The “Utama” in Bandar Utama Development

Tan Sri Dato’ Teo Chiang Hong - A Remarkable Man With Surprisingly Simple Values

By: Jotham Lim

Usually, when the editorial team here at Property Insight books an interview, especially with a luminary as respected as Tan Sri Dato’ Teo Chiang Hong, we spend hours researching the subject to make sure we bring you the best interview possible. But what do you do when your subject is famously media-shy, to the point of not even having his own Wikipedia entry?

We were warned that Tan Sri Dato’ dislikes the spotlight, preferring to keep a low profile even while running one of the most successful businesses in Malaysia. To that end, we decided this exclusive interview would be the perfect time to peel back the curtain of mystery surrounding one of the main men behind Bandar Utama’s success.

So where do we start?

Tan Sri Dato’ Teo Chiang Hong is one of the proud owners and the director of One World Hotel, and also a director of Bandar Utama Development Sdn Bhd and Bandar Utama City Corporation Sdn Bhd. These companies are part of See Hoy Chan Holdings Group, a significant contributor to Malaysia’s residential and commercial property development sector.

Bandar Utama’s latest projects include 9 Bukit Utama, a significant addition to the company’s already robust portfolio. 9 Bukit Utama lies in the heart of Bandar Utama, with three blocks of spacious and functional family-sized condominiums standing tall and lofty overseeing the entire district.

These high-rise residences are set within acres of lush, golfing greenery, providing a refreshingly picturesque view from a strategic vantage point. Designed to be prestigious and opulent, the lifestyle and elegance of the residential area is reflected through the well-designed home layout, amenities and smart city planning.

Built to support a sustainable and healthy lifestyle, 9 Bukit Utama has amenities such as gyms, landscaped gardens, as well as tennis and badminton courts. Parents can rest easy letting their children have a wonderful time at the skate park and kids play area, due to the 24-hour security personnel and security cameras.

If high-rise condominiums do not suit your personal taste, Bandar Utama’s The Effingham offers 32 acres of land with contemporary villas. All villas are of freehold status, enclaved in a safe, gated community, with each home offering more than 6,000 sq. ft of luxuriant living space.

The Effingham is set in a suburban landscape that offers plenty of flexibility in terms of building your dream home, while being eco-friendly at the same time. The Effingham is centred around building a sustainable ecosystem, with plenty of greenery and recreational space.

We arrived early to set up for the interview, and while waiting for the understandably busy Tan Sri Dato‘, we had a nice chat with the staff and employees who have worked alongside this enigmatic figure. It’s from these people that a picture of the man behind the myth emerged, giving us insight not many are privy to.

Tan Sri Dato’ Teo Chiang Hong is a family man through and through, so much so that the importance he places on family values has bled into the company culture. Many staff members have been serving in the company for decades. One of his staff happily commented, “Tan Sri Dato’ really knows how to take good care of us. He treats us like family, and he wants us to do the same for others. If you notice, nobody here wears a necktie. Tan Sri Dato’ always comes to work without a coat and tie whenever he is not meeting people from the outside. He doesn’t like being too formal with the staff, and he doesn’t want to be seen as unapproachable. There are not many bosses like this nowadays - that is why the employees here respect Tan Sri Dato’ so much. If the boss isn’t wearing a necktie, how can the staff wear one and ‘one-up’ the boss?” she laughs.

This little peek at who Tan Sri Dato’ really is helped soothe our nerves before the interview, given that we knew so little about the man. Soon after, he entered through the front door and gave us a cheerful welcome, radiating charm and a gregarious warmth. And sure enough, he did not wear a suit and tie.

History

The interview started with a reminiscence into the past, to see how far Bandar Utama has come, and to revisit the milestones and the long journey that created what is arguably Petaling Jaya’s most sought-after residential area.

“Bandar Utama started with just a small estate called Effingham Estate. We bought over the estate, started planning the development and kickstarted the project in 1990,” Tan Sri Dato’ shares. He explained that Bandar Utama is heavily inspired by the precinct system, later implemented by the government, which was a relatively innovative concept at that time.

