The tale of Haw Par goes back to the 19th century. It could very well begin with "Once upon a time..." such is its story book quality.

This history of the legendary brothers Haw and Par and the origins of their genius trace back to Rangoon (Yangon), Burma, where it all began.

Their father, Aw Chu Kin, the young son of a herbalist in Amoy, a west Fukien province, left for Rangoon in the 1800s to seek his fortune.

His first stop was Singapore where he lived for several days in a kongsi house in the Chinese quarter of Telok Ayer Street before leaving for Penang. Rangoon beckoned and soon he was on his way. Aw Chu Kin set up his own Chinese doctor ("sinseh") shop with a little help from his uncle, and Eng Aun Tong, or the Hall of Everlasting Peace, was founded in 1870. Uncle turned matchmaker and a bride was soon found for Aw Chu Kin.

Aw Boon Haw

Aw Boon Par

Boon Haw, the "gentle tiger" was born in 1882 and Boon Par, the "gentle" leopard" in 1888. Tiger and Leopard were dispatched to an English language school where Boon Haw's singular talent was in street fights. The final straw came when he beat up his teacher. Chu Kin bundled off the problem son to China to grandfather's village whilst the less spirited Boon Par stayed put in Rangoon.

In 1908, father Chu Kin died, leaving the family practice to Boon Par, having despaired of Boon Haw's rebel-rousing ways. The gentle leopard, finding the responsibility too much to bear, later asked for his older brother's return from China to carry on the family business in Rangoon.

"I will learn all I can about Western medicine, you can prescribe Chinese medicine," Boon Par said to his brother. "Together we won't lose a single patient. He can choose between east and west and the fee will stay with us."

On this astute promise the brothers Haw and Par built an empire and a legendary fortune out of a formula for a cure-all ointment sold in a little jar. Today, Tiger Balm is sold in over a hundred countries, arguably the world's best known analgesic ointment.

The origins of that formula can be traced back to the time of the Chinese emperors who sought relief for aches and pains from the stresses of court hearings, and the strains of the imperial harem. The balm would have died with the dynasties had it not been for Aw Chu Kin, who breathed new life into the ancient recipe.

To perfect and exploit their late father's recipe, the sons took over their mother's kitchen. Boon Par, the quiet leopard, toiled whilst Boon Haw, the gregarious tiger organised. Together they produced Ban Kim Ewe, Ten Thousand Golden Oil, panacea for all ills. No customer left the Aw sinseh shop without a little bottle of this golden ointment. True to the Tiger's predatory instincts, Boon Haw sought out every Chinese shop in town and talked them into stocking his salve.

Boon Haw's next logical step was a trademark: what else but his own name, and Tiger Balm was born. By 1920 Aw Boon Haw, not yet 40, was the richest Chinese in Rangoon. Ever the risk taker, Boon Haw ventured south to Malaya and Singapore in spite of brother Boon Par's reservation. The sights and sounds of bustling commerce in the Malayan towns and Singapore's port made his heart beat fast and his head race. Studying the Singapore currency he saw the image of a snarling tiger in the watermark. That clinched it.

The tiger tycoon moved into Singapore in 1926 and Eng Aun Tong found a spanking new home in the busiest port in the region. A new and larger factory was built along Neil Road where production was ten times more than that of Rangoon's. Aw Boon Haw plied small towns in Malaya in his custom-made car which had a head fabricated like a tiger. When the kampong folks crowded around, he would distribute samples of Tiger Balm and its sister products and win still more customers.

A new mansion, Haw Par Villa, was built on a hill in Pasir Panjang surrounded by unique gardens depicting Chinese mythology for the younger, quieter Boon Par in 1937. Also known as Tiger Balm Gardens, it was free to the public. (Tiger Balm Gardens was later donated to the Singapore government by the Aw family, put on public tender for re-building as a theme park under the name Haw Par Villa. This theme park is no longer associated with the Haw Par group).

Haw Par Villa was famous for
its depiction of Chinese mythology

With factories and distributorships firmly established in Malaya,  Hong Kong, Batavia, cities in China and Thailand, and with wealth and status long achieved, Boon Haw next channelled his energy into diversification, which would include publishing and banking.

