From Slim River to rugby weekends: How Kelapa gives fresh coconut water a semi-frozen twist

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 31 — Any entrepreneur would tell you that they often chance upon the idea for their business while engaging in the most mundane, daily activities.

For Rozaila Zakaria, the founder of Kelapa, a single-origin, frozen fresh coconut water brand, that idea arose when she was spending time with her loved ones outdoors.

She explains, “My family spends a lot of weekends at rugby tournaments, so I’ve spent countless hours standing under the Malaysian sun, cheering from the sidelines.”

Watching family members play, Rozaila started thinking about “how nice it would be to have something naturally refreshing and convenient during these outdoor activities.”

Fresh coconut water was already a favourite, so when an acquaintance introduced her to a coconut estate in Slim River, Perak, she began exploring the idea.

The result is Kelapa (“coconut” in Malay), which sells coconut water in frozen 500-millilitres pouches.

Rozaila’s choice of coconut variety is central to what Kelapa offers. The coconuts come from a family-owned estate in Slim River, where the growers cultivate Sampoorna, a hybrid variety with origins in Kerala, India.

For Kelapa, branding their product as single-origin signifies the coconut water comes from one estate rather than being sourced from multiple farms.

As Rozaila explains, “Single-origin doesn’t automatically mean one coconut is better than another but it gives us traceability and a foundation for maintaining our product standards.”

The variety also has its own flavour profile. For Rozaila, the appeal of Sampoorna lies in its balance: “It’s light, naturally sweet and refreshing without being too rich or overpowering.”

She adds, “Unlike pandan coconut water, which is known for its more distinctive aroma, Sampoorna has a clean, familiar coconut taste.”

Of course, because coconut water is a natural product, “its flavour and sweetness can vary from harvest to harvest.”

After harvesting, the coconut water is extracted and frozen shortly afterwards. Freezing was initially a way to preserve the coconut water without heat treatment or added preservatives, but it has since become part of how Kelapa is enjoyed.

“With Kelapa, we wanted to turn that frozen format into part of the drinking experience itself,” says Rozaila. “Instead of waiting for the coconut water to thaw completely, we encourage customers to enjoy it semi-frozen, almost like a natural coconut slushie.”

The instructions “Press. Loosen. Sip” have become a small ritual for the brand.

“Let the pouch soften slightly, press it to loosen the icy coconut water and sip straight from the pouch. The pouch isn’t just packaging. It’s part of how you experience Kelapa.”

The frozen format also means customers can keep Kelapa in their freezers, ready to thaw and enjoy whenever they want.

Rozaila acknowledges nothing quite replaces drinking coconut water straight from a freshly opened coconut; Kelapa simply offers a different way to enjoy it.

This also becomes a useful conversation starter when she takes Kelapa to markets and community events. The frozen format can puzzle first-time buyers, many of whom need an explanation before they know what to do with the pouch.

Kelapa initially found its customers at rugby tournaments, before appearing at weekend markets, wellness events and other gatherings around the Klang Valley.

For Rozaila, these events offer something that online orders alone cannot: “This is probably my favourite part of running Kelapa because I genuinely enjoy meeting people.”

Feedback from these encounters can inform decisions about packaging and product sizes. But it is the customers who return that Rozaila finds particularly encouraging.

She shares, “What makes me happiest is when customers recognise Kelapa or come back to buy more. For a small brand like ours, those little moments mean a lot.”

Rozaila admits Kelapa has been a departure from her professional background. She studied Computer Science before moving into retail and corporate sales, spending more than 20 years in the two fields.

“I’ve always been interested in entrepreneurship, and at this stage of my life, I wanted to try something different.”

Her sales experience has proved useful, but running Kelapa involves much more than meeting customers and making sales. Sourcing, processing, packaging, storage and delivery all have to be coordinated, with the added complication of keeping the product frozen.

“I think the biggest surprise was realising how much work goes on behind the scenes.”

It has been a learning process, particularly when it comes to selling at events. Weather, haze and logistical problems can disrupt a weekend, while sales vary from one event to the next.

“Coming from a corporate background, I was used to planning and working towards targets. But running Kelapa has taught me to be more flexible and adapt when things change.”

She adds, “I wouldn’t say I’ve overcome every challenge. We’re still learning and figuring things out as we go.”

Looking ahead, Rozaila is considering how to reach customers beyond the weekend market circuit. Retail partnerships and different product sizes are among the possibilities, although she is wary of expanding faster than the business can manage.

She says, “I have plenty of ideas, sometimes probably too many! But for now, I want to focus on building a stronger foundation for Kelapa.”

Right now, that means continuing to develop a business that can sustain itself as it reaches more people.

Rozaila hopes Kelapa will eventually become a familiar Malaysian brand: “Something people naturally reach for after a workout, at a rugby tournament or simply when they want a little refreshment.”

