Anastasia Tjendri-Liew (b. 1947, Bangka Island, Indonesia–) is the founder and managing director of Bengawan Solo, one of Singapore’s most successful bakery chains.1 Under her leadership, Bengawan Solo has grown from a single store to a chain with over 40 outlets.2 Tjendri-Liew grew up in Indonesia before coming to Singapore in 1970.3
Early life
Born on Bangka Island, Indonesia, Tjendri-Liew was the third of eight children and grew up in Palembang. Her mother was a homemaker, while her father ran a provision shop. She did well in school, usually finishing within the top three in class, but civil unrest in the city curtailed her education during her teenage years. Her interest in food was clear from childhood, when she sometimes walked to school so she could use her bus fare to buy food such as fried noodles and pempek, an Indonesian fishcake.4
After leaving school, Tjendri-Liew took up baking and cooking classes to hone the culinary skills that she had picked up from her mother and aunt as a teenager. She improved on the recipes she was taught and conducted her own culinary classes from home, using the income to take up an even wider variety of classes.5
In 1970, Tjendri-Liew came to Singapore to improve her command of English. There, she met her husband Johnson Liew, who is also an Indonesian-Chinese. They married in 1973 and have a daughter, Rissa, and a son, Henry.6
Beginnings of Bengawan Solo
In 1975, Tjendri-Liew was a homemaker when she started making butter and chiffon cakes and kueh lapis (an Indonesian layered cake) at her four-room flat in Marine Parade. She sold these cakes to friends and acquaintances, and the popularity of her confections grew through word of mouth. The demand rose so much that she began to supply them to supermarkets and shops, with one department store in Lucky Plaza even setting up a retail counter to showcase her confectionery.7
Tjendri-Liew did not have a food manufacturing licence, and in 1979, officials from the Ministry of Health visited and instructed her to stop supplying to shops from her home kitchen. Tjendri-Liew thereafter ceased operations from home, but customers continued to request for her cakes and kueh. This prompted her to open a shop at Marine Terrace, near her home, a few months later. As the shop had been empty for one to two years, Tjendri-Liew succeeded in securing a low starting rent of S$1,200, and named the shop Bengawan Solo after the popular Indonesian folk song about Indonesia’s Solo River.8
The popularity of Bengawan Solo grew and demand for her cakes became overwhelming, helped by a newspaper review that emphasised their homemade taste.9 Customers urged her to open another shop in a more central location, and she obliged in 1983 with a second outlet at the Centrepoint shopping centre on Orchard Road.10
The number of Bengawan Solo outlets increased every year as the business registered profits and turnover growth annually.11 Tjendri-Liew took charge of every area of Bengawan Solo’s operations such as production, sales, personnel, accounting, finance, product design and development, advertising and purchasing.12 Her efforts were recognised in 1998 when she became the first recipient of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises’ Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award.13 She was also honoured with the Public Service Medal in 2008.14
Business philosophy
Tjendri-Liew’s business philosophy is to use the best ingredients possible to ensure the quality of the final product.15 She addressed quality control issues by personally overseeing the manufacturing processes and taking customer feedback seriously.16
Author
Alvin Chua
References
1. Huang, L. J. (2009, July 13). Domestic goddess. The Straits Times, p. 39. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
2. Bengawan Solo. (n.d.). Outlet details. Retrieved 2016, July 18 from Bengawan Solo website: http://www.bengawansolo.com.sg/outlets.aspx
3. Huang, L. J. (2009, July 13). Domestic goddess. The Straits Times, p. 39. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
4. Huang, L. J. (2009, July 13). Domestic goddess. The Straits Times, p. 39. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
5. Huang, L. J. (2009, July 13). Domestic goddess. The Straits Times, p. 39. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
6. Huang, L. J. (2009, July 13). Domestic goddess. The Straits Times, p. 39. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
7. Huang, L. J. (2009, July 13). Domestic goddess. The Straits Times, p. 39. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
8. Huang, L. J. (2009, July 13). Domestic goddess. The Straits Times, p. 39; Cheong, J. (2000, May 15). From home confectionary to S$30m firm. The Business Times, p. 7. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
9. Cheong, J. (2000, May 15). From home confectionery to S$30m firm. The Business Times, p. 7. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
10. Huang, L. J. (2009, July 13). Domestic goddess. The Straits Times, p. 39. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
11. Cheong, J. (2000, May 15). From home confectionary to S$30m firm. The Business Times, p. 7. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
12. Bengawan Solo. (n.d.). Philosophy. Retrieved 2016, July 18 from Bengawan Solo website: http://www.bengawansolo.com.sg/abtus_philosophy.aspx
13. Fernandez, W. (1998, December 7). Icing on the cake for Bengawan Solo boss. The Straits Times, p. 42. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
14. National Day awards. (2008, August 11). The Straits Times, p. 35. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
15. Huang, L. J. (2009, July 13). Domestic goddess. The Straits Times, p. 39. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
16. Bengawan Solo. (n.d.). Philosophy. Retrieved 2016, July 18 from Bengawan Solo website: http://www.bengawansolo.com.sg/abtus_philosophy.aspx
The information in this article is valid as at 2016 and is correct as far as we can ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.
