26/05/2026
๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐๐๐๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐, ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ๐, ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ๐ผ๐ฟ๐, ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ป๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐,
By Borneo was never built by investors, large capital, or big promises.
It was built by four ordinary people with one shared belief, that rural artisans, social enterprises, and community builders deserved a place to be seen.
Nina, Idrizam, Ivy and Zee came together not because we had excess, but because we had heart.
We did not wait for grants.
We did not wait for perfect timing.
We simply โpatak-patakโ, each person putting in 25%, carrying whatever we could together.
Some people build businesses from abundance.
We built By Borneo from whatever already existed around us.
Old furniture from Koko Loko and G1FT.
Personal savings.
Late nights.
Shared responsibilities.
Favours from friends.
Energy after office hours.
And faith that somehow, this small space could become meaningful for others.
Because each of us already had our own businesses and income, we never treated By Borneo as a place to take profit for ourselves. Every small earning went back into improving the shop, sustaining operations, supporting vendors, and keeping the dream alive.
By Borneo was never just a shop.
It was a labour of heart.
With four completely different personalities and working styles, there were of course challenges along the way. But somewhere between the stress, exhaustion, laughter, disagreements and long working days, we learned something important , respect matters more than ego.
Nina Othman became the face people recognised ,welcoming visitors, hosting guests, and bringing warmth into the space.
Zee Shazila managed HR and vendor coordination behind the scenes.
Ivy JL carried the financial responsibilities and shop maintenance.
Izam Idris handled the ground operations, runner and manpower whenever needed.
No role was too small.
No task belonged to only one person.
Sometimes we became cleaners.
Sometimes runners.
Sometimes installers.
Sometimes customer service.
Sometimes all of it in one day.
And somehow, together, it worked.
On 26 October 2024, By Borneo officially opened its doors at Riverson.
What started as a simple idea slowly became a home for 23 vendors and nearly 100 SKUs , bringing together handmade crafts, local products, rural community enterprises and corporate gifting solutions under one roof.
But more than products, By Borneo carried stories.
Stories of women learning to sew.
Stories of artisans from rural villages trying to access bigger markets.
Stories of social enterprises trying to survive while still choosing purpose over profit.
On 26 October 2025, we celebrated our first anniversary together.
We thought we would continue building toward our second year on 26 October 2026.
But sometimes, life reminds us that plans belong to humans, while destiny belongs to God.
9 days ago, we sadly lost one of our co-founders Allahyarham Idrizam bin Idris who left us on 19th May 2026.
As Entrepreneurs, we make difficult decisions on a daily basis and of course this next decision was also not made lightly.
With heavy but grateful hearts, we would like to announce that the physical retail store of By Borneo at Riverson the Walk will unfortunately be closing its doors on 21 June 2026. By Borneo will also be taking a short hiatus for the next four months.
If you would still like to support our artisans and social enterprise community, we warmly welcome you to visit and shop with us before 21 June 2026.
Thank you sincerely to every customer, vendor, friend, supporter and community who walked this journey with us. Thank you for believing in small people doing small things with sincere intentions.
This is not goodbye.
This is simply a pause ,to allow Nina the space and peace she needs to go through her โiddah period with peace & calm after losing her beloved life & business partner.
By Borneo ๐ช๐๐๐ be back in operations again, perhaps with a different approach. But always with the same heart, mission, and belief that communities deserve opportunities too.
And perhaps that is the real legacy of By Borneo.
Not the shelves.
Not the sales.
But the people, stories and hope we carried together along the way.
๐๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ก๐ค๐ซ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ง๐๐ฉ๐๐ฉ๐ช๐๐,
๐ฐ๐๐, ๐๐๐, ๐ต๐๐๐ + ๐๐๐โ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐
