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Operating 24 Hours Could Hurt Your business – Here’s Why

Want to Start a 24-hour business? 

Operating for 24 hours might be what comes to mind when wanting to start a business. That might be a profitable way for some, but there are some factors that you might want to take into consideration before you start a 24-hour business.  

Generally, starting a 24-hour business is the same as any other; you just have to register your business and your business hours. The question you should ask yourself is whether you really need 24 hours to maximise your profits. Or rather, are you just wasting money? 

By the way: These are questions that MISHU constantly brainstorm with our customers! Get in touch to schedule a free consultation on how to choose the best business hours! 

What businesses are suitable for 24-hour operations? 

If you take a stroll right now, you will likely see a handful of stores or businesses operating for 24 hours. Have you ever wondered how these businesses perform after peak hours, especially after midnight? 

To show you some examples, let’s take a 24-hour business, such as a self-service laundry. How does it perform during midnight? I’m sure people who have experience going there might all agree it will be a quiet one, where occasionally there will be one or two customers going there to do their laundry. Still, as many might have noticed, the washing machines, lights and fans are never turned off. For a huge chain, it might be a small cost to pay, but for most startups, that might not be the case.


Convenience stores such as ‘7-Eleven’ also adopt the 24-7 business hours. They operate for 24 hours with constant air-conditioning. This is not only costly but also bad for the environment. The same experience is applicable for these convenience stores as customers only occasionally come after midnight to buy snacks or supper. Well, unless you count robbers and thieves as customers. 

Finally, we have businesses from the healthcare industry such as hospitals or pharmacies! While it is still a debatable topic if this industry can be profitable if they operate for 24 hours, they’ll literally be a lifesaver if they operate 24 hours as emergencies could happen any time of the day.  

Operating for 25 Hours – wait, what?

Have you ever noticed businesses that claim they operate for 25 hours?  


Put simply it’s a marketing technique to stand out from competitors. You may sometimes see some businesses that are 25 hours in hospitals, clinics and even hotels. This means that they are willing to extend the working hours depending on the emergencies or sudden demands from the customers.  

Working hours for staff

Did you know that according to the Malaysian Employment Act, employees can only work for 48 hours per week? So, opening your 24-hour business is easy, but when it comes to the employees, an employer will need to get a permit from the Human Resource Department of Malaysia to allow employees to work by shift.

Conveniently, you can buzz us for help with this – it’s one of our specialties!  

Do you need to operate 24 hours? 

Well, that depends on what sort of business you would want to start.

Let’s say if you were to start your business as a club or even a bar, that’ll probably make your business profitable after the peak hours as your business would bloom during the ‘happy’ hours. But still, that does not justify operating 24 hours as your customer might only come in during certain hours.

So, it is still safe to say that if you are not starting a business that might save lives, the best and most profitable operating hours would depend on your customers.  

Conclusion 

While operating for 24 hours might seem profitable at first, it is not if you look closely. You must ask who’s going to pay the utility bills and most importantly, your employees’ wages? Are you sure that your customers are coming at this hour? Are you sure that you run profitably?   

If you’d like to have a better idea, drop us a message to schedule a free consultation on how to choose the best business hours for your business? We’re eager to help you start your very own business!  

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