honestbee Malaysia temporarily suspends operations as part of biz reform

Honestbee Malaysia is temporarily suspending its operations from 22 July onwards, halting its food and grocery delivery service. In an email to consumers seen by A+M, honestbee said the decision was made from its headquarters in Singapore to reform the business so it can better serve consumers in the future when honestbee returns.“We know many of you are counting on us to deliver your heavy groceries and hot food from your favourite restaurants. While we are committed to do so in the long run, we would like to give you a heads up before we leave your fridge empty,” the email said.The email also urged consumers to place grocery orders by 19 July 2019 to guarantee a slot for delivery during the weekend. “We are sorry for any inconvenience that we might cause, but worry not, we are already working hard to be back as soon as possible,” honestbee added.Honestbee Malaysia declined to comment further on A+M’s queries.In May this year, honestbee Malaysia said it was not affected by the 10% regional headcount reduction, adding that the news has “little to no impact” on its operations in Malaysia and its business “remains brisk”. This came after the company halted its services in Indonesia and Hong Kong, as well as its food vertical in Thailand as part of an ongoing strategic review of the business. Its services in Japan and the Philippines were also temporarily suspended as part of the review.Shortly after, it named Brian Koo its new CEO to replace former co-founder and CEO Joel Sng. Thereafter, honestbee also suspended food and laundry services in Singapore. Recently, the company also saw another senior exit when its vice president of marketing Christina Lim left the company after a year into the role. During her time at honestbee, she was tasked to lead themarketing team to ramp up its integrated efforts to drive brand awareness and loyalty across all its business verticals.(Photo courtesy: 123RF)