ITC CELEBRATES INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY WITH HANA HALIM

International Women’s Day (IWD) on 8 March is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. In conjunction with that, Islamic Tourism Centre (ITC) would like to honour the women we’ve had the pleasure of working with throughout our journey in advancing the Islamic Tourism space in Malaysia. We’ve worked with many great women in our time, and though we can’t feature them all here, know that we support them wholeheartedly towards their professional and personal goals. 

To further inspire us all on this journey of life, we’ve invited some of these women to share their success stories with us. Here, they reveal the highs of their lives and what motivates them to keep going through tough times. We hope that this spotlight on the women we’ve worked with – and whom we have utmost respect for – will inspire us all on our journey forward!

For this IWD blog series, we’re excited to speak with Ms. Hana Halim, COO of Bondahaven Sdn Bhd and President of Association of Malaysian Spas (AMSPA). Her passion for empowering women with information and know-how to care for themselves inspires us greatly. 

Hana Halim
COO, Bondahaven Sdn Bhd
President, Association of Malaysian Spas (AMSPA)

ITC: Can you introduce yourself to our readers? Tell us a little bit about yourself – personal, family and business-wise?

Hana Halim: I’m an avid entrepreneur in the spa and wellness industry, specialising in spa management consultancy and coaching through Spaveda, a spa consultancy company. With my partner, I operate Bondahaven, an all-woman spa focused on breastfeeding and maternity care. At the same time, I’m also a skilled trainer focused on pre and post-partum pantang traditions with my Chicago-based company, The Gentle Birth Project. I’m a mother of four boys and I’m partners with my husband in our food truck business. 

ITC: What’s your most recent accomplishment in your personal life that you’ve been most proud of? Why was this achievement special to you?

Hana Halim: I was certified as a Mental Health Responder last year. Over the MCO I discovered my passion for achieving a good balance of mental, physical, emotional and spiritual health and I want to use the skills I’ve discovered to help others facing mental health issues. I also founded Fertility Journey campaign, a year long campaign focusing on the struggles for women looking for solutions to their problems when it comes to womanhood and motherhood. This meant a lot for me as I want to empower women with information and the know-how to care for themselves. 

ITC: What’s your most recent accomplishment, career/business-wise, that you’ve been most proud of? Why was this achievement special to you?

Hana Halim: It’s not that recent, but up till 2020, I was able to promote, train and export our Malaysian Pantang Traditions to London, Seoul and Shanghai. I was the Pantang trainer for a brand in Shanghai where they use our Malaysian massage techniques and products to provide post-partum care during their 28 days of confinement. In Seoul, women were wearing our traditional bengkung to help heal and recover from their child-birth. I’m proud to be able to promote Malaysia and our beautiful traditions.

However, more recently during MCO 1.0, my proudest moment was when I conquered my fear of going live on social media by launching my own show called SpaViews by SpaVeda. The second guest I interviewed was the CEO of SME Corp and we had a great session. I continued the show until our industry reopened fully by the end of October. 

ITC: What are the values you hold on to that has helped you to be where you are today – values that have helped to see you through the good and bad times? 

Hana Halim: I’ve always believed that our ‘rezeki’ (sustenance) is in God’s hands. Our duty is to work hard, honestly and with the intentions of helping others by serving them the best that we can. I have never really counted my hours at work as I believe that compensation is not only in the form of money, but also in other forms of abundance. I also don’t cry over losses because I believe that everything happens for a reason. My motto in life has always been, “You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.” Because life is just a play and is only temporary. Go with the flow, and everything will turn out how it’s supposed to be.

ITC: What’s your project/ ambition/ goals that you wish to achieve next (personal and career/business-wise)?

Hana Halim: I foresee myself running a chain of day spas and I’m really hoping that international travels will reopen soon so that I get to travel and promote our Pantang Traditions to the world again. I aim to complete my Masters in Education by year’s end since it’s my last semester this month, take up kick-boxing and continue to travel and do some food-hunting around Malaysia with my husband and children.

ITC: Could you share with us your experience of working with ITC and what you value about this relationship?

Hana Halim: I got to know ITC as I was serving for AMSPA, our Spa NGO. I love that ITC is involving itself in the spa industry because of the amount of value it would add to the industry in terms of branding. I’m proud to say that AMSPA fully promotes and supports ITC’s efforts in this area.