer experiences (UCX) strategy through EasyStore across multiple sales channels - online store, retail outlets, marketplaces, and social media, ensuring consistency in product and service offerings for a seamless shopping journey. 

Here's a recap of how Sultera synergised growth through EasyStore: 

  • Overseeing orders across online and offline sales channels
  • Identifying loyal customers no matter where they interact
  • Live updates on inventory to ensure timely stocks
  • Supporting campaigns during peak seasons (Raya)
  • Marketing tools to catch customer hearts

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