From cleaner to CEO
VERNON KWEK STORY – A man left by his girlfriend after she found out that he’s “just a cleaner” is now a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of a company.
The life of Vernon Kwek, 49, a Singaporean, was like a teleserye. He’s the Chief Executive Officer of Primech Services & Engineering. Their clients include Changi Airport Group, United Overseas Bank, and luxury hotels.
But before Vernon became successful, he went through a lot of difficulties in life. He was only thirteen years old when his father lost his job.
He helped him find a job through ads in the newspapers. Then, he found a vacancy for a cleaning supervisor. His father applied for the position and was accepted. On weekends, Vernon helps his father clean the toilets and offices.
When he turned 14, he stopped schooling to become a full-time cleaner. His father did not want him to stop studying, but Vernon is determined to earn money to help his family. Because of being industrious, he was promoted as cleaning supervisor despite the fact that he’s only 14-years-old at the time.
After a few years, he became a senior supervisor. It was at the time when he had a girlfriend. However, his girlfriend broke up with her after learning that he’s “just a cleaner.” The girl thought that she had no future with Vernon, so she broke up with him and be with her suitor who’s studying at the university.
Because of the hurtful words he received from the woman he loved, Vernon worked harder from then on. Later on, the company gave him the chance to start and run his own subsidiary cleaning company. He hired his own employees and managed the projects assigned to him by the mother company. Due to the number of projects he had, he started earning SGD25,000 (PHP1,020,881.46) per month. It was a huge money for anyone in their mid-twenties during the 1990s.
But not everything was a success for Vernon. Due to his large income, he was hooked on traveling to different countries until the business was neglected. At age of 26, he filed for bankruptcy when creditors started charging him. He was also imprisoned several times for debt and racketeering when he reached the age of 30.
To save money, he lived in Johor Bahru from 2010 to 2012. During this time, Vernon was hired as the operations manager by WIS Holdings, which purchased Primech. Vernon, on the other hand, took over the company’s operations. It employs 200 people and earns SGD$500,000 per month. Its clients include Changi Airport Group, United Overseas Bank, and luxury hotels.
Vernon managed the company for seven years, and it now employs 1,500 people and earns SGD$3 million per month. In 2017, WIS Holdings asked the help of Vernon to sell Primech. The following year the company was sold to the Hong Kong-led consortium Sapphire Universe.
The terms of the sale include Vernon’s continued management of Primech, as well as a 30% stake in the company and the four other companies purchased by Sapphire Universe. A&P Maintenance Services, the first cleaning company he and his father worked for when he was fourteen years old, was among those purchased. Primech now has over 3,000 employees under Vernon’s leadership.
Vernon is married and has four children. Apparently, he has not heard from his ex-girlfriend who broke his heart many years ago.
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