Fatt Choi Coffee

Fatt Choi Coffee started in 1983 as Fatt Choi Sdn Bhd, a beverage distributor founder Foong Choon Sang ran out of Tenom, in Sabah's coffee-growing interior. The Fatt Choi Coffee brand itself followed in 1986 with Kopi-O as its first product — a black, sweetened coffee style that the company says became a staple in homes and shops across Sabah soon after launch. The line grew from there rather than staying a single product: by 1997 the company had added instant coffee blends beyond the original Kopi-O, and today the range includes 2-in-1 instant white coffee and 3-in-1 coffee-and-tea latte mixes sold in bag format. The company ties its identity directly to Tenom's growing conditions and agricultural heritage, positioning itself as a Sabah coffee maker rather than a generic instant-coffee brand. More than four decades on from its start as a distributor, Fatt Choi still runs from Tenom, and has added a cafe in Kota Kinabalu and a hilltop Coffee Cabin retreat, extending a business that began on the back of one local blend into a small regional network.