Author: Editorial

Walk into a Malaysian government office on a Thursday and you’ll probably notice something: batik. A lot of it. Since 2023, public servants have been encouraged to wear batik every Thursday. You’ll see it in all forms: bold, subtle, floral, geometric. Some wear it in a nice tailored-fit, others keep it loose. But whether it’s paired with sneakers or court shoes, it’s there, as part of the weekly routine. For many locals, it’s familiar. For tourists, it’s often one of the first cues that Malaysia has a rich visual language worth paying attention to. But batik is more than a…

It began with a simple conversation over kopi in mamak restaurant. Someone mentioned a beautifully made local product. The name didn’t ring a bell. It should have. That silence said everything. It wasn’t an isolated case. There were dozens. Products made with care, rooted in heritage, proudly Malaysian yet rarely visible. They lived in WhatsApp groups, flea markets, pop-ups, maybe a boutique shelf tucked out of sight. Sometimes only on Instagram, quietly posted, barely seen. Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. The work existed. The attention didn’t. And yet, we’re surrounded by…

You can tell a lot about a country by the way it sells things. Malaysia, in this moment, is a marketplace of ambition, aesthetics, and adaptation. Local brands aren’t just growing, they’re multiplying, morphing, and marching onto timelines and pasar malam stalls alike. But “local brand” no longer means just one thing. It’s no longer confined to a hand-embroidered tote or a jar of sambal with a handwritten label. Today, “local” could mean a multimillion ringgit campaign with national reach or a single parent making cookies in between school runs. Here, we break down the new local economy into four…