SugarBomb, Malaysian perfume, diffuser & air freshener brand

When I received a SugarBomb perfume and diffuser, I didn’t expect to like either products. By virtue of the brand’s name, it sounded like the scents would be saccharine—a quality that I dislike in my fragrances.

However, much to my surprise, I actually found the scents to be very pleasing. For anyone that’s curious, it was the Fruity Burst diffuser and the Hush Lush Bloom perfume that I used.

When I found out that the business was a proudly Malaysian one, I was even more curious to learn more.

This is the story of how SugarBomb grew from a home-based fragrance brand to a full-fledged conglomerate with its own three-acre factory.

From aeronautics to aromatic

When Ahmad Azhari Rosli started SugarBomb in 2017, he had a simple goal in mind.

“When I started SugarBomb, my goal was to establish a perfume brand that would be affordable for everyone,” he told Vulcan Post. “ To be honest, I didn’t expect it to grow this fast and become as big as it is today.”

The business’ start, after all, had been humble. The founder himself had graduated with a Master’s degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Bristol. Studying in the UK, he took up odd jobs, working as a cleaner and tour guide to make ends meet.

After completing his studies, Ahmad naturally began sending out his resume to various companies. However, it didn’t work out.

Although frustrated, Ahmad was also driven. He was willing to do any kind of work, including selling cakes online to driving a lorry to deliver goods.

Along his journey, he discovered the fragrance business, which he believes was at its peak during that time. So, in 2015, he boldly leapt into the perfume industry, asking his university friend Dr Muhammad Zamir Othman to join him.

From a home-based office to a three-acre factory

The business actually started in the UK, where the duo searched for perfume suppliers. Once that was done, they brought the mixture back to Malaysia and started making their own perfume.

Ahmad reportedly only had RM15,000 to start the business at the time, which wasn’t enough to rent out a proper office then.

Starting in 2017 from home, they moved to a small office by 2018. In 2020, just before COVID-19, they managed to move into a larger office.

The team managed to navigate through the challenges of the pandemic and successfully relocated their operations to a three-acre factory, dubbed the Home of SugarBomb.

The founder credits this growth to a myriad of reasons, such as keeping abreast of market trends.

“Customer behaviour and product preferences continue to change every year, so as a brand, we need to adapt to these changes,” he reasoned.

Initially, SugarBomb’s aim was just to scale within Malaysia. Today, though, they’re present in Brunei as well as Singapore.

From one product to multiple revenue streams

Nowadays, SugarBomb has grown to offer more than just perfumes. As mentioned, they also have diffusers, but beyond that, they have produced air fresheners, hand sanitisers, fabric fresheners, and more.

With each of these ranges, SugarBomb also changes up the branding accordingly, ensuring that the products are reaching the right audience.

Aside from the SugarBomb brand, there’s Secret Scent, SB Parfum, Blast, SugarBomb Air Freshener, Dr.Bomb, and The Perfume Factory, which is their retail store that distributes other perfume brands too.

They also have five revenue streams from five distribution channels. First, there’s a reseller system.

Then they have their own ecommerce and retail avenues—their own, as well as on consignment bases. On top of those, SugarBomb organises event tours across Malaysia.

According to the team, the monthly unit sales for perfumes across all categories, from 10 ml to 100 ml, are typically 10,000 units and above.

Their air fresheners have been a hit as well, with sales across the channels exceeding 50,000 units per month, Ahmad said.

From here to a fragrant future

There’s no doubt that SugarBomb has managed to expand quite impressively over the past seven or so years.

But they don’t want to stop here.

“We plan to become the biggest perfume company in ASEAN, so we need to produce a wide range of perfume collections,” the founder determined. “We must be able to distribute to different target markets and continuously adapt to marketing trends.”

Having sustained and grown his business thus far, Ahmad has picked up many kernels of wisdom over the years.

For budding entrepreneurs out there, he has three key pieces of advice.

“First, believe in your dreams and have the courage to envision a bigger future for your company,” he said. “Second, build a team that can support you in executing the plan to achieve your vision.”

“And lastly, be good with people—network as much as you can, because you never know who you might end up working with in the next five to 10 years.”