Kota Kinabalu waterfront

Client Perspectives

What clients have found useful

We have collected a selection of perspectives from clients who have completed engagements with Tuah Advisory. They are reproduced here as they were shared — without embellishment.

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14+

Years in practice

80+

Completed engagements

4.7

Average client rating

94%

Returned for a second engagement

Client Reviews

What clients have shared

AH

Ahmad Hadzril

Dive resort operator, Semporna

We had been running the resort for nine years and felt we knew what needed fixing — but the review surfaced a seasonal cost pattern we had honestly not noticed before. The written summary was clear enough that I could share it directly with the bank manager when discussing the following year's facility.

April 2025 · Tourism Operator Strategy Review

SC

Stella Chin

Managing Director, trading company, KK

The diversification advisory changed our thinking about the logistics move we had been planning. Not because they told us not to do it — they actually supported the direction — but because the scenario modelling made clear what we were underestimating in terms of working capital requirements in year two. That single insight was worth the engagement fee.

March 2025 · Cross-Sector Diversification Advisory

JT

James Tan

Principal, family holding group, Sandakan

Our group had been structured the same way since the 1990s and nobody wanted to be the one to suggest it needed rethinking. Rashid and the team came in without any agenda, documented what we actually had, and gave us a framework to bring to our tax lawyers. The lawyers said it was the best-prepared brief they had received from a client in years.

February 2025 · Regional Holding Structure Review

NB

Nadia Binti Ramli

Owner, eco-tourism operator, Kinabatangan

The site visit was what made the difference. They came out to the river camp for two days and actually understood how the operation worked — the seasonal patterns, the boat logistics, the staff situation. The written report reflected that. It did not feel like something generic dressed up with our name on the cover.

April 2025 · Tourism Operator Strategy Review

FK

Faizal Kamarudin

Director, agribusiness group, Interior Division

What I appreciated was that they were direct about the limits of what they were being asked to do. When questions came up about tax structures, they said clearly that was outside their scope and pointed us toward the right professionals rather than trying to answer things they should not have. That kind of honesty builds trust.

January 2025 · Regional Holding Structure Review

LH

Lim Hui Fen

CFO, hospitality group, Kota Kinabalu

We engaged Tuah Advisory for the diversification review when we were looking at adding a food and beverage component to our hotel. The financial modelling was thorough — three scenarios, not just an optimistic case — and the written recommendation gave us something concrete to take to the board. A couple of the observations on staffing implications we had not thought through properly ourselves.

March 2025 · Cross-Sector Diversification Advisory

Case Studies

Three client journeys in brief

Case Study 01 · Tourism Operator Strategy Review · Four Weeks

Dive resort: addressing off-season exposure

The Situation

A well-established dive resort in the Semporna area had seen three consecutive years of declining margins despite stable visitor numbers. The owner had a sense that the problem was cost-related but could not locate it precisely in the accounts.

What We Found

The site visit and cost structure review identified that fixed staffing costs in the three-month low season were carrying the full year's margin pressure. A modest restructuring of staff scheduling and the addition of a specific mid-season package had not been considered as a combined response.

What Followed

The written summary gave the owner and his operations manager a clear basis for the staffing discussion. Within the following year, adjustments were made that the owner reported improved low-season margin by approximately 18 percentage points.

Case Study 02 · Cross-Sector Diversification Advisory · Ten Weeks

Trading company: evaluating a move into logistics

The Situation

A Kota Kinabalu trading company had for several years been frustrated by the quality of logistics providers serving its supply chain. The MD was considering whether to bring logistics in-house and develop it into a standalone business.

Our Analysis

The advisory confirmed the commercial logic of the move but identified that the year-two working capital requirement under a conservative growth scenario was substantially higher than the company's internal estimates. This changed the financing approach the company took to the banks.

Outcome

The company proceeded with the logistics expansion on a phased basis. The written recommendation shaped how the proposal was structured for bank financing. The MD later said the engagement had saved them from a cash flow problem they had not anticipated.

Case Study 03 · Regional Holding Structure Review · Four Months

Family group: preparing for generational transfer

The Situation

A Sandakan-based family group with interests across property, retail and a small agribusiness had a holding structure that had grown through decades of opportunistic acquisitions. The principal was beginning to plan a generational transfer to two of his children.

The Work

Over four months we worked with the principal, his CFO and their external lawyers to map the current structure and identify its complications. The written framework we produced set out the key questions the restructuring needed to resolve and three possible structural configurations for the lawyers to cost and advise on.

The Outcome

The framework became the working document for the restructuring process. The lawyers and tax advisors reported that having a clear analytical base saved several months of preliminary work. The restructuring completed within eighteen months of the Tuah Advisory engagement concluding.

Contact

Reach us in Kota Kinabalu

Office

5 Jalan Lintas
88300 Kota Kinabalu

Hours

Mon–Fri 8:30–5:30
Sat 9:00–1:00

Professional Standing

Affiliations and recognition

Sabah Chamber of Commerce

Shortlisted, Sabah Business Excellence in Professional Services, 2023.

Malaysian Institute of Management

Affiliate status maintained; advisors adhere to the MIM code of conduct.

Sabah Tourism Board — Industry Partner

Long-standing professional partner status supporting advisory work in the visitor economy.

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