Working at Asokumar’s home in Segambut, Kuala Lumpur, the duo spent six months sourcing the best milk, fine-tuning the fermentation process and learning incubation to produce the perfect yogurt.
Despite the ups and downs of the trip, they had a strong feeling trying out techniques like boiling milk at the same temperature. They introduced their own special strain of lactobacillus, the bacteria responsible for turning milk into yogurt, to maintain the quality of the final product.
Advice from relatives who know about cattle and dairy farming is also very useful, Kiren added. For the future, he intends to open a yogurt bar that offers cakes, ice cream, drinks and other food items. Looking back on her departure from the airline industry, Kiren says she is glad she followed her ambitions in turning the business around. “I like to discover new things. Therefore, every time I feel scared, I know that is a sign that I will try to do something new. Most of the time, fear leads you in the right direction,” he said.
From producing 6kg of yogurt per week to supporting families across the Klang Valley, what started as a small home-based business in 2020 has grown into a successful business.
Today, Tairu Tycoon produces nearly 60kg of yogurt per day and serves nearly 30 restaurants and cafes, as well as many grocery stores, across the Klang Valley. . The company offers yogurt products such as fruit parfaits and various lassi flavors including mango, strawberry, chocolate and hazelnut and coffee. Durian will soon join the lineup. What sets the Kiren yogurt brand apart from others is its premium quality, extended one-month shelf life, and the presence of live bacteria – which he says aren’t really present in most retail brands, although they are advertised as such.
The company has four full-time employees who oversee production from start to finish, while his mother provides quality control. In fact, Tairu Tycoon is above all family matters: his uncle Asokumar Gopal, who is in charge of business development, was also made ineffective during the MCO. The uncle and cousin were dissatisfied with the locally produced Indian yogurt available in the market. “We thought, why not try to fix the system and see if we can come up with something useful and move on?” Kiren recalls. So I packed my bags and went to live at my uncle’s house. !
Kiren Parameswaran Anandthan has not found much success as a commercial airline pilot, a position he has held since 2015.
“There are people born to be pilots. I don’t think I’m part of it,” the 30-year-old told FMT Lifestyle with a smile.
His training at the now-closed Asia Pacific Aviation Training Center in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, proved vital in starting a lucrative business during the pandemic – a business he maintains to this day. Tairu Tycoon is a yogurt manufacturer and supplier in Damansara Damai, Selangor. The brand is famous for its “tairu”, or Indian yogurt, which is thick, creamy and authentic. “Flight school taught us discipline and leadership, as well as management and multitasking skills. I took all of that and brought it into my business. “We should be working together and documenting everything. I used it to create my company’s SOP,” explained Kiren, who was fired during the 2020 Movement Control System (MCO).
We were also taught integrity, which I think is the most important thing. When you’re on a boat, it’s just you and your pilot. Every decision you make requires integrity, just like a business.
