Directors' Profile

Chairman of Nomination Committee
Member of Audit Committee
Member of Remuneration Committee

Datuk Dr. Ahmed Tasir, a Malaysian male, age 66 years, was appointed to the Board of OldTown Berhad as Independent Non-Executive Chairman since 10 November 2009.

Datuk Dr. Ahmed Tasir has extensive working experience in research and development and commercialisation in Agriculture, and policy directions and promoting collaborations involving strategic hi-tech industries and holds academic qualifications with a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Science and Technology Policy, University of Manchester, Master of Science in Seed Technology, University of Edinburgh, Scotland and a Bachelor in Agriculture Science, University of Malaya. He was conferred a Fellow of The Academy of Science Malaysia.

In 1972, Datuk Dr. Ahmed Tasir joined the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI) and was with the institute until 1992 where he last held the post as a Director. Subsequently, he was appointed CEO of the Malaysia Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) from 1993 to 2008. He was a Director of Inno Bio Ventures Sdn Bhd and Inno Biologics Sdn Bhd from 2003 to 2015, in addition to his responsibilities as President of the companies from 2011 to 2015.

Datuk Dr. Ahmed Tasir is presently Chairman of Strand Aerospace Malaysia Sdn Bhd and a Board Member of Mara Aerospace Technologies Sdn Bhd, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) and several private companies. He is also a Council member of Hospital Tuanku Mukriz.

Member of the Remuneration Committee

Mr Lee, a Malaysian male, age 51 years, was appointed to the Board of Oldtown Berhad as Executive Director on 30 November 2007.

As Group Managing Director, he is overall in charge of the management of the Group’s businesses and provides leadership, strategic direction and management policies on the growth and expansion of company’s manufacturing operations and caf chain outlets.

He brings with him immense industry knowledge, strong leadership and executional capabilities having a span of more than 30 years of experience in the manufacturing and retailing industries of which more than 15 years is in the coffee beverage industry. He is the key driving force in the growth and development of the OldTown Group of Companies and instrumental in the expansion of the Group’s FMCG and F&B sectors in the Asia-Pacific region.

Mr Lee started his career after 1986 as a Production Manager of Chong Ngai Knitting Factory Sdn Bhd, a garment manufacturer, and was later promoted to the position of a General Manager. He left the company in 1997 to become a Director of CN Supplies Sdn Bhd which was trading in hotel supplies. In 2001, he joined White Cafe Marketing Sdn Bhd, a company in the OldTown Group as a Managing Director and was subsequently re-designated the Group Managing Director of OldTown Berhad in 2009.

He holds directorships in several private companies and is currently the Chairman of OldTown International Sdn Bhd, the holding company of OldTown Berhad.

Chairman of Audit Committee
Member of Nomination Committee
Member of Remuneration Committee

Dato’ Wong, a Malaysian male, age 65 years, was appointed to the Board of Oldtown Berhad as an Independent Non-Executive Director on 1 April 2014.

Dato’ Wong is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants (England and Wales), as well as a Chartered Management Accountant (UK). He is also a Member of Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA), Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants (MICPA) and an Associate of Chartered Tax Institute of Malaysia (ACTIM). He holds a Master Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from the Cranfield Institute of Technology, UK.

Dato’ Wong has served Deloitte for over 40 years, where he held various positions including Senior Partner, Head of Clients and Market, as well as Exco Member of Deloitte Malaysia. He retired from Deloitte in 2013 and is currently an Executive Director of AG Legal Tax Services Sdn. Bhd.

Dato’ Wong also sits on the Board of Unisem (M) Berhad as an Independent Non-Executive Director since February 2014.

Chairman of Remuneration Committee
Member of Audit Committee
Member of Nomination Committee

Mr Tan, a Malaysian male, age 56 years, was appointed to the Board of Oldtown Berhad as Independent Non-Executive Director on 7 November 2012.

A business entrepreneur, Mr Tan graduated with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering (Hons) from the National University of Singapore in 1985. He joined WTS Konsultant, Kuching as a civil engineer in 1985 until 1990. He was appointed as Managing Director of Uomo Donna Sarawak Sdn Bhd from 1991 to 1993 and the Chief Executive Officer of PT Indoscala, Indonesia, a wholesaler and retailer of ladies apparel, from 1993 to 1996.

He has accumulated more than 19 years of business experience in the building construction and property development which includes integrating a township and golf course.

Mr Tan is the Founder and Vice Chairman of Eduland China and has 14 years’ experience in the setting up, operation and franchise of a chain of Bilingual Early Childhood Education centres in Shanghai City, Suzhou and Zhejiang Provinces. The Company provides quality early childhood care and education as amenities in purpose built kindergarten buildings located at premium townships and residential areas.

Chief Operating Officer (COO) of FMCG Sector

Mr Chuah, a Malaysian male, age 42 years, was appointed to the Board of Oldtown Berhad as Executive Director on 10 November 2009.

