Chung Meng Tan, General Manager Malaysia, Santa Fe – the business’s latest office to become a FIDI Affiliate – gives the lowdown on the Malaysian market and the excellent opportunities in the country that exist, despite the wider challenges in global moving
The Malaysian moving market is typically transactional in nature, and it is cost sensitive too. It is driven by the dynamics of the global market.
During the past 10 years, many clients have changed to employee allowances, so they can choose their own supplier; or they have moved to multiple suppliers rather than rely exclusively on one preferred supplier.
In the meantime, the price of freight has increased threefold, which has had a tremendous upwards impact on the cost of moving.
Post-pandemic change
We saw a spike of people leaving Malaysia at the start of the pandemic, followed by a quiet period while our borders were closed. As the country has gradually opened up, activities are increasing, and companies are actively hiring once again.
The acceptance of the technological solutions for the moving process accelerated during this period, with virtual surveys as an alternative to physical surveys being a case in point.
From many points of view, Malaysia is still a relatively low-cost country, so we believe it’s an extremely attractive place for multinational companies to invest. This will generate a secondary impact, increasing opportunities when firms bring skilled and managerial workers into the country.
In the future, we believe ongoing high freight rates may cause some clients to rethink the viability of their moves. It could no longer be cost-effective then to move items, when compared with their actual value.
Meanwhile, rises in the cost of materials and inflation in the global economy, ongoing uncertainty caused by the global trade war, and the general state of the world economy also make moving more challenging.
The Santa Fe way
As a business, Santa Fe Relocation enables people and organisations to work, live and thrive in new places around the world.
Our mission is to deliver exceptional relocation experiences for our customers, with the following in mind: human and digital; consistent and compliant; global and local. The moving experience we provide is also enriched by the integrity, drive, quality, and passion of our people.
We are a long-standing and well-known business in Malaysia, having operated in the country since 1995.
We have two offices here, the main one in Kuala Lumpur covering the central, east coast, and southern region of the country, and a non-FIDI affiliated branch on Penang Island, which takes care of the business in the northern region.
Quality and customer orientation are our core values for carrying out a move.
Our experienced, skilled workforce is our main strength, because they ensure each move is carried out with such care.
Finding our FAIM
As part of the Santa Fe Group, the FAIM process has always been part of how we operate – and we can share expertise with our counterparts in our global network.
The audit process was thorough and comprehensive, with a scope that covers the range of different move scenarios. By joining the FIDI community and becoming part of this renowned global association for the moving industry, we can present ourselves as a fully certified mover to our business partners and clients around the world.
If the opportunity arises and time allows, we would like to be more involved in FIDI’s work. We are certainly looking forward to expanding our networking more with other FIDI Affiliates.
