Disclaimer: In Real Life is a platform for everyday people to share their experiences and voices. All articles are personal stories and do not necessarily echo In Real Life’s sentiments.
I’d been working with AirAsia for 8 years prior to them letting me go. It was especially hard because it wasn’t like I wanted to stop working there, but I was made to leave because the company was facing their own problems at the time.
Erween as a flight crew for airasia!
Of course, when I was let go I was feeling sad. It actually took me a couple of months or so to accept that I was actually fired and that AirAsia needed to do it!
So I slowly tried to collect myself and get out of that rut.
“So long as I’m just sitting and feeling sorry for myself, nothing will change.”
When I was finally able to get going, I managed to build my own business and really make a name for myself. And that was by selling women’s hijabs!
Here is my story!
Being Unemployed
I was searching all over for work but of course, it wasn’t easy because it was still during the time when Covid cases were high and not many people were hiring.
While I was looking around for work, I was also being a drop-ship agent for all sorts of brands. In one year, I was doing all kinds of things.
[source: christina morillo on pexels]
At first, I started a side business by selling tauhu bergedil, and even body scrubs. But in the end, none of these small jobs really stuck or worked out.
Still, it was from there that I learned more and more about what it takes to run a business.
Getting Inspiration From My Mother’s Hijab Collecting Habits
A lot of my family members, and generally people around me wear the hijab. So that’s part of where I got the idea to sell hijab.
But it mainly hit me when I noticed my mother was the type of person to buy and collect hijabs, even though she had just started wearing them 2 years ago.
Since I’m close with her, she would let me know about what she struggled with when wearing the headpiece.
@ednascarf Amboi penuh emosi ya ? #ednascarf #shawlinstant #shawltutorial ♬ original sound – ednascarf
She’d say things like; “inner tak sama” (does not complement the outfit) or “anak tudung hilang” (the headscarf piece is missing). She would also complain about getting a lot of migraines.
“If the materials were too thick and it made her feel hot, then she’d get a migraine!”
So I thought I’d come up with a design that could be easy for her to wear, while also taking her issues with thick materials into consideration. I focused on the issues that she’d bring up and I’d try to fix them!
So then I thought, “okay… how about I just sell this item then!”
From there, I got a team together and that’s how EdnaScarf came to be!
Starting The Business
My business model started with just RM3K at the time. I have a business partner who helps me run my business.
There are a total of 50 people working under me – this includes dropship agents but, mainly there are 4 main staff working with Ednascrarf.
I have a creative team that helps take videos for our social media and promote the hijabs.
Erween filming a hijab tutorial at ednascarf’s headquarters
I have an admin who helps with customer service.
And finally, I have 2 staff who are storekeepers.
The Biggest Struggle In Starting
When I first started, I did a launch and had models come to pose for pictures and videos. Still, I wasn’t getting any audience from it and no one was watching these videos at first.
I had to pause and think about how many other hijab sellers there are in Malaysia. I had to contemplate why my product was different and what made it stand out!
The special thing about the hijab I made is that it is designed to be very quickly and easily worn. When I called these models to help me promote my product, there were times when they didn’t come to the photoshoots that I set up.
Then I figured since I’m the founder, how about I promote these headpieces myself? I would record the tutorials, and I would be the front face of my own product.
@ednascarf Inner dah siap jahit dengan Shawl ? senangyeee iduppp.. #ednascarf #shawltutorial ##shawlraya #RancakRaya ♬ original sound – ednascarf
I thought if I recorded myself putting this hijab on, then it would show people how easy it is to wear them!
Because of this, I was getting more and more views because people found it weird that a man was doing the demonstration.
Being Viral & Getting Doxxed!
“When I first got viral for my videos, Ween kena kecam kawkaw (I got doxxed like crazy.)”
People were asking me why I didn’t get a woman to model the hijab? Why was I, a guy, wearing a hijab? They were asking me why I was choosing to embarrass myself online just to sell my product…
So, when I received all these comments, I felt low and it made me not want to come out with more videos.
@ednascarf Hidupni kene Enjoy !!! Tp enjoy sgt eh org sibuk ngemas ni ? @Erween Daud #pindahopisbaru #newjourney #ednascarf #BawalAssyura #viraltiktok #foryou #TakeBestShot ♬ DJ Rahmat Fauzi Syg Sekali – KomzZz
But the longer I thought about it, I realised that I’m only doing this to demonstrate how easy it is to wear. I’m not actually wearing it to go out.
Plus, the design for my hijabs include a built-in headscarf, and that meant having the models show their hair (their aurat) when doing the demonstration videos. If I did the demonstration video, I wouldn’t be showing my own aurat because… well, I’m a guy.
The people who were leaving hateful comments were telling me how ugly I looked when I did my demonstrations but at that point, I didn’t care anymore. I wasn’t bringing any harm to others and all I’m doing is making videos that teach people how to wear my product!
Knowing Who My True Friends Are
When I first started, a lot of my friends weren’t very supportive of me. They said I wouldn’t survive and they disappeared from my life for a while.
But now, they’re reappearing and trying to invite me to do business with them, and some are trying to sell insurance to me.
There are all kinds of these people who suddenly wanted to be involved with me, now that I’m getting more traction with my product.
“Still, the friends who stuck around from the beginning were a huge help in the growth of my business.”
I had a limited budget, especially for photoshoots and such. So, I had these friends – who were experienced in having their pictures taken – agree to model for the hijabs that I had made. And they were doing it all for free!
My little team of friends were even sharing their ideas on how to expand the business and make it bigger.
Getting Rehired By AirAsia!
Since Malaysia has entered the endemic phase, the travel and hospitality businesses are doing a lot better now.
And ta-da, I was asked to rejoin Air Asia as a flight steward again!
Erween as a flight crew for airasia!
The CEO of AirAsia, Tony Fernandes, made a promise back then that they would work towards rehiring their staff that had to be let go. It was really nice of them to have kept their promise.
Being back on the team meant that I had to resit for some classes as one would renew their license. I recently finished the assessments and I am back to serving passengers on flights!
With that in mind, EdnaScarf is also still running as I have my business partner who is a huge help throughout everything.
Despite how busy my new schedule is, I’m also still making my own tutorial videos for the hijabs.
Check out EdnaScarf’ on their Facebook, Instagram and TikTok!
For more stories like this, read:
“Pontianak, Rick & Morty-Fied” – How These Malaysians Created A World-Class Cartoon DURING MCO
I Lost My Job Due To The MCO, Then I Started An Online Service That Pays Me 5x More
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