Spring is Here!

By Ooi Vi-Wean,
vivi_wean@hotmail.com

Dockers® Tell The Story of Marfa, Texas Through the Brand’s Spring 2011 Collection 

Kuala Lumpur, 11^th November 2010 – Dockers®, the brand that has defined khaki pants for more than 20 years is launching their Spring 2011 Collection which is inspired by the colors, texture and the history of Marfa, Texas. The home of Fort D.A. Russell, the tiny town embodies the pragmatic repurposing of what is the heart of the khaki story.

In 1971, the sculptor Donald Judd moved from SoHo to Marfa, where he began purchasing and repurposing abandoned buildings as sites in which to create and install his large scale sculptures. Today the former army base houses some of the most important contemporary sculpture in America: a perfect metaphor for continuity relevance of a pant born of necessity, enhanced through use, and embraced by choice.

Judd was the first sculptor to recognize the potential of humble, industrial material. A forty year career focused on the simplest of shapes and the plainest of elements; plywood, aluminum, plexi-glass and enamel.

“Every day at Dockers® we celebrate the beauty inherent in the most basic elements: twill, canvas, poplin. Like Judd, we appreciate that it is the intention we bring to their use that elevates them beyond the ordinary. The angle of a pocket. The depth of a pleat. The smallest of details combined to create pants that echo the past and pave the way to the future,” said Jim Calhoun, President, Dockers® brand.

The color palette for the Dockers® Spring 2011 takes cues from the textured neutral base of the Texas desert and its surrounding – the powerful clarity of the crystal blue sky, the industrial colors of farm equipment and pickup trucks creating International Harvester red and John Deere green which provide the punctuation marks that demonstrate khaki’s versatility and its inherent beauty.

The collection which is inspired by the neutrals of the dessert and generations of take – change men who changed the world in their Khaki highlights three key product; Re-Work Work which introduces leading silhouettes and details as well as re-building the core pleated khaki, a leaner meaner grown up Cargo with expanded assortment in long bottoms and shorts together with updated styling – flat pockets, utility drawstring and hem interest and lastly, smarter, more tailored Shorts with slimmer silhouettes and updated cargo styles.

An exciting selection of man-stuff is also added to the Collection to make the khakis look good. The Vintage Twill Shirt – the repurpose military inspiration, the casual polo – brushed jersey, pique/mercerized and heather, Oxford yarn dyes shirts and Chambray shirts that comes in solid and yarn dye chambrays, washes and tinting and sun-bleached colors.

Looking closely of the whole collection, Dockers® Spring 2011 tells the story of Marfa – the most American of stories. Dockers® have created a vocabulary that tells the story of old and new that is unique to this small town in the Texas desert.

Man up this Spring with Dockers® Spring 2011 Collection. No frills, no frou-frou, just incredible Khakis that function as well as they fit and feel, the Khaki to throw on everyday of the week, with the quality that lets you do what you want to do, and look good doing it. Emancipate your masculinity and get it done in Dockers®.

About the Dockers® Brand

The Dockers® Brand has embodied the spirit of khaki for more than 20 years. Since their introduction in 1986, Dockers® has been perfecting khakis – and the essential goods to go with them – for men and women all over the world. No compromises in quality. Just versatile, essential style. Day to night. Monday to Sunday. Wearing the pants has never looked so good.

For information on Dockers® and its products, please contact:

Sahilah Abdullah, Euphoria Central Sdn Bhd:

MOBILE        : 017-310 3250

WEBSITE       :  info@euphoria-central.com

Haliza, Dockers Snr Marketing Executive:

TEL/FAX       : 03-7726 6290

EMAIL          : Haliza@levi.com

Post Offices Now With A Cause

By Chan Jou Liang, George
georgechan1us@hotmail.com

DONOR REGISTRATION FORMS NOW AVAILABLE

KUALA LUMPUR: Organ donor registration forms are now available at selected post offices and potential donors can get the form now. This is a cooperation project between Pos Malaysia Berhad and Health Ministry.

Image captured in Kelana Jaya Post Office.

The ministry has appointed the Pos Malaysia Berhad as an agent to enable Malaysians to obtain donor registration forms at 19 post offices, and in the future will extend the service to more post offices.

The donor banner campaign captured in the Kelana Jaya Post Office

According to Pos Malaysia group managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Syed Faisal Albar, interested recipients can get the forms from general post office (GPOs) and selected post office in the Klang Valley.

The pointed GPOs include Kuala Lumpur, Shah Alam, Kuala Terengganu, Alor Setar and Kuching. Furthermore, post offices like the ones in Medan Tuanku, Gombak, Bangsar, Kelana Jaya and Kampung Tunku.

“Currently, there are more than 147,092 people who have pledged to donate their organs and I believe that the number will increase soon.”

