Aw Boon Par (; 1888 in
British Raj Burma – 1944) was an
entrepreneur
Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values t ...
and philanthropist best known for introducing
Tiger Balm.
He was a son of
Hakka
The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hun ...
herbalist
Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern remedies ...
Aw Chu-Kin.
[Beverland, Michael (2009) ''Building Brand Authenticity: 7 Habits of Iconic Brands'' Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke, Hampshire, England]
page 91
Aw was born during the
British Raj Colonial rule. His father left the business to Boon-Par and after Aw Chu-Kin's death in 1908, he called his elder brother
Aw Boon-Haw to run his father's
apothecary
''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Amer ...
, Eng Aun Tong ("The Hall of Eternal Peace") together.
Although Aw wished to stay in Yangon, his brother who had settled in
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
[Go, Simon (2003) ''Hong Kong apothecary: a visual history of Chinese medicine packaging'' Princeton Architectural Press, New York, page 198, ] in 1926 convinced him to immigrate, move the family business, and found the precursor of today's
Haw Par Corporation
Haw Par Corporation Limited is a Singaporean company involved in healthcare, leisure products, property and investment. It is the company responsible for Tiger Balm branded liniment (ointment). Its brands also included Kwan Loong and it also ...
. Boon-Haw moved to Hong Kong to manage the business from there, while Boon-Par stayed in Singapore to run the factory. Eventually, Aw closed the factory down, returned to Rangoon, and died there.
Notes
References
* King, Sam (1992) ''Tiger Balm King'' Times Books International, Singapore,
胡文虎
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aw Boon Par
1888 births
1944 deaths
20th-century Singaporean businesspeople
Burmese people of Chinese descent
People from Yongding District, Longyan
Migrants from British Burma to British Malaya
20th-century Burmese businesspeople
Aw family