Of Aspirations and Inspiration

ARMED WITH A GREAT ATTITUDE AND A THIRST FOR LIFELONG KNOWLEDGE, LARISA SIAH IS ONE OF THE SUCCESSFUL WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS WHO SERVES AS A ROLE MODEL FOR YOUNGER WOMEN TO GO OUT AND CONQUER THE WORLD.

A century ago, a woman’s role was relegated to that of a homemaker. In her limited role, women would typically stay at home and care for the house and children while husbands were away at work. Fast forward to the present times and women have made great strides in society and it is not uncommon for us to have mothers who are renowned lawyers, authors, surgeons, or even a CEO. Women are now being recognised for more than their looks and it is about time society did as women too have their own goals and aspirations in life. Therefore it comes as no surprise that at a young age, Larisa Siah is the director of Miles Creations.

Petite, pretty, and soft-spoken, are some of the adjectives that immediately come to mind when you are introduced to Larisa but if you stay long enough in her company, you will find out that looks can be deceiving as Larisa can give men and women alike a run for their money with her business acumen and experience that she has acquired in various fields over the years. Born in Ipoh, Perak, and raised in Penang till her early adulthood, Larisa who has been living in Kuala Lumpur for the past 17 years considers Kuala Lumpur her home now.

“KL feels like home because I’ve been living here for so long. The vibrancy, lifestyle, and people all make up a huge part of my day-to-day and I love every minute of it. I moved to KL because of the fast-paced lifestyle and now it looks like Penang is becoming a metropolitan like KL and slowly losing its reputation as a sleepy town,” said Larisa.

“THE KEY TO SUCCESS IS ACTION, AND THE ESSENTIAL IN ACTION IS PERSEVERANCE.“
– SUN YAT-SEN-

Larisa Siah, Director of Miles Creation Sdn Bhd

Chronicling her exciting career journey, Larisa first started as a Sales and Marketing executive at New Convox, helmed by John Teo. “New Convox is a company that supplies tableware, buffet-ware, furniture to hotels, restaurants, cafes, and corporate offices among others and this was the perfect avenue for me to develop my skills. Under John’s tutelage, I picked up many skills that came in handy as I climbed up the corporate ladder,” said the lass with a Double Major in Marketing and International Trade from Victoria University of Melbourne in Sunway College.

The job though only lasted 6 months as Larisa was involved in a car accident that put her ambition on hold. Unable to continue her former position, she left the company and pursued a career in retail under GCH Retail (M) Sdn Bhd. Starting off as a Marketing executive, Larisa was tasked with the responsibility of widening marketing exercise for the Giant and Guardian portfolios and she accomplished it by working with new mediums and a myriad of media agencies. In addition, she was also responsible for organising ad-hoc events for the Group, which was a challenge given the size of the workforce.

“The GCH Retail is a big group and organising sales conferences or any event would involve liaising with management and suppliers and learning about budgetary and inventory. I took all of this in my stride and performed well,” recalled Larisa fondly.

She stayed there for approximately five years and when it felt like the time was ripe for a move, she informed her superior of her intention and her then marketing director who was poised to become the COO offered Larisa the option of becoming a secretary.

“The new position raised me to new heights – literally and figuratively speaking as this role empowered me to achieve and learn a lot more and it gave me a view from the top, that to me was an acknowledgement of how far I’ve progressed in my life,” “It was truly a gratifying moment and it only drove me to achieve more. After a two-year stint as a secretary, I then requested to be an Assistant Manager for Leasing & Property for Guardian. It was a different role that offered a different learning curve, which I am embraced enthusiastically,” she enthused.

Her career advancement and business acumen accumulated gave her the confidence to be an entrepreneur and so she established an Events company but bad economy experienced in Malaysia in 2014 led to the business meeting its premature end. Undeterred, Larisa once again ventured into opening her own business – kiddies ride in shopping complexes. Second time lucky, the kiddies ride idea took off well and is now a flourishing business.

If Larisa had an addiction, it would be towards achieving more success and that led her to the carpeting business. Larisa joined Miles Contract Sdn Bhd in 2017 on a project basis and once again she was doing what she loves: meeting new people. Bringing in customers looking for carpeting solutions isn’t easy but Larisa succeeded. Going back to her past, she connected with her ex-colleagues in GCH Retail and supplied carpeting for Giant’s corporate office.

Realising the untapped potential the carpet industry has to offer, Larisa together with her business partner established Miles Creation that carries products from Tuntex Carpet, Vorwerk and hand-tufted rugs. It serves as a one-stop integrated carpet manufacturing and trading establishment that provides the latest flooring system suitable to their needs at a competitive rate.

Not content with being ‘a dime, a dozen’, Larisa wanted to make Miles Creation distinct in the industry. So she came up with the idea to provide exclusive flooring solution for its more distinguished clientele. Her partner was sold on the idea and today Miles Creation definitely stands out from its peers. Offering ornate and hand-tufted carpets, Miles Creation situated at 3 Damansara Mall is the place to be when sourcing out carpeting solutions.

“REVOLUTIONISE THE CARPETING INDUSTRY”

“When I conceived this idea, I wanted to offer something out-of-the-ordinary for our clientele from a varied demographics and I also wanted to revolutionise the carpeting industry a little bit and the result of that idea is Miles Creation,” she explained. “Offering almost a bespoke-like flooring solutions, we are traversing from furnishing to the arts and design faculty as our products are crafted with the highest standard and we hope to collaborate with property developers and influencers who appreciate the novelty of our products,” explained Larisa.

“At Miles Creation, we provide rugs which can be customised according to an individual’s geomancy reading. To some individuals, geomancy is a vital part of their lives and it includes their homes and office so why not provide carpeting that will enrich lives according to the geomancy reading and with that thought we have introduced a novel idea at Miles Creation,” concluded Larisa.