💔 He lost everything in a flood.
💤 He started selling pillows from a car boot.
🚀 He built a million-ringgit empire that Malaysians still talk about.
This is the rollercoaster journey of Das Abdul, a man who proves that when life floods your dreams, you can still float back stronger.
🌊 Washed Away: The Flood That Changed Everything
In 2012, Das Abdul was living the good life in Kelantan. An engineer, he ran a Resort & Training Center filled with guests, laughter, and future plans.
But by 2014, tragedy struck. A massive flood destroyed everything: his business, his livelihood, and his spirit. Battling depression, Das packed up his wife and two kids, moved to Johor in 2016, and prayed for a fresh start.
💔 Struggles, Failures & Betrayals
Starting over wasn’t easy. In Parit Raja, Johor, he tried:
- Selling tudung (headscarves)
- Grilling satay
- Pitching business ideas
Nothing worked. One “friend” even stole his idea for a kids’ play zone called Bouncy Castle and launched it himself. Das was left broken again.
🌙 A Tough Night, A Tiny Spark
One night, broke and hopeless, Das scrolled Facebook at 2 a.m. when an idea hit him pillows! Not the cheap ones, but the hotel-quality pillows his resort once used.
His wife, battling backaches from poor pillows, agreed. They scraped RM1,850, bought stock in Kuala Lumpur, and set up a night market car boot.
👉 Students laughed. Shoppers ignored them.
👉 Das’s wife breastfed their 50-day-old baby under a cloth while begging strangers to buy.
👉 At closing time, a homestay owner, out of pity, bought 20 pillows.
That single act of kindness lit the flame.
🚗 From Car Boot to Empire
From that night, things flipped:
- Facebook friends bought pillows.
- Their friends bought them too.
- Soon, Das Abdul Global was born.
Highlights of the rise:
✅ Over 2 million pillows sold across Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei
✅ 71 billboards across the country
✅ Radio ads everyone hummed
✅ Agents selling pillows from car boots during traffic jams, making RM200–300/day
✅ Monthly revenue: RM1.2–1.5 million at its peak
Das handled marketing, while his wife ran operations. They balanced work, love, and family sometimes even bringing their baby in a stroller to board meetings.
📉 The Crash: When Success Slipped Away
But every empire faces storms. By 2022, cracks appeared:
- COVID-19 slowed sales.
- Cheap copycats flooded Shopee & TikTok.
- Warehouses & staff drained money.
- Sales plummeted from millions to just RM100K/month.
- Their warehouse in Beranang even flooded.
Das called it: “It fell so fast it felt like 2016 all over again.”
🔥 Reinventing with TikTok & Turmeric
A consultant told him to go live on TikTok. Das hesitated, but by March 2023, he tried quirky midnight lives pretending to sleep on pillows with funny green screens.
It worked. Sales bounced back.
Then came a new pivot: health products. Inspired by a friend’s heart attack, Das created turmeric juice with ginger, garlic, lemon, apple cider vinegar & honey.
Results?
🌟 TikTok lives drew 400+ viewers
🌟 Orders poured in
🌟 His hands stained yellow from turmeric became a badge of hustle
Now, he’s also launching 6,000 bottles of reed diffusers to help Malaysians sleep better.
❤️ A Family That Hustles Together
For Das, it was never just about money. It was about building together:
- He and his wife are true co-founders.
- His kids grew up in the hustle boardrooms and pillow stockrooms alike.
- “We’re one unit,” he says with pride.
🚀 Lessons from Das Abdul’s Journey
- Tragedy can be the spark for your greatest idea.
- Start small even if it’s just a car boot.
- Kindness compounds that one pity purchase led to millions.
- Reinvention is survival when the world shifts, so must you.
- Family is your greatest startup team.
🌏 What’s Next for Das?
From pillows to turmeric, Das is betting big on health & wellness. His five-year dream? To take his products global.
💡 His story isn’t just about pillows it’s about persistence, pivots, and pure Malaysian grit.
✨ Final Word
Das Abdul’s journey is a reminder:
“Life can flood your dreams, but love, grit, and hustle can rebuild them stronger.”
So—what’s your car-boot idea? 🚗💡
Start today. Start small. Dream big. And keep going.
