How Khairul Aming Became A Case Study For Influencer Entrepreneurs In Malaysia

You can’t be Malaysian and not know who Khairul Aming is, and that is just a fact. If you spend any amount of time online, I’m sure you would have come across one of his videos or found a mention of him at the very least.

During Ramadan especially, his presence is almost unavoidable. The moment 30 Hari 30 Resipi starts popping up on your feed, you know the fasting month has arrived. In the same way the Yusuf Taiyoob ad quietly signals Ramadan season, Khairul Aming’s daily recipe videos have become part of the unique Malaysian Ramadan experience. That’s how much of a fixture he has become in the life of Malaysians. This Ramadan series routinely racks up millions of views across platforms, giving him a presence that goes far beyond his immediate followers. 

That reach was on display just days ago when Restoran Rembayung (KA’s most recent venture) opened its initial bookings, roughly 3,000 bookings reportedly came in for the opening day, overwhelming the website and crashing it under the sudden surge in traffic. 

If you’re like us, and thousands of other Malaysian’s that didn’t manage to grab a reservation at this new KL hotspot, yeah… we can admit it stings a little. It’s hard not to start questioning your luck when Sambal Nyet gets instantly sold out before you can even consider buying it. Rendang Nyet Berapi? Gone before you could even click on the yellow bag. You might start asking yourself: what’s even the point of supporting someone who’s already so successful? Is his sambal, with over 3 million bottles sold, really that good? Or maybe, am I just super unlucky?

Trust us, feeling a little salty about it is completely understandable. All you want to do is support a Malaysian sensation while trying to avoid the FOMO. So while it’s easy for us to start looking at it all like sour grapes, we need to remember this isn’t a story of overnight internet fame and success for Khairul Aming.  Years of consistency, trial and error, and actually figuring out what Malaysians want went into getting here. The sold-out products, the crashed website, the buzz around every new venture,  is not just hype. It’s earned, and that’s why even the things that vanish in minutes make sense.

The Journey Before the Fame

Khairul Aming’s journey to becoming the internet sambal lord was no easy feat. Long before Khairul Aming (otherwise known as KA) became a household name, he wasn’t an influencer at all,  he was a regular guy with an engineering background, working in sectors like oil and gas and logistics early in his career. It may seem like a completely irrelevant start but that’s where he picked up some of the business know-how that would matter later, like understanding supply chains and operations. 

His first foray into  the content world was through Rasapop, a humble Facebook page with simple cooking videos. It grew slowly, and eventually he dropped the alias and went full‑on Khairul Aming, putting himself on camera and turning up the personality, letting people connect with the real him. That shift helped build his personal brand, and gradually his audience expanded across social platforms. His first sambal back in 2018, Sambal King, didn’t exactly blow up either. 

But he kept going, tweaked, learned, and relaunched as Sambal Nyet in 2021 now promoting it as Khairul Aming. That’s when things really clicked: millions of bottles sold, fans flocking to live streams, and loyal fans converted to loyal customers, all of which opened the possibilities for other now iconic products like his rendang and dendeng. 

What may have seemed like overnight success or a massive stroke of luck, really wasn’t that. Years of trial and error, learning from mistakes, and showing up even when no one was watching made all of this possible. From Rasapop to Sambal Nyet, and now even Restoran Rembayung, Khairul Aming truly earned it, one spicy step at a time.

Even at his peak, like when he won Creator of the Year at the TikTok Awards Malaysia, he used the moment to point out how many kids today dream of becoming content creators, and that’s it’s a good thing, as long as creators (aspiring or existing) remember the responsibility that comes with influence, especially in an age where cheap publicity often gets more attention than meaningful content. The fact that he chose to share such a positive note, even on awards night, shows he truly deserves the fame and success he’s achieved.

But yes, we get it. The website crashed, the bookings sold out in minutes, and your FOMO is real. You might be staring at your empty cart thinking, “Why can’t it be me?” But maybe that’s the point: patience, persistence, and consistent effort are what got him here. And perhaps we could use just that while waiting for our turn in supporting our Sambal King in his latest venture. 

P.S a reminder to all the big dreamers starting small – every step, every attempt, and every little failure is part of the journey. Keep showing up, keep experimenting, and one day your turn will come… and it’ll be just as sweet (or spicy) as you imagined.