Ctrl + Alt + Career Podcast:
Startups in Asia Episodes
Ctrl + Alt + Career shares the stories of those who have left a traditional corporate job to pursue a creative career in Asia.
(PS - I’d love to hear from you! You can reach me on Instagram @ongjennifer_)
04: From Goldman Sachs & Bain to Style Theory founders, Raena Lim & Chris Halim
Chris and Raena are the co-founders and married couple behind Style Theory - Southeast Asia’s largest fashion subscription rental platform, where for a monthly fee, you can rent clothes and designer bags and get access to an unlimited closet. Style Theory was founded just 4 years ago in 2016 and has since expanded beyond Singapore into Indonesia and Hong Kong. To support its growth, the company is venture backed and just closed its Series B in 2019.
Before starting Style Theory, Chris started his career as a management consultant at Bain & Co, and Raena worked at Goldman Sachs in the Prime Brokerage division.
In this episode they share -
Why they left their corporate careers to start Style Theory
How they tested demand for their product at the beginning and what their minimum viable product (MVP) looked like
How they built a business in fashion with no prior experience or connections to the fashion world
How the fundraising process works in Southeast Asia
How they went about hiring and in particular what they did when they didn’t have a CTO (Chief Technology Officer) at the beginning
What it’s like working together as a married couple
And many more…
You can find out more about Style Theory at https://www.styletheory.co/
05: From JPMorgan to Asia Wedding Network, Michelle Yuan
Michelle Yuan is the founder of Asia Wedding Network, Asia's largest online wedding platform for couples planning their big day. She has been awarded Forbes 30 Under 30 for her work with Asia Wedding Network.
Before this, Michelle graduated from Columbia University and started her career at JP Morgan investment bank in equity sales and was a journalist at WSJ, Reuters and Forbes.
In this episode she shares -
What inspired her to start her business
How to grow a two sided marketplace business where you have to grow both vendors and customers at the same time
How she expanded beyond Hong Kong to multiple countries in Asia
How she pivoted her business during COVID-19
The power of search engine optimization over paid ads
And many more…
You can find out more about Asia Wedding Network at https://asiaweddingnetwork.com/
06: From BlackRock to founding Liquefy (fintech startup), Adrian Lai
Adrian is the founder of Liquefy, a technology platform that uses blockchain to tokenize illiquid assets such as real estate, and mutual funds. Outside of Liquefy, he is also an angel investor in FinTech startups.
Before starting Liquefy, Adrian worked at BlackRock as an ESG analyst.
In this episode he shares -
What tokenization and blockchain means
The power of relationships and how to start building your network from zero
Not all emails are spam - a hilarious story on how he landed a major deal in UAE
How to find a Chief Technology Officer and why they might not need to be the best coder
And many more…
12: Alex Fan & Clara Teo, founders of Sunday Bedding
Alex and Clara are the married couple and founders of Sunday Bedding, a direct to consumer bedding company based in Singapore.
In this episode they share -
How to start a direct to consumer brand in Singapore
How to leverage and modernize a family business
And many more…
For more about Sunday Bedding - https://sundaybedding.com/
As always you can find me on Instagram @ongjennifer_, pop by and say hi!
13: Scott Lee, founder of education tech startup Gooroo
Scott is the founder of Gooroo, an online education tech startup based in the US that started off as a marketplace to connect tutors and students, and has now expanded to become a Netflix for education content.
In this episode he shares -
How to build a two sided marketplace
How to fundraise
How to figure out what your passion is and whether entrepreneurship is for you
And many more…
For more about Gooroo - https://www.gooroo.com/
As always you can find me on Instagram @ongjennifer_, pop by and say hi!
15: Fengru Lin, from Google to founder of cell-based milk company Turtle Tree
Fengru is the co-founder of Turtle Tree, a cell-based milk company in Singapore. The first product she’s working on is selling cell based human breast milk not just to infants but also adult humans! Prior to this, she started her career in sales roles at Salesforce and Google.
In this episode she shares -
How her love for cheese led her to starting a cell-based milk company
How she started Turtle Tree without a background in science
How she leveraged the sales skills she honed in her corporate job to start her own business
And many more…
For more about Turtle Tree - https://turtletree.co/
As always you can find me on Instagram @ongjennifer_, pop by and say hi!
22: Gregory Van, from UBS and Grab to founding Endowus
Gregory Van is the founder of Endowus, a digital wealth platform and robo-advisory based in Singapore. Before starting Endowus, Greg worked as an investment banker at UBS as well as in the payments team at Grab.
In this episode he shares -
His transition from finance to tech to starting his own company
How entrepreneurs can build a successful business
Factors to consider when fundraising for your business
And many more…!
For more about Endowus - https://endowus.com/
—-
If you’re feeling unhappy with your corporate job and looking for some guidance to find a more fulfilling career, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram @ongjennifer_ or LinkedIn, I’d love to see how I can help!
Download my free guide to finding your passion here.
30 Part 1: Lily Wu, from two-time entrepreneur to co-founder of WOW Pixies NFT
Lily Wu is the Startup Partner Lead at Stripe and the co-founder of WOW Pixies NFT, a social DAO investing in women- and diversity-led projects in the NFT space. Prior to this, she is a two-time seven-figure entrepreneur, selling shoes and building a startup in the education space.
In part 1 of this conversation, she shares -
How she built two seven-figure businesses before graduating university
How to effectively scale your business
How she travelled the world while working full-time
And many more…!