Learn more about Kelapa at kelapa.flow

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吉隆坡，10 月 31 日讯——任何企业家都会告诉你，他们常常是在从事最平凡的日常活动时偶然萌生创业的想法。

对于 Kelapa（一个单一产地冷冻新鲜椰子水品牌）的创始人 Rozaila Zakaria 来说，这个想法是在她与亲人在户外共度时光时产生的。

她解释说：“我的家人经常周末去看橄榄球比赛，所以我花了无数个小时站在马来西亚的阳光下，在场边为球队加油。”

看着家人玩耍，罗扎伊拉开始想：“如果在这些户外活动中能有一些天然清爽又方便的东西，那该有多好啊。”

新鲜的椰子水一直是她的最爱，所以当一位熟人带她去霹雳州斯林河的一个椰子庄园时，她开始考虑这个想法。

由此诞生了 Kelapa（马来语意为“椰子”），该公司以 500 毫升冷冻袋装的形式出售椰子水。

罗扎伊拉对椰子品种的选择是凯拉帕产品的核心所在。这些椰子来自斯利姆河畔一个家族拥有的庄园，那里的种植者种植的是桑普尔纳椰子，这是一种源自印度喀拉拉邦的杂交品种。

对于 Kelapa 来说，将他们的产品标榜为单一产地意味着椰子水来自一个庄园，而不是来自多个农场。

正如罗扎伊拉解释的那样，“单一产地并不意味着一个椰子就比另一个椰子更好，但它为我们提供了可追溯性，并为维持我们的产品标准奠定了基础。”

这个品种也有其独特的风味。罗扎伊拉认为，桑普尔纳的魅力在于它的平衡感：“它口感清淡，天然甘甜，令人神清气爽，既不会过于浓郁，也不会过于刺鼻。”

她补充道：“与以其独特香气而闻名的香兰椰子水不同，Sampoorna 具有干净、熟悉的椰子味。”

当然，由于椰子水是天然产品，“其味道和甜度会因收成而异”。

椰子采摘后，椰子水会被提取出来并立即冷冻。最初，冷冻是为了在不经加热处理或添加防腐剂的情况下保存椰子水，但如今它已成为人们享用椰子水的一种方式。

“我们希望通过Kelapa这款饮品，将冰冻形式本身融入饮用体验之中，”Rozaila说道。“我们鼓励顾客在享用半冰冻状态的椰子水时，无需等待其完全解冻，就像一杯天然椰子冰沙。”

“按压、松开、啜饮”这几个步骤已经成为该品牌的一个小仪式。

“让包装袋稍微软化，轻轻按压使冰凉的椰子水松动，然后直接从包装袋中啜饮。包装袋不仅仅是包装，它也是体验Kelapa椰子水的一部分。”

冷冻包装也意味着顾客可以将 Kelapa 保存在冰箱里，随时解冻享用。

罗扎伊拉承认，没有什么能完全取代直接从新鲜打开的椰子中饮用椰子水；Kelapa 只是提供了一种不同的享用方式。

当她带着Kelapa去集市和社区活动时，这也能成为一个不错的聊天话题。冷冻包装可能会让初次购买者感到困惑，许多人需要解释一下才能知道该如何使用这个小袋子。

Kelapa 最初在橄榄球锦标赛上找到了客户，之后开始出现在巴生谷周边的周末市场、健康活动和其他聚会上。

对于罗扎伊拉来说，这些活动提供了一些仅靠在线订单无法实现的东西：“这可能是我经营 Kelapa 最喜欢的部分，因为我真心喜欢与人见面。”

这些反馈可以帮助罗扎伊拉决定包装和产品尺寸。但最令她感到鼓舞的是那些回头客。

她分享道：“最让我开心的是顾客认出Kelapa或者再次光顾购买。对于像我们这样的小品牌来说，这些小小的时刻意义非凡。”

罗扎伊拉承认，Kelapa 的工作与她的职业背景截然不同。她曾学习计算机科学，之后转行从事零售和企业销售，在这两个领域工作了 20 多年。

“我一直对创业很感兴趣，而且在我人生的这个阶段，我想尝试一些不同的东西。”

她的销售经验固然有用，但经营Kelapa远不止是接待客户和完成销售那么简单。采购、加工、包装、仓储和配送等各个环节都需要协调配合，而且还要确保产品冷冻保存，这无疑增加了工作的复杂性。

“我觉得最大的惊喜是意识到幕后有多少工作要做。”

这始终是一个学习的过程，尤其是在活动现场销售方面。天气、雾霾和物流问题都可能扰乱周末的活动，而且不同活动的销售情况也各不相同。

“我之前在企业工作，习惯了制定计划和达成目标。但经营Kelapa教会了我更加灵活，并在情况发生变化时做出调整。”

她补充道：“我不敢说我​​已经克服了所有挑战。我们仍在摸索前进，边做边学。”

展望未来，罗扎伊拉正在考虑如何将客户群体拓展到周末市集以外的地区。零售合作和不同规格的产品都是可行的方案，但她也担心扩张速度过快会超出企业的承受能力。

她说：“我有很多想法，有时可能太多了！但就目前而言，我想专注于为Kelapa打下更坚实的基础。”

目前这意味着要继续发展一项能够随着业务拓展而持续盈利的业务。

Rozaila 希望 Kelapa 最终能成为马来西亚家喻户晓的品牌：“人们在锻炼后、橄榄球比赛后，或者只是想稍微提提神的时候，都会自然而然地想到它。”

访问 kelapa.flow 了解有关 Kelapa 的更多信息

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