A seasoned marketing professional, he graduated with a Bachelor of Business, majoring in Marketing in 1997 from the University of Tasmania, Australia. He is also a certified marketer of the Chartered Institute of Marketing in the UK.

He has more than 18 years of extensive experience in Sales and Marketing. He began his career in 1997 as a Sales Executive with Besta Computerized Dictionary Sdn Bhd, a distributor of computer dictionary products.

Two years later, he joined White Cafe Sdn Bhd in 1999 as Marketing Manager and was promoted to Senior Marketing Manager in 2003 and Group Marketing General Manager in 2007. He is currently the OldTown Berhad’s COO of the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) Sector.

Mr Chuah is responsible for the overall business strategy formulation, objectives setting and strategy implementation for all FMCG activities and businesses including sales and marketing, manufacturing, research and development functions. He also heads the Group Marketing Communication Division and overseas subsidiaries’ operation in Shenzhen, China and Hong Kong, China.

Chief Operating Officer (COO) of F&B International Sector

Mr Clarence D’Silva, a Malaysian male, age 56 years, was appointed to the Board of OldTown Berhad as Executive Director on 10 November 2009.

With a deep passion for food, Mr Clarence D’Silva has worked his way up as Management Trainee to the position as Chief Operating Officer over a span of 33 years in the Food Service industry in Asia Pacific.

It was in this region where he honed his skills in managing several International Brands and done start-ups for new food businesses in Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Hong Kong and Malaysia and served in several senior positions with multi-national companies.

A graduate with a Bachelor of Business Administration from the California Technical College, USA in 1982, he began his career in F&B the following year when he joined KFC as a Management Trainee. In 1989, he took up employment with Carl’s Jr Asia Development Corporation under the MBF Group of Companies, and was eventually promoted to General Manager of the brand in Thailand. In 1998, he joined Sushi Kin Sdn Bhd as GM/ COO, and was appointed to the Board of Directors of the company in 2000. In 2003, he joined Yoshinoya Food Systems, which was part of the Wing Tai Asia Limited in Singapore, as its COO. In 2006, he took up the position of COO with FB Food System (HK) Ltd, a subsidiary of Far East Consortium, Hong Kong.

Mr Clarence D’Silva joined OldTown Berhad in 2009 as the COO of the Food and Beverage (F&B) and was responsible for overseeing the F&B operations, distribution and logistics, food manufacturing as well as the development of the F&B franchise business of the Group in Malaysia and Asia Pacific.

In 2016, in line with the Group’s focus towards international growth, he was reassigned as the COO of the Food and Beverage (F&B) International Sector and is currently responsible for the development of the Franchise Business for the Cafe outlets within the International Market.

Member of the
Remuneration Committee
Chairman of the Corporate Social Responsibility
(CSR) Committee

Mr Goh, a Malaysian male, age 46 years, was appointed to the Board of Oldtown Berhad as Executive Director on 30 November 2007.

As the co-founder of OldTown Group of Companies, he has more than 23 years of experience in the coffee manufacturing industry. He began his career in 1983 when he was involved in the family business of operating the Nam Heong Coffee Shop in Ipoh.

In 1999, he co-founded and established White Cafe Sdn Bhd where he was appointed Product Research and Development Director and was responsible for the formulation of the blend of white coffee that is currently produced by the Group and the product research and development activities of the Group from 1999 to 2013.

Mr Goh and Mr Tan Say Yap, Executive Director, are currently assuming a co-advisory role to the Group Managing Director in matters relating to the FMCG segment in relation to the production of coffee mixtures. Mr Goh is also the Chairman of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Committee that carries out the social responsibility functions of the Group via OldTown Children Care Fund (OCAF) and OldTown Earthcare activities.

He is a Director of several private companies which are involved in property investments, cafe and restaurant business, mobile apps and e-commerce platform.

Mr Tan, a Malaysian male, age 42 years, was appointed to the Board of Oldtown Berhad as Executive Director on 10 November 2009.

As the co-founder of the OldTown Group of Companies, he has more than 16 years of experience in the coffee manufacturing industry. He is instrumental in the formulation of the blend of white coffee which started the beverage manufacturing business of the Group.

Mr Tan obtained a Diploma in Hotel Business Management from Syuen Hotel and Catering Management Institute, Ipoh in 1996.

His career started in 1997 as Commis One at the Pangkor Laut Resort Hotel where he was mainly involved in the preparation of food for the hotel’s food and beverage outlets. In 1999, he co-founded and established White Cafe Sdn Bhd and was appointed Director of White Cafe Sdn Bhd. He was appointed Business Development Director of Kopitiam Asia Pacific Sdn Bhd and was responsible for the cafe outlet operations from 2005 to 2009 and held the position of Corporate Relations Director where he was responsible for fostering corporate relations with franchisees, landlords, business associates and business partners from 2009 to 2013.

Mr Tan and Mr Goh Ching Mun, Executive Director, are currently assuming a co-advisory role to the Group Managing Director in matters relating to the FMCG segment in the production of coffee mixtures.