Previously, we shared the story of Malaysia’s oldest book establishment and how it managed to survive for over 100 years. While still on the topic of bookstores, this feature will focus on one of the newer ones—specifically, Malaysia’s largest online bookstore. That’s right, we’re talking about BookXcess.
Not only can you find some physical stores in shopping centres but a few are also located in somewhat hidden corners across the country. Just like its competitors, BookXcess has a wide range of book genres, from fiction and biography to lifestyle and education. Have you ever wondered how this establishment came to be? Let’s begin with how the founders Jacqueline Ng and Andrew Yap started the business.
Jacqueline Ng grew up in Singapore. Due to financial struggles, her family never encouraged she and her siblings to read or spend money on books. “I was one of the very few among all my classmates to not have a library card. The only things I used to read were Chinese newspapers and my school textbooks,” she recalled. Who knew that one day she would come to love reading? The future business owner recalled inviting a friend over but the friend refused to put down her book.
Curious, she started to read the book and soon became a book lover. After marrying her husband Andrew Yap, the couple moved to Malaysia and opened up a small magazine store in 2009. They then formed a partnership with the book rental shop from across theirs. The owner asked if they could help sell some English books. The couple agreed to sell the remaining English books under the name BookXcess. The reason for this arrangement was that international publishers like HarperCollins and Penguin Books sold 80% of their books to traditional bookstores. The 20% left was sold at discounted prices to places like the book rental shop.
This was the beginning of BookXcess. As the business grew, the owners learned that Malaysian families struggle with finding the right books for their children to learn English. “A lot of Malaysians are not fluent in English. We were one small stall, and we were on a mission to change an entire country. It was a very daunting task. It was one book at a time,” said Jacqueline. One of the ways to tackle this issue was to keep their prices low and offer free gift-wrapping services for customers.
Knowing that they could attract more readers, the couple took the next big step, one that was arguably risky. The founders decided to run a giant book sale in an office building in Selangor and you guessed it, they named it Big Bad Wolf, which is also the name of their company. “Coming up with a name and a character children can relate to was very important. We have to start them young,” said Andrew. Fast forward to 2011, the Big Bag Wolf team launched their first big book sale in Kuala Lumpur where they had over 1.5 million titles on display 24 hours a day. With that much success domestically, it was time to go international! The book sale has made its way to other countries like Thailand, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and Dubai.
Finally, in 2006, the couple opened their first BookXcess outlet in Amcorp Mall. The business has since grown and achieved multiple milestones. One such achievement was the opening of Malaysia’s first-ever 24-hour bookshop at Tamarind Square, which we’re sure many of you are familiar with or have visited at least once. One might assume that the company would have struggled during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the lockdown was actually a blessing in disguise. In an interview with The Rakyat Post, Andrew Yap revealed that sales had actually gone up since everyone was looking for new ways to pass the time. “People were at home; some find themselves with nothing to do, some searching for meaningful things to do,” he said.
During the MCO, the team improved their website and increased advertising, which was why sales did not drop at an alarming rate. Despite going digital at the time, the company refused to abandon physical retail, as it was a huge part of their identity. “Of course, it might not be convenient for one to go to a bookstore all the time, so there is a need for both physical and online stores. We want to capitalise on this opportunity and capture as much market share as possible,” Andrew explained.
Today, BookXcess is known as one of the most popular bookstores in Malaysia. Their flagship store was officially launched at the historic REXKL in 2022, and this is the kind of maze that many wouldn’t mind exploring. As for the owners, Jacqueline Ng and Andrew Yap are still on a mission to make reading and learning more accessible to everyone. It’s inspiring to see that their love and passion for reading have spread across more areas of Malaysia, as well as other countries.
Sources: BookExcess (1)(2), TatlerAsia, Options, BackScoop, TRP, TheEdgeMalaysia