The organ donation registration forms are specially-made postcards with the organ donor pledge card attached.

Customers can easily fill up and keep the donor cards. Only an amount of 60 sen stamp is needed to be mailed to the National Transplant Resource Centre. 

The donor banner campaign captured in the Kelana Jaya Post Office

According to the National Transplant Resource Centre (NTRC) head Datin Dr Lela Yasmin Mansor, the previous common public complaints were that forms to sign up as organ donors were difficult to be acquired. With the pledge forms available at designated post offices, the public will be able to sign up more easily. 

Besides that, the post office staff will also assist recipients in filling up the forms and answering frequently-asked questions. The increasing number of pledged donors would help to create more awareness, said by Dr Lela.

Photography Knows No Borders

By Sherilyn Pang
groovymangkuk@hotmail.com

Burmese Refugee Children Spun Into World of Photography

“I am very happy. People come to see my photographs,” says Amos, a 14 year-old teenager who is one of the lucky children who has had his works of photography exhibited to the public recently.

They are unlike most children as these teenagers are Myanmar Refugee Children in Kuala Lumpur. When asked how long they have been in Malaysia, their answer is between one and three years’ time with a number of them having to leave their native country under political and educational circumstances.

The works of these budding photographers are exhibited at the Everyone Has Hope exhibition, with the photos portraying the life that people are oblivious to in the squatter homes of refugee residents.

Against the odds: A group of Myanmar refugee children playing football without shoes, a photo taken by Amos

Presented by the See the World Through Our Eyes project, the exhibition in Kuala Lumpur recently, showcases some 60 photographs shot by 16 refugee children aged between 13 and 16 — Zaw Naw, Hanah, Nilarson, Zaw Rein, Peter Jackson, Neem, Grace Elly, Alex, Andrew, Amos, Suithlawntial, Joan, Maliani, Jonah, Myo Toe Aung and Sam Tun.

The project, conducted by a group of Taylor’s College students and lecturer, is a successful bid at introducing photography to the children in order to open up their horizons in the choices they are about to make to sustain their interest in life. The children took at least three months to learn necessary basic knowledge about the camera and gradually discovering the joy of photography.

Organised with the support of British Council’s Global Changemakers, Amnesty International Malaysia and several partners, the project was aimed at allowing these children to develop skills in the arts, have fun, and ultimately tell their story to the world.

Budding photographers:

 The refugee children with the Taylor’s College students involved in the "See the World Through Our Eyes" Project, and some of the project’s supporters.

Amos, a shy and yet observant young man, has had no knowledge about holding a camera, but after getting to know that one of his works, titled “Confident” is one of the crowd’s favourite that night, Amos started think perhaps his newfound hobby has got something in store for him.

Of his nine photos on display, football enthusiast Amos picked Everyone Has Hope as his favourite because it depicted a group of fellow refugee children playing football.

“Even though they are playing football without any shoes (because they can’t afford them), they are still enjoying the game while dreaming of being their favourite footballers,” said the Lionel Messi fan.

 All smiles: A photo taken by Amos entitled ‘Be Happy.’

Peter, a keen and bright 13-year-old, is one of the most jovial boys in the group of children. He leads the pact as their monitor and does not seem to mind flashing his grin for the flashbulbs.

“My favourite photo is Thinking, which is about a man thinking about his life. With the man’s back facing the camera, I had no idea if that was a sad or happy moment. I made it more interesting by shooting it in black and white,” he said.

Peter also shares that he enjoys shooting a variety of themes like black and white, landscape, action, portrait and night shots.

“I also hope to get an SLR camera and travel around the world to take photos,” said the aspiring photographer and computer technician.

Peter said he also liked dancing and singing to hip-hop tunes, with his favourite song being Mizz Nina’s What You Waiting For.

Ma Liani, 14, hopes to continue pursuing photography and becoming a doctor to help her people.

“Photography allows me to show other people’s lives to the world,” she said shyly with the help of a translator.

 Telling a story: ‘Thoughts’ by Ma Liani is a photo that she said depicts a typical scene at the refugee homes, whereby they have to do their own haircut as they can’t go to a barber.

On why she selected My Lovely Sister as her favourite photo, Ma said it captured the innocence of a baby who is yet to be affected by the difficulties in life.

Taylor’s College Canadian Pre-U programme lecturer Colin Boyd Shafer said the project was inspired by a documentary from India entitled Born Into Brothels: Calcutta’s Red Light Kids.

“A few of my students said they wanted to do something after watching the film. I got to know about the Association of Chin Refugees (ACR) School, where my sister had volunteered more than a year ago,” said the Canadian who teaches World Issues.

“Taking out a leaf out of the documentary’s concept, we decided to teach the refugee children about photography but first had to get the cameras.”

