The Rise of Perodua and the Myvi

Perodua Malaysia was started in 1993 as a joint venture with Daihatsu to make compact cars.

Over the years, it played second fiddle to Proton until 2005.

That year, the company launched the national favourite, the Perodua Myvi.

This is the same car that proved so “tahan lasak” (durable) that it can be driven through the flash floods which have become a common sight in Malaysian cities over the last few years.

Pecca’s Humble Beginnings

Pecca, a BMQ50 constituent, rode on Perodua’s upward trajectory.

It started as Pecca Leather Sdn Bhd in 2000. Founded by Datuk Teoh Hwa Cheng, it was just an SME making aftermarket car seat covers.

It got its first break four years later when it supplied leather seat covers under an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) contract to a Tier-1 car seat manufacturer for Perodua.

Moving Up the Value Chain

From this single client, it expanded to become a supplier to Toyota, Nissan, Proton, Mitsubishi, and Subaru.

The company also moved into supplying leather wraps for car seats, instrument panels, steering wheels, gear knobs, gear shifts, door trims, door handles, and console box armrests.

It has been a beneficiary of the National Automotive Policy over the years, which mandated content localisation.

Thus, when Malaysia’s Total Industry Volume (TIV) increased from 789,000 units in 2022 to 820,752 units in 2025, the company performed extremely well.

Its revenue increased from RM164.39 million in 2022 to RM224.50 million in 2025, representing a growth rate of 36.56%.

Margin Expansion

Datuk Teoh Hwa Cheng is not a man who sits still.

In 2023, the company secured the EASA Production Organisation Approval (POA) certification.

Yes, from supplying wraps for car parts, it ventured into supplying leather wraps for airplanes.

Both are heavily regulated industries, since safety is paramount in either sector. You do not get to do business in them unless you are strictly certified to do so.

Therefore, it is noteworthy that the company can command a net profit margin as high as 25% in recent years. This is a rare feat among Malaysian manufacturing companies.