KC is a powerhouse in the industry, leading with charm and personality that can instantly make everyone comfortable, and backing it up with a keen eye for branding, marketing and management. Even from spending a short day together, it’s clear that KC loves what he does, and all the highs and lows that come with it too.
“I just have a passion for bringing people together,” he says, on how he started his career in hospitality. “I guess it all started sometime in high school when I started throwing a lot of parties. I was just doing all these events and pulling people together, and I would just go ‘wow!’ I [realised that] I like being in the realm of getting people to have fun and let loose.”
This momentum carried over into KC’s university days, when he started being a promoter for local nightclubs, before bringing events and international acts into the country. “I think what happened was when I realised that this was what I wanted to do in a professional career, I just went all in,” KC says.
“I just have a passion for bringing people together.”
Today, KC predominantly runs the Continuum Hospitality Group, which is the main holding company for the concert and events arm Happymoon, the nightclub Kyo, as well as the several food and beverage brands including Cili Kampung, Kikyo, Six by Saro, Vice Circa, The Alibi, and Baijiu.
“I even have a hotel project coming up in Desaru, Johor which we hope we can launch some time in 2026. But for now, what I’m most excited about is the restaurant business,” KC tells us.
Breaking into the F&B space
Though KC is well and truly in the wider range of the hospitality space with his wide portfolio of brands, events, restaurants, lounges, and bars, his foray into F&B was a more recent addition.
“After the pandemic, there was a lot of compliance that entertainment outlets needed to adhere and restructure for because of social distancing. Plus, entertainment was one of the last sectors to reopen. So during this time, all our businesses were pretty much inactive,” KC starts.
“So my whole team pivoted into restaurants. The first project was Cili Kampung, which I learnt about around one year into the lockdown, when we were allowed to travel into Langkawi. It really was the best Malay food I’ve ever had. I love how authentic the taste was, how the family was so involved in ensuring that. And I saw their passion in food,” KC continues.
“I was looking around and everyone’s plate was almost wiped clean, and they were literally drinking the kuah when they could. Straightaway my lightbulb flicks on and I knew I had to bring this brand to KL,” he says.
Cili Kampung is one of the fastest growing brands under KC’s purview, today boasting five outlets across the country, with the latest openings in Penang and Putrajaya.
The story of Pinkfish
Another thing KC’s made waves with is the inimitable Pinkfish Festival, which had its second edition earlier this year, boasting the return of Dutch DJ and producer Armin van Buuren as the headliner, and more than 15,000 attendees.
“It’s become bigger than us, and I think we’ve outdone ourselves.”
“For me and my best friend, Rohit Rampal, our dream was always to do a music festival. We only did it after 20 years because the music festival business is very risky. A lot of festivals come and go, and they don’t even make it after the first year. We really took our time and studied the market share until we felt we were ready to do it,” he explains.
Pinkfish Festival was the first music and arts festival after the lockdown to headline with a DJ artist, which was DJ Snake in 2023, in an outdoor venue, which was not allowed in the country for a long time. Since that first edition, the Pinkfish name has evolved into a brand, spanning events like Pinkfish Countdown, Pinkfish Live and Pinkfish Arena.
“We first thought we’ll just do Pinkfish as a once-a-year music festival. But last year, we brought in Tyga under Pinkfish Live. With Pinkfish Arena, we do solo artist arena shows which we just did in November with Andrew Rayel. Recently, we did a pop-up train party which went viral for good and bad reasons. It’s become bigger than us, and I think we’ve outdone ourselves,” KC reflects.
Work hard and play hard
For many of us, a night out, whether to a nice dinner or to a concert, often provides a respite and escape from the daily grind. But for KC, whose work and career is entertainment, is there a need to find a balance between the two?
“Once you find the right way to rest, then you should just keep doing what makes you happy, trying to do great things, and achieving your next goal. For me personally, I’m fortunate to absolutely love what I do, so there’s no real need for balance between work and play,” KC explains.
Despite that, there are still challenges within running his business that keeps KC on his toes, and for him, it’s managing the people, whether they’re his employees, partners, clients, or customers.
He continues, “The biggest challenge is to get people to align with your vision and have the same mindset or at least a similar mindset to achieve that. But also you’re in a business where the customers are all people, hundreds of thousands of people, and they always have feedback which you need to consider to give them the best service or product.”
“For me personally, I’m fortunate to absolutely love what I do, and that there’s no real need for balance between work and play.”
But at the end of the day, the people are also his favourite part about working in hospitality.
“Just seeing people’s reaction and appreciation, seeing the happiness in people’s faces after having a good meal, I think that’s the most self-satisfying, rewarding part – even more than the money. When someone’s having a bad or stressful day and they have a plate of nice food it can just change their mood. The fact that I’m able to give them that is very self-satisfactory,” KC smiles.
With his wealth of experience in the industry, we had to pick his brain and learn his secret to success. For those looking to start their career in hospitality, KC’s advice is to always be ready to serve.
He explains, “You need to be able to work 16 hours a day, seven days a week. Especially in the food and beverage space, people eat everyday so, there’s no off days. You need to always be ready to serve. Always put the customer first because they are coming to have a good time and how you give that to them is important. The last thing would be to work as happily as you can with your coworkers, because in the F&B space, employees are usually overworked and they don’t get enough rest between shifts. So, it is important to have each other’s back and give moral support on more tough days.”
Raising a toast to 2025
So what’s in store for KC and Continuum Hospitality in the future? “I’m all into the restaurants business now, and we’re looking at three new openings in the next two months,” he reveals.
First on the list will be Stefania at Platinum Park in Naza Tower, an Italian restaurant that KC is collaborating on with well-known chef Diego Reali, who has been a pivotal figure in bringing authentic Italian cuisine to Malaysia. “This will be his portfolio, and it’s named after his mum Stefania. It’s his first time being chef-owner of a restaurant, and I’m sort of putting the project together for him,” KC elaborates.
Over at Suria KLCC, KC will be unveiling the other two projects, one of which is Spice Guys, a new banana leaf concept restaurant that will bring a Malaysian-friendly dining option to the shopping mall space.
“The final one, which I think is the most exciting, is that we just acquired the master franchise for Benihana. It’ll be the first in Malaysia, and I think Malaysians love teppanyaki. So to bring Benihana in is a very big moment for us,” KC further reveals.
For Pinkfish Countdown, which will be the festival brand’s last event of the year, you can look forward to bigger and better. Along with headliner and queen of hard techno Sara Landry, who will be making her Malaysian debut, KC promises the biggest firework display they’ve ever done and the biggest LED screens.
“You can also expect more concerts next year from Happymoon, and we’re in the midst of putting together a food festival. You know us Malaysians, we love to eat! So that’s the space I’m going to go into next.”
With so much to be proud of in 2024, and so much more to look forward to in 2025, how will KC be celebrating the new year?
“At the Pinkfish Countdown, of course!”
Featured Image: KC Purusotman wears Onitsuka Tiger.
Editor: Natalie Khoo
Words: Neda Al-Asedi
Art direction: Anson Siau
Set assistants: Mon Kai Siong and Chin Yi Ting
Photography: Xerxes Lee | Awesome Image
Photography assistant: Din
Video concept: Imelda Priveta
Videography: Haoyii Lim
Video editor: Radzey
Stylist: Sasha Ivan
Stylist assistant: Katya Gusevskaia
Hair and makeup: Asaki Yok
Location: The Majestic Kuala Lumpur
Read more of FirstClasse Malaysia’s Inspire digital cover stories here.