Retail Asia Summit - Malaysia - April 17, 2025

Education:

• First Class Economics, University of Malaya
• MBA in E-Commerce, Edith Cowan University, Australia
• Executive Education, University of Cambridge (Circular Economy and Sustainability)

Career:

• Former Malaysian Trade Commissioner to Bangkok and Frankfurt
• Current Senior Director at MATRADE Oversees trade promotion and 49 international offices
• Sustainability lead at MATRADE
• Member of the International Society of Sustainability Professionals
• Sustainability and Development Ambassador for National Cancer Society Malaysia (NCSM)

Opal is an Associate Partner with McKinsey and a core leader in its Consumer and Retail Practice in Southeast Asia. He focuses on serving Retailers and CPG players on strategy, digital and organisation topics. He is currently based in Kuala Lumpur, but has spent time in McKinsey’s Hong Kong and Sydney offices. Prior to McKinsey, Opal spent 6 years in leadership roles with e-commerce/O2O companies including as Country MD, Malaysia at HappyFresh (a Series-D funded e-grocery startup), interim-MD for Zalora in Malaysia, Indonesia and Taiwan, and co-MD of Rocket Internet Hong Kong. He is passionate about helping companies grow by unleashing the potential of e-commerce and omnichannel offerings for their customers.

Low Ngai Yuen is the Chief Merchandise and Marketing Officer for AEON (M) Co Berhad while serving 2 other public listed companies;  GDEX Berhad and OCK Group Berhad. GDEX is a last mile courier services and logistic company while OCK is in the business of telecommunications, network services and renewable energy. She is also a multiple award-winning advocate with an extensive and a proven track record of transformative impact across diverse sectors. President of the 24-year-old Persatuan Kakiseni that champions the arts and its advocacy; she also founded Pertubuhan Pembangunan Kendiri Wanita Dan Gadis, WOMENgirls in 2013; an NGO dedicated to program interventions to remind women as role models to younger girls to achieve their potentials. Yuen’s acclaimed social film on humanity called Orang Itu scored a 10/10 from film critic, Tan Sri Johan Jaafar in The Star and is named the top 5 must watch Malaysian films. This film played on Netflix since 2021 and recently ended its run and the film is now travelling. Currently Yuen is also a member on the Pahang Economic Advisory Council 2024/5; Deputy Chair on the National Cultural Council 2025/7 (MAKEN) as well as the Steering Committee of the 30% Club Malaysia.

Andrea is a global procurement and consulting leader with a passion for retail, innovation and making supply chains work smarter. Having covered roles across three continents, Andrea worked on some of the world’s most iconic brands, including Ferrero, Reckitt Benckiser and Woolworths.

With a deep love for the retail and FMCG world, Andrea understands what it takes to keep shelves stocked, products moving and customers happy. For him, Procurement isn’t just about numbers - it’s about partnerships, strategy and making bold moves that drive real impact. From cutting costs to driving sustainability, he thrives on finding creative solutions that make businesses stronger and more agile.

Andrea is always on the lookout for new ways to push boundaries, embrace technology and create value that goes beyond just cost savings.

Phillip is a strategic leader in retail innovation, currently serving as Head of Ventures at AEON, where he drives new business growth, innovation, and strategic investments. 
 
With over 15 years of experience spanning corporate, entrepreneurship, and investment banking roles, Phillip brings a unique blend of strategic foresight with executional expertise to scale businesses and shape industry trends. He played a pivotal role in structuring and launching AEON’s Corporate Venture Capital arm, aligning investment strategy with retail innovation.
 
As a professional scuba diver and amateur golfer, Phillip embraces challenges both in and out of the workplace, reflecting his passion for exploration, precision, and continuous growth.

Sharon is a digital marketing strategist with a strong track record in eCommerce growth, CRM, and omnichannel marketing for brands like Baskin-Robbins and KFC. She focuses on leveraging data-driven strategies to enhance customer engagement and drive business growth in the digital space. In her free time, she travels down the rabbit hole of pop culture trivia and plays Sudoku.

Professional Background
► Kevin is a seasoned transaction advisory specialist with over 25 years of extensive experience across Malaysia, London, and Singapore. He has a proven track record in providing comprehensive transaction advisory services, including financial due diligence, deal advisory, and negotiation support. His diverse clientele ranges from multinational corporations and sovereign wealth funds to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and family-owned businesses across various countries in Europe and the Asia Pacific region.

Professional Experience
► Played pivotal roles in facilitating acquisitions and fundraising initiatives for a wide array of businesses. His expertise includes working with hypermarket chains and supermarkets, where he has successfully navigated complex transactions to enhance value propositions and market positioning. Kevin has also supported department stores and franchises in their growth strategies, leveraging his deep understanding of consumer behaviour and market trends to identify lucrative opportunities.
► He has been instrumental working with clients in the acquisition and expansion of e-commerce platforms, recognizing the transformative impact of digital commerce on the retail landscape. His experience extends to payment gateways and fintech businesses, where he has provided strategic guidance to help clients adapt to the evolving financial technology environment and to make informed decisions that drive sustainable growth and profitability in an increasingly competitive market.

As Head of Retail and Seller Services at SPX Express, Jie Sheng continuously seeks ways to enhance customer operations. Prior to this, Jie Sheng also led the first-mile operations team to ensure on-time performance for all our sellers, implementing process improvement initiatives across both SPX and seller operations. Overseeing both first-mile logistics and seller services at a leading logistics company focused on ecommerce growth gives him a unique vantage point on the evolving needs of buyers and sellers — and what it takes to meet those needs operationally. With a strong mix of both strategy and operations, he strongly believes that a great strategy only matters if it can be executed.