“We have precincts for linked house development that hold about 500 residential units per precinct, which we now know as Bandar Utama. We have precincts specifically targeted for condominiums and high rise developments as well, such as 1 Bukit Utama and 9 Bukit Utama. Of course, we have a commercial and office district which you may be familiar with. It holds 1 Utama Shopping Mall, One World Hotel, KPMG Tower, Plaza IBM etc.,” says Tan Sri Dato’ with a certain pride.

“Down the road, we have also established Centrepoint, several office spaces, petrol stations, ‘makan’ and DIY areas etc. We even have light industrial and high-tech parks as well. Now we are in the midst of setting up a hospital project in tandem with our retirement village project. Looking back it is amazing how far we have come… It has been a while since I last revisited this past since there is still a lot of work that needs to be done.”

Build-Then-Sell

Collecting payment from homebuyers by phases throughout the construction period is general industry practice in the property sector. However, Bandar Utama pioneered implementing the “build then sell” concept in Malaysia. “Build Then Sell” concept projects are sold only after construction is fully completed. This unconventional business model is something Tan Sri Dato’ is happy to explain.

“It all started in 1997 during the worldwide financial crisis. We were about to launch the next development phase of Bandar Utama. The economic environment was challenging, and the company faced a serious dilemma. An emergency meeting was called, and I sat down together with my father to discuss the direction and how we should proceed to cope with the crisis,” Tan Sri Dato’ shares.

“In reality, we had the option to delay launching projects, as at that time every developer was struggling as well. However, we had made promises to our stakeholders, and we believe in delivering on those promises regardless of how bad the market performance is. After a lengthy discussion, we decided to proceed with the construction of the new phase of linked houses. The market response was surprisingly positive, and we managed to pull through. It seems that we made the right call in that situation. We used the same strategy for several other projects as well, and other developers caught on soon after.”

Lesson Learnt

“1997 would be considered the lowest point in Bandar Utama’s history during the market crash. There will always be highs and lows in every industry. It is unavoidable. But how you react to sudden market changes is what matters most. The crisis got us sitting down and racking our brains. How can we survive? How can we help those whose jobs and families are dependent on us? That was a big challenge, and after some considerations, we came up with the Build-Then-Sell concept, and started using it to market our properties.”

“There are no secrets nor shortcuts that got us through the crisis. We optimised and re-optimised our spending while still maintaining our quality of workmanship. Our employees were very understanding and willing to work with us through dark times. Thankfully, we were vigilant with our savings in the past, and we had set aside an amount of money just for situations like this. But what I learnt most is, we must keep our values and identity intact no matter what. We still need to set out and achieve what we believe in even if it takes us down a longer, tougher path,” shares Tan Sri Dato‘.

Company Values

Listening to Tan Sri Dato’s inspiring story, the reason why staff have such a high level of respect and care for him becomes clear. We started a conversation about his management style, and he suddenly got very excited.

“Employees are the best investment a company could make! We have never once missed out on salary increments or yearly bonuses over the years. Never once in the company’s history did we neglect paying staff on time,” said Tan Sri Dato’ with pride.

“Stability is important for employees, customers, and stakeholders as well. Stability builds people’s confidence and keeps the business running. We are not a high-flying company; we are quite old school and traditional. We take care of our own people and give them employment until they decide they cannot work anymore. We have employees who have worked for 50 years, and we really value their services and loyalty very much.”

Bandar Utama Development

This people-centric approach is easily explained in the office environment, but values don’t always translate into work. Out of curiosity, we asked Tan Sri Dato’ about how his values are reflected in the physical houses that make up Bandar Utama.

“I come from a very traditional Chinese background, so family is of utmost importance to me. Our properties and development projects are built with family stability in mind. All houses built and sold have plenty of space for children to play and are easy for the elderly to walk around. My personal design philosophy is maximising as much space as possible, including as many rooms as possible. No unnecessary pillars, partitions, winding pathways, nooks, or corners of any sort.”

“We only build homes with solid foundations and don’t skimp on building materials. We only sell homes with freehold status because we want our homes to be lived in for multiple generations. We are also the pioneers of the 2.5 storey home design because we find that it is the perfect balance of having enough space for a growing family while not being overly expensive,” Tan Sri Dato’ says.