Shafer and the students involved in the project got their families and friends from Malaysia and Canada to donate their used cameras. He also sold some of his photographs to buy new ones.

They then got a group of amateur and professional photographers to teach the children the basics of photography and also went on short field trips.

“The children initially started focusing on inanimate objects like flowers, but we encouraged them to be more creative and explore photojournalism to tell stories with photos,” said Shafer.

“We did not expect the photos to be as creative as what they are exhibited today. While the photos capture their interaction with friends and family and their daily activities, the fact is that they managed to capture moments that are unreal.”

Isabelle Choi, an 18-year-old student from Taylor’s College, said the most important lesson she learnt from the project is to always hope and show positivity, while Shafer hoped that similar projects would be held at other schools for refugees.

Amnesty International Malaysia executive director Nora Murat noted that the youth were the ones who served as a catalyst to affect change.

Commending the project, she said: “There are more than 80,000 refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia, who are forced to leave their native land due to political, environmental and other problems.

“These photographs help personalise the refugees’ issues and allow the public to understand their life, difficulties, fear and hope.”

She also encouraged the public to lend a more obliging ear to people who do not live the same fortunate lives like us to understand the global political and social climate. In doing so, a change can be made so as to drive more others to be informed about the situations these refugees have to face each day.

The exhibition’s launch featured a special performance by the budding photographers who came dressed in their traditional costumes.

The photos are priced at RM10 and RM25 for the 4R and 8R sizes respectively. All proceeds will go to the ACR School.

Everyone Has Hope is held until next Saturday at the Annexe Gallery, 1st and 2nd Floor, Central Market Annexe, Jalan Hang Kasturi, KL.

The exhibition is open to the public from 11am to 8pm daily. Admission is free.

For details, call 03-2070 1137.

Go Green, Go Hybrid!

By Liew Pui Kun, June
peijun86@hotmail.com


Government Promotes Environment Friendly Vehicles.

Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA) expects prices of hybrid cars to be at a more affordable price next year, after Budget 2011 announcement of full import and excise duty exemptions for hybrid cars until Dec 31, 2011. 

President Datuk Aishah Ahmad said before the tariff reduction, hybrid cars in Malaysia are exorbitant, that it deters convincing sales in the region. Hybrid cars have sold not more than 300 units in a year. At the moment, those involved in producing hybrid cars are calculating the price following the budget announcement. She is reported to be promising the car price to be decreases next year.

After the removal of excessive duties for hybrid car, Honda Company of Malaysia announced the price that is standing at RM108, 980 currently will be down by RM21, 000 for its Civic Hybrid Honda.

Hybrid vehicles is to introduce energy-saving and environmental protection as its unique selling point. The government has announced in Budget 2011, the possible extension of the hybrid tax structure of imported cars and exemption from import duty fees.

The adjusted price of Honda Civic Hybrid is RM108, 980. The full duty exemption would further reduce the price of hybrid vehicles and make them more affordable for Malaysiasn to enjoy the Hybrid Synergy Drive Technology. The move will make hybrid vehicles more accessible for the consumers and we are looking into extending our hybrid vehicle line-up’ Honda Malaysia president and chief operating officer Rohime Shafie said in a statement

He also said that, apart from the price for the people, the benefit they can enjoy is with the fact that it is a car that possesses an advanced hybrid technology and uses lower fuel consumption. Hybrid technology has always been the trend of the future. He added that he is happy with the car business that the government is promoting due to the technology.

The special move to promote hybrid cars in Malaysia was introduced in Budget 2009 where the Government had proposed a 100 per cent exemption of import duty and a 50 per cent exemption of excise duty on new completely built-up units of hybrid cars below 2,000cc.

Now in Budget 2011, the 50 per cent exemption of excise duty has been raised to 100 per cent.

This incentive is also extended to electric cars as well as hybrid and electric motorcycles.

At the moment, two franchise holders are offering hybrid cars below 2,000cc in their product line-up, Honda Malaysia with its 1.4-litre Civic Hybrid priced at RM129,980 and UMW Toyota Motor's 1.8-litre Prius at RM175,000.

It would be exciting to see more hybrid vehicles entering the Malaysian market as more people are now aware about the effectiveness of hybrid technology as a proven alternative to lowering fuel consumption.

All Hail the New King!

By Daniel Chan
dctucker87@gmail.com

UAE’s Halal Chicken Chain ChicKing Debuts in Malaysia

PETALING JAYA 10^th November – ChicKing Friend Chicken, a fast casual restaurant chain known for its range of delicious and fresh fried chicken meals, today announced the official opening of its first Malaysia first outlet at Tropicana City Mall, Malaysia.