By combining his focus on service excellence with a deep understanding of consumer behavior, Jie Sheng provides strategic insights into how businesses can leverage logistics as a driver of scalable growth in the ecommerce space.

Sachin Suresh is a dynamic generalist with nearly eight years of experience across Go to Market Strategy, Brand Expansion, Leadership & Analytics. Currently, he is spearheading the expansion of Babyshop - a leading baby & child brand under a multi-billion dollar retail conglomerate—in South East Asia. In this role, he is responsible for driving revenue and margin growth, scaling online and offline channels, developing local sourcing capabilities, and managing the end-to-end P&L of the business. With aggressive growth strategies, the brand now stands as the category leader in organized retail.

Prior to leading the expansion efforts, he served in the CEO’s Office at Babyshop, leading high-impact strategic initiatives aimed at strengthening the brands competitive edge. Sachin began his career at Mu Sigma, a decision sciences analytics firm, where he worked closely with Fortune 100 clients to deliver data-driven business decisions. Over the course of his career, he has worked in markets such as India, UAE, Indonesia & Malaysia. With a passion for building high-performing teams and solving complex challenges, Sachin brings a unique blend of analytical rigor and strategic vision to every endeavour.

Nur Azre is the Director of Strategic Partnerships at TikTok Shop Malaysia, championing initiatives that empower micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) through strategic collaborations with government agencies, industry partners, and community organizations.

A key milestone of this effort is the investment of nearly RM3 million to operate and build TikTok Shop LIVE Hubs across Malaysia, in partnership with TEKUN Nasional, to lower the barrier of entry for local entrepreneurs to create quality content and build engaged communities online through e-commerce.

Nur Azre also spearheads the #JomLokal initiative Shop, which aims to support local businesses through enhanced awareness, dedicated training, and special voucher injections that accelerate the growth of homegrown brands and MSMEs on TikTok Shop.

To date, her team at TikTok Shop Malaysia has uplifted thousands of local MSMEs, equipping them with the tools and knowledge to thrive in the evolving digital commerce landscape.

She remains dedicated to shaping the future of Malaysia’s e-commerce ecosystem, ensuring that local MSMEs —whether emerging entrepreneurs or established brands — can scale sustainably, reach new audiences, and maximize their growth potential on TikTok Shop.
 

Yuichi is our YCP Partner based in Vietnam. He has a proven track record of providing management consulting support and M&A support mainly to Japanese and Chinese companies. In the area of management consulting, he has provided a wide range of support, including, but not limited to, business strategy development, market entry strategy development, market competition research, process improvement, and organizational optimization. For M&A support, he has been involved in a wide range of projects, including financial advisory, business due diligence, pre-closing, and PMO in pre-closing and PMI. Prior to joining the YCP Group, he was selected as a member of GE's Leadership Program (EEDP), where he led new businesses from start-up to sale.

Ms. Selena Chua joined WCT Group as the Chief Executive Officer for malls management on 3 April 2017. She holds a Bachelor of Science (Estate Management) (Honours) from the National University of Singapore.

Ms. Selena Chua oversees all the malls in WCT’s portfolio i.e. Paradigm Mall In Petaling Jaya, Bukit Tinggi Shopping Centre in Klang and Paradigm Mall in Johor Bahru. She is also involved in the planning and development/purchase of new malls for the Group. She has more than 30 years of retail leasing planning and operation experience. Prior to joining WCT Group, she was the Managing Director/Retail Director with Synergistic Retail Consultancy and Management Pte Ltd. She was also the General Manager of John Little Department Store (“John Little”) and was responsible for the performance and growth of the business in Singapore and the region. Prior to joining John Little, she was the Head of Group Retail Leasing Singapore at CapitaLand Retail Limited for 9 years, the Leasing Manager of Scotts Shopping Centre and was also with CB Richard Ellis (Pte) Ltd’s Retail Department for 4 years. She also took care of the operations of Parkway Parade Shopping Mall for 2 years. Some of the malls she was involved in includes Ion Singapore, Raffles City Singapore, Raffles City Shanghai, Plaza Singapura, Tampines Mall, Junction 8, IMM. Ms Selena was part of the team that listed the 1st retail REIT in Singapore.

Azwan Ahimmat is an executive leader with dual directorial roles at Mydin Mohamed Holdings Berhad (MYDIN), Malaysia's largest homegrown halal wholesale and retail chain. With over 15 years in retail, he has consistently driven operational excellence and strategic growth.

His leadership combines strategic vision with operational expertise to enhance organizational performance, profitability, and customer engagement. Azwan specializes in digital transformation, retail innovation, and customer-centric strategies that have improved MYDIN's brand equity and market position.

He continues to implement advanced technologies and sustainable practices that strengthen MYDIN's competitive advantage while creating long-term value.

Azry Rasyeqa Rafflee is the Head of Customer Experience for FV Group with 11 years of experience working in Hospitality Industry for YTL Hotels, where she gained experiences, skills and knowledge in a world where Customer comes First, Integrity and Honesty as well as Innovation is a key value in driving phenomenal customer experiences to deliver the best services for customers at all ages.

My personal work philosophy, “Work is very important to me because I do enjoy doing things either helping someone or potentially change someone’s life no matter how small or petty it can be.”

I enjoy learning new things, and making mistakes because that is where I discover new strength and weaknesses of myself and what I am capable of.

To be able to help both internal and external customers through challenges in life gives me a sense of purpose in my work. Whenever I face challenges at work or with someone, I use the motivation I get from helping others to push myself and be a better version of myself. I enjoy listening to other too because they are my best Teacher! Working with others helps me thrive in the workplace and I would consider myself a team-oriented person for any give projects or daily work.