The information on this page and any images that appear here may be used for private research and study purposes only. They may not be copied, altered or amended in any way without first gaining the permission of the copyright holder.
Ling Siew May (b. 1937, Shanghai, China – d. 30 July 1999, Singapore) was the wife of the late former President Ong Teng Cheong, and principal partner at Ong & Ong Architects. She took over the company in 1993 and continued to work even after Ong was elected as president....
Mustaq Ahmad (b. 8 June 1951, Uttar Pradesh, India–) is the co-founder and managing director of Mustafa Centre, a popular 24-hour shopping centre in Little India frequented by many Singaporeans and tourists. The success of Mustafa Centre has earned Mustaq Ahmad accolades such as the Tourism Entrepreneur of the Year...
Yong Nyuk Lin (b. 24 June 1918, Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, Malaya–d. 29 June 2012, Singapore) was the minister for education in the first cabinet of the People’s Action Party. He later took on the health and communications portfolios. In these capacities, he increased access to education, sought to establish sustainable...
Fong Swee Suan (Dr) (b. 27 October 1931, Senggarang, Batu Pahat, Johor, Malaya–4 February 2017, Singapore) was a trade unionist who was active in the Singapore labour scene during the 1950s and 1960s. He is often associated with Lim Chin Siong, a fellow trade union activist. Fong was also one...
Prudential was founded as The Prudential Investment, Loan and Assurance Association on 30 May 1848 in the premises of solicitors, Hanslip & Manning, at 10 Hatton Garden, London. After having established itself in the United Kingdom, Prudential sought to expand overseas by opening its first Eastern operations in India in...
Lim Pin (Dr) (b. 12 January 1936, Penang, Malaysia–) is an academic and a medical doctor. He was vice-chancellor of the National University of Singapore (NUS) for 19 years from 1981–2000, the longest term for that office. Lim chaired the Bioethics Advisory Committee from 2001 to 2011, and the National...
Sang Nila Utama Secondary School, formerly located at Upper Aljunied Road, was the first Malay-medium secondary school established in Singapore and the third secondary school built after Singapore achieved self-government in 1959. The school was officially opened in 1961 and ceased operations by 1988. It was named after Sang Nila...
Kartar Singh Thakral (b. 22 September 1933, Bangkok, Thailand–) is the chairman of Thakral Group of Companies and executive director of Singapore-listed Thakral Corporation. An active community leader, he serves as a trustee to the Singapore Sikh Education Foundation and the Sri Grur Nanak Satsang Sabha. In 1996, he was...
Richard Tay Tian Hoe (b. 195?, Singapore–) is the group managing director of YHI International Limited, a Singapore public-listed company that distributes automotive and industrial products. The company is also an original design manufacturer (ODM) for alloy wheels. It was established in 1948 by Tay’s father as a sole proprietorship...
Ee Peng Liang (Dr) (b. 24 November 1913, Singapore–d. 24 August 1994, Singapore) was a local philanthropist and businessman. He was the founding member and president of the Singapore Council of Social Service (now known as the National Council of Social Service) and the Community Chest. Frequently referred to as...