Malaysia is currently facing high living cost issue since COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Many entrepreneurs are poorly affected as they depend on irregular income, especially the small entrepreneurs that reside out of the city area. Therefore, this study explores the issues and challenges faced by the traditional food product operators for their business stability. This study was conducted around Bukit Senggeh, Selandar, a rural area in Melaka, Malaysia. A total of 10 entrepreneurs were selected as the study sample. They consisted of small rural entrepreneurs who produced and cultivated traditional food products. Traditional food products were often seen to have a great potential in attracting tourists to experience local food. Therefore, this study is a preliminary study to assist the Malaysian Government’s notion in restoring the economy post-pandemic. The results of the study showed that the problem faced by entrepreneurs was mainly the lack of awareness to register business companies with The Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) and The Inland Revenue Board (LHDN). In addition, there was also a lack of resources to assist the development of the small business where traditional methods such as direct-selling was still used as well as not utilising social media platforms to market or sell the products. In fact, financial management was also reported to be disorganised and non-systematic. Based on the findings, future studies can look into developing models for business stability for both short- and long-term plans. In conclusion, traditional food businesses had a huge impact in improving the economic state of rural communities as it could also commercialise the products internationally through the tourism industry.
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