When Mohd Faizal Ayob moved into his Puchong flat in 2020 with no furniture and no income after his IT startup stalled during the pandemic, an encounter with a neighbour who repurposed discarded wooden pallets sparked an idea.
Inspired, Faizal began experimenting with upcycling waste wood, eventually founding REKAYU in 2021 — a social enterprise that transforms discarded timber into affordable furniture while training and employing B40 youth in carpentry.
REKAYU’s impact earned it the McDonald’s Caring Hearts Award for empowering disadvantaged communities through innovative wood-upcycling initiatives.
00:00Hi, I'm Faiza Ayub. I'm from Rekayu. Rekayu is one of the winners of the Star Golden Hearts Awards 2025.
00:30What others might see as discarded furniture is considered by Mohamed Faiza Ayub as something useful.
00:39After moving into a flat in Puchong in 2020, the 41-year-old drew inspiration from an encounter with his neighbor who put discarded wooden pallets to good use.
00:50During that time, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Faiza's new IT startup was forced to pause operations,
00:57and he was left with no steady income and no furniture in his flat.
01:02After a week I'm living at the new flat without any furniture, I was meeting with one of my neighbors who is making shoes and bench using these discarded wooden pallets.
01:15I was shocked and surprised and I met him and I told him, this idea is brilliant,
01:23so how about if we're able to work together to make this idea more worse?
01:30In 2021, Faiza founded a social enterprise called Rekayu to transform waste wood into affordable furniture,
01:37while training and employing B40 youth in carpentry and furniture making.
01:42At first, convincing others of his vision was not easy.
01:46But with the help of NGOs, Faiza began producing upcycled furniture for low-income families,
01:52particularly for those moving into unfurnished public housing units.
01:56I work with NGOs and we're providing what we call a basic furniture like a table for the children
02:04and table for the home as well for the family dining by using the upcycled wood that we are collected around the industry area in Tuchong.
02:15Rekayu's efforts soon gained attention during the Selangor floods in 2021.
02:20During that time, we have received a grant from one foundation to make 150 beds for the beneficiaries.
02:30During that time, I empower more than four unemployed youth in Tuchong and then they all receive 1,500 a month for six months.
02:41The project became a turning point, not only for Faizaal, but also for the young people he worked with.
02:48Beyond producing furniture, Rekayu's mission is to empower marginalized communities through practical skills and second chances.
02:55He said some of the trainees were former criminals who have since rebuilt their lives and even started small carpentry businesses of their own.
03:05Most of them are very hard to get a work.
03:08When I meet two of them, they said that they don't have any permanent job, they don't have income.
03:16Plus, they have a lot of restriction things that they are unable to get money and to get a proper job.
03:23Then I propose this, what we call that, Rekayu to them.
03:29So, mostly what I'm doing is like on-job training.
03:33Looking ahead, Faizaal hopes to provide more structured training opportunities through technical and vocational education and training or TVET courses
03:42to help his employees gain formal qualifications and advance professionally.
03:47On my side, we don't want to give just a furniture to them, but we want to empower, we're giving them skills.
03:56We're giving them a tool and skill so that they can make it the furniture for themselves.
04:02Plus, after that, they can earn a money by making them and then they can sell it to get an income.
04:10So, that usually we do. From 2021 until now, I believe I already empower more than 200 B40 youths in PPR.
04:21Today, Rekayu continues to grow, proving that discarded wood and the overlooked potential of individuals
04:28can be turned into something strong, beautiful and lasting.
04:32Beyond furniture, Rekayu gives young people a chance to build skills, self-confidence and purpose in their lives.
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