Women’s Division Ups The Ante with Year-Round Events

Despite being a relatively new wing in MRCA, the Women’s Division has garnered a lot of enthusiasm and support from members due to its many exciting activities held over the last three years.

Among them are activities that promote personal and professional development, occasions where women learn to support each other and events where women are equipped with the right skills, information and knowledge.

The division was initiated by Immediate Past President Shirley Tay and is currently headed by MRCA Vice President Dato’ Winnie Lim. Its tagline – Empower Women, Build Nation – reflects the role women entrepreneurs play in communities, the society and the nation.

Meaningful Events

One highly successful activity was the MRCA Women’s Division Breast Cancer Awareness Event called Think Pink, Think Life. Held in October 2022 at KL Wellness City, Bukit Jalil, it raised RM30,000 for the Breast Cancer Welfare Association Malaysia.

The funds were used for the running of the MURNI mobile clinic that visits rural areas and B40 communities. Speci cally, it helped raise awareness and educate women on early breast cancer detection and prevention.

The funds were also channelled towards the hiring of nurses to conduct breast screening and clinical tests. Among others, the event saw a health talk, a session on getting the correct bra ttings, Zumba tness or wonderous kombucha yoga and a lucky draw.

During the thick of the pandemic, the Women’s Division went all out to help the underprivileged in society. The group donated sanitisers and masks to the vocations skills training institute Montfort Boys’ Town in Shah Alam.

To help with online classes and learning from home, the division donated reconditioned laptops to three charity homes in the Klang Valley, namely Great Heart Charity, Shelter Home and Trinity Home.

The members of the Women’s Division also organised and attended

Objectives of the Women’s Division are:

• To assist and support the members of the division in matters of business and personal development;

• To encourage and foster collaboration, goodwill and understanding among the members of the division;

• To equip female entrepreneurs with knowledge of the right skills, information and training in order to expand and develop their businesses;

• To promote and advance the personal and professional development of the MRCA Women in the retail chain business and franchise industry; a Get-Together and Dialogue session with Anna Teo, CEO of Hernan Corporation Sdn Bhd. Entitled Putting the Dream to Reality, the dialogue was preceded by a networking session and the evening event ended with dinner and wine.

• To assist and support the MRCA in achieving and/or attaining its objectives.

The Women’s Division also knows how to mix business with pleasure. It held a number of fun events such as excursions, premiere screenings, Christmas parties, a ernoon teas and dinners.

Among the notable trips were the three-day trip down south to Johor Bahru in August last year and a corporate visit to Visionary Solutions the following month. In October, the women made a threeday trip to Bangkok, Thailand.

Women Power

Dato’ Winnie Lim said she is proud of the MRCA Women’s Division. Over the years, the division has bene tted women entrepreneurs in more ways than one.

“I would like to thank everyone who has supported us in one way or another. The Women’s Division has established a reputation for organising events that are timely, that promote knowledge and create awareness. I look forward to working with the committee to put together more exciting events in 2023,” she said.

MRCA