Company Watch

What didn't kill Serial System has made it stronger

Electronics distributor learnt to diversify when its biggest customer deserted in 2018

Serial System's executive chairman Derek Goh Bak Heng says that one thing he has learnt from the events of the past few years is to never overly rely on any single customer or any single business. PHOTO: SERIAL SYSTEM
Serial System's executive chairman Derek Goh Bak Heng says that one thing he has learnt from the events of the past few years is to never overly rely on any single customer or any single business. PHOTO: SERIAL SYSTEM
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What doesn't kill you will make you stronger. It is a saying that resonates with businessman Derek Goh Bak Heng.

The executive chairman of mainboard-listed semiconductor trading company Serial System said he had a "near-death experience" two years ago when the company's biggest customer decided to pull the plug on it.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on February 12, 2021, with the headline What didn't kill Serial System has made it stronger. Subscribe