THE STORY BEHIND BUDS ORGANICS: How a Father’s Love for His Children Inspired the Birth of Buds Organics
From doing research and development in his own kitchen to a 87,000 sqft facility complete with their own laboratory, production facility and warehouse, this is the story of how Buds Organics was born and the experiences on what inspired KK Soo, Co-founder of Buds Organics in the expansion as a whole.
How It All Started
It all started in the early 2000s when KK Soo had his first child – Sang Koon. Sang Koon had dry and sensitive skin, and after trying out numerous products in the market, KK Soo and his wife, Jane could not find anything that was suitable or what met their needs. He then saw a gap in the market for safe and natural products for babies and that drove him to develop his own range of baby care products which would only use pure, natural and safe ingredients that are suitable for babies regardless of skin type.
In 2003, the first generation of Buds Organics was born – Buds Classic. This included a Head-to-Toe Wash, Baby Lotion and Baby Oil.
In 2004, KK discovered that he and his wife were expecting their second child, Hui Xin, who was born the following year. As soon as he found out, KK set out to develop more products that he knew they needed before arrival of Baby No.2.
The new products included a Diaper Rash Barrier Cream, Solar Care Lotion, First Aid Lotion and Mozzie Clear Lotion. With these new products, KK took the opportunity to rebrand the second generation – Buds Natural.
But it didn’t stop there.
Hui Xin, his second-born child was stricken by severe eczema. After taking a patch test and a blood test, the doctors found that Hui Xin had high Immunoglobulin E (IgE), which is a sign that the body overreacts to allergens. Their doctor prescribed a steroid cream to calm her skin reaction.
As a father and with his knowledge as a Chemical Engineer, KK didn’t like the idea of using steroids on a young child. He knew that there were negative side effects and dangers in using steroid creams in the long run, which include skin thinning and reliance on steroid creams for years to come. Knowing that there are numerous plant extracts and natural solutions that could help with improving the skin, KK looked into creating products that would help his daughter overcome her skin condition. He proceeded to create a hydrating wash and lotion specifically for this daughter and found out that after using it for 2 weeks, her skin improved tremendously.
“At the time, we never thought about commercialising Super Soothing Hydrating Cleanser and Super Soothing Rescue Lotion. We created it only for my daughter and family members to use – but when we saw how effective it was on my daughter, I wanted to share it with other parents who were in the same shoes as me,” he said.
Balancing Work & Family Challenges Along the Way
Balancing business and family were not an easy feat for KK Soo, who went through multiple challenges along the way. In 2015, Sang Koon was diagnosed with epilepsy – a central nervous system (neurological) disorder that causes seizures or periods of unusual behavior, sensations and sometimes loss of awareness. At the same time, he was also diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome – and it was later found out that it was a genetic inheritance of the Soo family.
"As a father, this was a bit hard for me to accept at the time. I think we all have this image of spending some father son time together, playing tennis or doing activities together. But I've come to accept it, and as long as I'm around, I'll provide the support and care that he needs."
Since then, KK has been supporting and guiding Sang Koon in living life as a special kid. Ferrying Sang Koon back and forth to the doctors have become a part of KK’s life routine.
While he was paying more attention to Sang Koon, the other 2 daughters showed adverse reactions, feeling that KK was biased, and loved their brother more. They became rebellious. Hui Jing, the youngest daughter was badly affected. There was a lot of counseling involved. In trying to heal emotionally, Hui Jing later enrolled in a yoga class for children.
Despite his busy schedule, KK still makes time for his family at nights and on weekends.
“One of the sweetest memories I have while my kids were growing up was when my children ran up to me for hugs every time I got home. It made all the hard work worth it.”
As his children grew up, there were also different challenges with their skin. As Sang Koon stepped into puberty, he started to develop bad acne. KK did not want his son to go through what he did while he was a teenager – getting bullied and trying out all sorts of outrageous methods recommended by family and friends, so he decided to do something about it.
“I did not want my children to go through the trauma I went through in my school days. I was bullied and called many sorts of unkind names when my face was full of acne in my teenage years,” said KK.
Determined to help his son’s acne issue before it got worse, KK developed an acne care range to help his son (and later his daughter) overcome this skin issue. With that, Dr. Buds was born and the range is now available to help other people with acne issues.
"The most important thing to me is that my children and family are healthy and happy. I think it's important to find happiness in life. I told my children that I will support them in anything that they want to pursue in life." - KK Soo
What’s Next?
As a family man, KK only wants the best for his children. The most important thing to him is that his family is healthy and happy. In terms of business, he hopes to grow the company to a point that it is well-known, not just locally, but internationally as well.
“Although Buds Organics is a Malaysian product, I want to promote its name and let people know that Buds Organics is proudly made in Malaysia. People always think that organic products are from overseas, but I want to show people that we can come up with good quality products just as well,” says KK.
Now that his children are all teenagers, KK also mentioned that there might be some new products catering to teens down the line. Buds Organics products grow with the children. We have ranges for newborn onwards and hopefully soon for teens,” says KK.
A Message for Parents in KK’s Words
Communication is key. I think as Asians, we’re shy – we hardly show affection, we don’t hug our kids as much, we don’t communicate or try to understand them; especially when they’ve grown to be teenagers.
I remember back in 2010, I took my children overseas for the first time. To be honest, I didn’t have much money then, but I decided to do it anyways to make my children happy – I’m glad I did it. A lot of times, my parents tell my siblings and I to save money. They used to say “when you grow up you can go (travel/experience it) on your own, but to me, time and memories are irreplaceable and no money can buy that.
I also believe that parents’ role is to guide their children in life, like a guardian angel. Ultimately, my wish is for my children to be healthy, happy and have a good life. I will provide them with full support no matter what they choose to pursue in their career and life.