During the Japanese Occupation Boon Haw was in Hong Kong and carried on business from there while Boon Par shut the factory in Singapore and returned to Burma where he died in 1944. After the war Aw Boon Haw returned to Singapore,reopened his factory and newspapers, repaired his homes and gardens and established the Chung Khiaw Bank in 1950. He placed the management of the bank under the leadership of his son-in-law, Lee Chee Shan. Aw Boon Haw died in 1954 at the age of 72 from a heart attack on his way to Hong Kong following a major operation in Boston.

Aw Boon Haw's nephew, Aw Cheng Chye, assumed control of the family business and became Chairman of Haw Par Brothers (Private) Limited and Sin Poh (Star News) Amalgamated (Private) Limited, and took over the management of Chung Khiaw Bank from his brother-in-law Lee Chee Shan in 1953. In 1969, most of the family business went into a company that was listed on the stock exchanges of Singapore and Malaya as Haw Par Brothers International Limited (later renamed Haw Par Corporation Limited).

Eager to expand his business empire, Aw Cheng Chye invited British investment group Slater Walker Securities Limited to take a stake in Haw Par. On 8th June 1971, following secret negotiations, Slater Walker took control of Haw Par, then brought it through some five years of high profile corporate manoeuvres that made it the fifth largest company on the local stock exchange.

It was however not to last. Massive irregularities and personal interests were involved and the empire came to a spectacular collapse.

During this period, Tiger Balm was franchised to the main Asian territories for 20 years to Jack Chia Limited. Haw Par also acquired Scott and English, Drug Houses of Australia, and Kwan Loong, but divested itself of major operating businesses like the Chinese Paper Sin Chew Jit Poh and the well-networked Chung Khiaw Bank.

Haw Par emerged from the Slater Walker saga in tatters. Michael Fam was brought in by the government to steer the company back to its feet (1975 - 1977), and former Haw Par chairman, Richard Tarling, was sentenced to jail.

There followed a period of uncertainty as three corporate heavyweights battled for the control of Haw Par: the Hong Leong group with a 7% stake, Jack Chia Limited with 16%, and the United Overseas Bank (UOB) headed by Chairman Wee Cho Yaw holding 17%. There was street talk of a pact between Hong Leong and Jack Chia to control Haw Par jointly. On 3rd June 1981, UOB purchased a large block to bring its stake to over 30% and emerged victorious. This stake has grown over the years to 43%.

Under the prudent stewardship of Chairman Wee Cho Yaw, the group grew steadily in assets, with its 5.9% in UOB making up over half of the market worth of its assets, as well as a number of other strategic investments in related companies. Today, the group's strategic investments make up 54% of the book value of its assets (73% of its market value), with investment properties making up another 25% and operating businesses 21%.

A number of chief executives followed after Michael Fam left the scene: George Magnus (1976 - 1978). Stacey Ellis (1978 - 1983), Loo Siew Poh (1984 - 1988), Charlie Phua (1988 - 1990), Hong Hai (1990 - 2003), and Wee Ee Lim (since 2003). In the last 10 years Haw Par has sharpened its focus and divested itself of most non-core operating businesses, including textiles (Mandarin Textiles Ltd), commodity trading, travel (Haw Par Travel), engineering (Pioneer Diecasting), computers (Asian Computer Services), electronics, as well as its stake in Sony (Singapore) Pte Ltd. Sales turnover fell as a result of these divestments, but earnings rose by a hefty 120%. Today, Haw Par is no longer the diversified conglomerate that it was in the seventies and eighties, but a company with strategic investments, investment properties, and two core operating businesses, Healthcare and Leisure, that promote healthy lifestyles.

The company's balance sheet is among the strongest of public-listed companies in Singapore. Subsidiary Haw Par Healthcare Limited has attained virtually uninterrupted growth in earnings ever since it was listed on the main board of the Singapore Stock Exchange in 1988, with increasing product offerings that go well beyond the original ointment in the little jar, as well as the leading position in the manufacture and supply of generic drugs in Singapore. Haw Par Healthcare Limited was privatized in 2003.

With its strong financial position and focused businesses, the future looks bright indeed for the Group.