“However, Malaysian culture is slowly changing, and we have to eventually adapt as well. Nowadays, people are more centred towards buying smaller units, because affordability is a huge factor. Newly-wed couples and young families have started living on their own away from their parents. We are taking note of this, and our future developments will be a mixture of small, medium and large units.”

“However, we will never lose sight of our family values. When couples marry and expand their families, they will eventually run out of space. For now, we will focus on building units that cater to a family of about four or five. But at the end of the day, Bandar Utama sets out to be a township that takes care of its residents for their whole lives. From birth to education, to working adults all the way until their deaths. There is no need for us to change our values and goals because they are already good values in the first place.”

One World Hotel

The conversation slowly shifted towards another aspect of Tan Sri Dato’s career - His ownership and directorship of One World Hotel.

One World Hotel recently nabbed the Pacific International Hotel Award for being the Best Convention Hotel in Malaysia. Just a little over a week later, the hotel was also awarded the World Leading Meeting & Conference Hotel Award by World Travel Awards Asia & Australasia. Nothing new here really as this 5-star hotel has been consistently winning multiple prestigious awards each and every year.

One World Hotel has also won an Excellence Award at The Haute Grandeur Global Awards Ceremony 2018, bagging several awards such as Best Conference Venue in Malaysia, Best Convention Hotel in Malaysia, Best Eco-friendly Hotel in Malaysia and Best MICE Hotel in Malaysia.

When asked about the secret behind One World Hotel’s success, Tan Sri Dato’ replied immediately - “Service! Stellar service is the secret to the success of any hotel in the world. Hotels are all about trying to sell comfort and experience. Ask any friends or family who travel frequently, and they will always remember the service experience they have had. Hotel staff who can provide excellent service are hard to come by, but I am happy to have such an amazing and loyal team that has been working with us for more than a decade.”

“Initially, many people told me that the hotel’s location was out of place, being the only major hotel in the area. From how I see it, the hotel is just another property project meant to coexist with other commercial properties in the area. Companies in office towers will have visitors and guests, and shopping malls will have outstation visitors as well. These people need a place to stay, and if not with their family members, they will need to find a hotel. One World Hotel intends to fill that gap in supply and demand,” Tan Sri Dato’ explained.

Future Expectations

The interview got us extremely excited about the future of Bandar Utama as a whole. We asked about any recent or future developments the public should be aware of.

“We are currently working on establishing a retirement village, a concept I took from Australia after a recent trip there. It is much more than a simple retirement home, specifically made for people who are able to afford a more luxurious lifestyle. Imagine having nurses and doctors nearby, downstairs or next door at all times. Your health and comfort are well protected, and help is always within reach in case of emergencies.”

“There will be fully serviced residential units with servants, maids, and visiting family members. All facilities and hospitals will be located nearby each other. It is a village fully designed for the elderly to provide them with the means to live a comfortable life.”

“I am no longer a young man. It is a dream to have whole families buying multiple units in the same area, staying nearby each other so they can look after their parents and children. The best families grow by becoming a loyal community because they are comfortable and happy with the place they live.”

Final Statements

Before heading out to his next appointment, we asked Tan Sri Dato’ for his last comments and advice for home buyers. He happily responded:

“From young couples to mature families, each person is driven by different needs. Be wise when picking a home to purchase, and choose properties that fit your circumstances. To the young people out there, the most important thing is to work hard and be good at what you are doing. Do it properly, do it well, and always save some money because you will never know what is going to happen to you. For people my age, we can afford what we want, but we have to be smart with our money, and be very vigilant.”

“Touching on 2019, our country will go through some tough times, but we have been in this situation before. It will take some time for Malaysia to recover and relive its glory days. In the meanwhile, there will be rising loan interest rates, high supply and low demand. Look for good bargains, and look for good locations. And if you are looking for a good location, why not give Bandar Utama a try?”

And with a hearty laugh, Tan Sri Dato’ took his leave, no doubt considering his next big move.

FEB-MAR 2019