OPERATING a food and beverage business is not as easy as it seems, with business owners needing to calculate various costs needed to prepare their products, especially when it comes to local fare, given the current state of the economy.
From fluctuating ingredient costs to labour-intensive preparation methods, local food vendors often struggle to price their offerings fairly while remaining competitive.
However, a growing sentiment among local entrepreneurs is that Malaysian customers are more willing to pay a premium for non-local dishes while expecting local fare to remain cheap and generously portioned — a mindset that many say needs to change.
“To me, cooking Malaysian dishes, no matter if Malay, Chinese or Indian, is way more complicated than any other western or non-local food.
“Yet, our locals do not support this, complaining and keep on pressuring local food vendors to sell cheap food and demanding big portions,” a Malaysian shared in a Threads post.
The Malaysian noted that a RM7 sandwich has a higher profit margin compared to any ‘makcik’ selling RM7 nasi lemak with chicken – only to result in customers questioning the nasi lemak’s pricing.
Another issue raised was how Malaysians stay silent when it comes to Southeast Asian dishes such as ‘ayam penyet’, which is usually priced at RM12 or higher, despite the simple ingredients which can be accessible in Malaysia.
“We have been colonized in this food industry for so long, the mindset of paying higher prices for non-local dishes has been stuck in our Malaysian minds.
“Come on, support the locals. No matter if it is nasi lemak, banana leaf rice or mapo tofu – our local food has the right to be set at the right price, given all the hard work in the preparation,” the post concluded.
Netizens mostly sided with the Malaysian’s thoughts, voicing out their frustrations over being questioned about their pricing as local food vendors.
“I’m also in the F&B business and I feel the same way. Customers often question why my apam balik is RM5 even though I put a lot of nuts and corn. They still complain, saying things like ‘What’s gone up? Sugar and flour haven’t increased, and nuts don’t cost that much’,” a user said.
Another shared how their attempt selling local food such as fried meehoon and kuey teow ended in failure after seeing the little profit made despite putting a lot of money and energy into making these foods.