Mr. A.K. Mansoor, Managing Director of Banquet Foods International Sdn. Bhd. said: “The food and beverage market in Malaysia is experiencing good growth, so we felt it was the right time for us to introduce our chain of halal chicken outlets into the country. Our unique blend of spices coupled with our special method of cooking result in tasty chicken that is not only less oily but also appealing to the Asian palate.”

Established in 2000 under Banquet Foods International, Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Part of the highly reputable and renowned Dubai based Al Bayan Group of Compaines), ChicKing is opening its 40^th outlet at Tropicana City Mall and aims to open 13 more outlets in the pipeline by this year’s end adding to the company’s 40 operating outlets in 10 countries. Globally, ChicKing targets to open 300 outlets by 2015.

Mr, Mansoor also said, “We plan to open 50 outlets in the Asia-Pacific region through franchising in the next three years, 25 in Malaysia and the remaining in the South East and East Asian market.

“Among the countries that we have targeted other than Malaysia are Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Brunei, Philippines, China and Taiwan. In Malaysia, our second ChicKing outlet has just open in Dataran Pahlawan, Malacca and we will be opening one more in Shah Alam next month.”

“ChicKing have identified and chosen Malaysia to be its franchise hub for expansion into this region because of the strong commitment by the government to the franchise industry, as well as worldwide recognition of its halal certification due to its stringent criteria which is sought after and recognized by other countries. Furthermore, the established regulatory framework would bring added recognition to ChicKing as a franchisor. Malaysia also has the right infrastructure to support ChicKing interms of the halal supply chain, as a base for training and availability of franchise advisory services.” – he added.

ChicKing is a rapidlygrowing quick-service global restaurant chain specializing in serving the tastiest, certified “HALAL”, crumb fried chicken using special original and spicy recipes which feature a unique blend of the choicest herbs and spices. It should come as no surprise then that ChicKing is synonymous with words such as “Real Recipe, Real Taste, Real Fried Chicken”. Apart from fried chicken, ChicKing also offers lip-smacking Bone-less Srips, Chick-pop, Burgers, Wraps, delicious Coleslow and Mashed Potato at competitive prices whilst ensuring strict standards of quality are adhered to in preparing its food.

In addition, ChicKing plans to provide entrepreneurial opportunities to suitable undergraduates, through a joint venture program with PUSMAL (Malaysian Graduate Entrepreneurship Development Centre) to help and develop entrepreneurs among graduates of University of Malaya and other local Universities.

PUSMAL, established in December 2005 is an agency under the auspices of the University of Malaya, is responsible for promoting entrepreneurship among students and graduates from universities/colleges in the country.

PUSMAL will hold Entrepreneurship Industrial Training Programme (Intern-preneurship programme) with ChicKing Fried Chicken Where undergraduate that choose to go for an entrepreneurship industrial training under PUSMAL shall be placed in the premise/outlet of ChicKing Fried Chicken for 6 months. During that time, undergraduate will be unveiled with every aspect of entrepreneurial exposure in fast food industry.

PUSMAL and ChicKing has planned to introduce ChicKing Fried Chicken kiosks in the country to be managed by university graduates and this would act as an incubator for graduates who are interested in fast food kiosk. The features of the kiosk will be designed by ChicKing.

About ChicKing Group of Restaurants

Established in the United Arab Emirates 2000, under Banquet Food International (Part of the highly reputable and renowned Dubai Based Al Bayan Group of Companies), ChicKing® is a rapidly growing fast-food chain in the region specializes in serving the tastiest crumb fried chicken using a secret recipe which include a unique blend of the choicest herbs and spices. It is therefore of little wonder, that ChicKing® is synonymous with words such as, “Real Recipe, Real Taste, Real Fried Chicken”

ChicKing® began its journey with a simple yet determined dream to create a brand that’s in the business of bringing happiness and satisfaction to all cross sections of society. Over the years, it has successfully realized this dream by making ChicKing® a favorite destination for real and tasty crunchy fried chicken not just in Dubai but also across several countries. It has been precisely this single minded focus that makes ChicKing® fried chicken and its other innovative menu items simply irresistible and deliciously memorable for all individuals and families alike.

ChicKing® has a prominent and rising customer base across the globe as the brand is now associated with the foremost principles of the group, i.e. trust, consistency and delivering a quality experience. The primary objective kept in mind for the interiors of our restaurants is to project a healthy dining experience for families with vibrant colors, décor, and attentive staff which makes ChicKing® a perfect family dining destination.

For further information, please contact:

NAME            : Grace Loo Phoy San, Marketing Manager

COMPANY   : Banquet Foods International Sdn. Bhd.

TEL/FAX       : +603-7725 1799 / +603-7725 2799

MOBILE        : +6012-288 8348

EMAIL          : grace@chicking .com.my