For more about WOW Pixies NFT - https://wowpixies.com/
—-
If you’re feeling unhappy with your corporate job and looking for some guidance to find a more fulfilling career, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram @ongjennifer_ or LinkedIn, I’d love to see how I can help!
Download my free guide to finding your passion here.
30 Part 2: Lily Wu, from two-time entrepreneur to co-founder of WOW Pixies NFT
Lily Wu is the Startup Partner Lead at Stripe and the co-founder of WOW Pixies NFT, a social DAO investing in women- and diversity-led projects in the NFT space. Prior to this, she is a two-time seven-figure entrepreneur, selling shoes and building a startup in the education space.
In part 2 of this conversation, she shares -
What social DAO WOW Pixies NFT is all about
How to build a community
Advice on being an entrepreneur and starting your own side hustle
And many more…!
For more about WOW Pixies NFT - https://wowpixies.com/
To connect with Lily, find her on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
—-
If you’re feeling unhappy with your corporate job and looking for some guidance to find a more fulfilling career, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram @ongjennifer_ or LinkedIn, I’d love to see how I can help!
Download my free guide to finding your passion here.
31: Chris Edwards, from Marketing Manager to founder of The Honeycombers
Chris Edwards is the Founder and CEO of The Honeycombers, a leading digital lifestyle magazine in Singapore, Bali and Hong Kong. She has also founded other companies, including Launchpad, a community of ambitious, daring and smart entrepreneurs that supports one another in their endeavors, and Digital Collective Asia, which helps businesses explode their sales through ROI and performance driven marketing strategies. Prior to her entrepreneurial journey, she was the Marketing Manager at Krispy Kreme Australia and General Manager at Asia City Publishing.
In this conversation, she shares -
(i) How she got started in entrepreneurship
(ii) Her journey building Honeycombers, Launchpad & other businesses
(iii) Advice on starting your own business
(iv) And many more…!
Find out more about the Honeycombers - https://thehoneycombers.com/singapore/
& Launchpad - https://thelaunchpad.group/sg/
To connect with Chris, find her on Instagram and LinkedIn.
—-
If you’re feeling unhappy with your corporate job and looking for some guidance, you can find me on -
(i) Instagram @ongjennifer_
(ii) LinkedIn
(iii) Or download my free guide to finding your passion here.
(iv) Want to work with me 1:1? Sign up for a FREE discovery call to learn more about my career coaching program here.
35 Part 1: Lauren Dai, from Goldman Sachs Research Analyst to Co-Founder of Cocoon
Lauren is the Co-Founder and COO of Cocoon, a leave management platform that simplifies the complexities of compliance, claims, and payroll for a seamless, more empathetic employee leave experience. Prior to the founding of her company, she was a research analyst at Goldman Sachs. Later, she took the risk in leaving her “safe and comfortable” job at Goldman Sachs to join the then relatively unknown startup Stripe.
In this conversation, she shares -
(i) Her first taste of entrepreneurship while studying.
(ii) First working experience at Goldman Sachs
(iii) Reasons for her pivot to Stripe
(iv) And many more…!
Find out more about the Cocoon - https://www.meetcocoon.com/
To connect with Lauren, find her on LinkedIn.
—-
If you’re feeling unhappy with your corporate job and looking for some guidance, you can find me on -
(i) Instagram @ongjennifer_
(ii) LinkedIn
(iii) Or download my free guide to finding your passion here.
(iv) Want to work with me 1:1? Sign up for a FREE discovery call to learn more about my career coaching program here.
35 Part 2: Lauren Dai, from Goldman Sachs to Co-Founder of Cocoon
Lauren is the Co-Founder and COO of Cocoon, a leave management platform that simplifies the complexities of compliance, claims, and payroll for a seamless, more empathetic employee leave experience. Prior to the founding of her company, she was a research analyst at Goldman Sachs. Later, she took the risk in leaving her “safe and comfortable” job at Goldman Sachs to join the then relatively unknown startup Stripe.
In part 2 of this conversation, she shares -
(i) How and Why she founded Cocoon
(ii) Fundraising, hiring and finding her first clients
(iii) He greatest tips for starting your own business
(iv) And many more…!
Find out more about the Cocoon - https://www.meetcocoon.com/
To connect with Lauren, find her on LinkedIn.
—-
If you’re feeling unhappy with your corporate job and looking for some guidance, you can find me on -
(i) Instagram @ongjennifer_
(ii) LinkedIn
(iii) Or download my free guide to finding your passion here.
(iv) Want to work with me 1:1? Sign up for a FREE discovery call to learn more about my career coaching program here.
36: Coral Chung, from Bain Consultant to Co-Founder of SENREVE
Coral is the Co-Founder and CEO of SENREVE, a digitally native brand revolutionising the luxury industry, which pioneered the luxury convertible handbag and backpack category with the iconic Maestra Bag.
In this conversation, she shares -
(i) Her consultancy experience and it’s relation to entrepreneurship
(ii) The founding and initial growth of SENREVE
(iii) Tips on networking, finding a co-founder, starting a company
(iv) And many more…!
Find out more about SENREVE - https://www.senreve.com/
To connect with Coral, find her on Instagram or LinkedIn.
—-
If you’re feeling unhappy with your corporate job and looking for some guidance, you can find me on -
(i) Instagram @ongjennifer_
(ii) LinkedIn
(iii) Or download my free guide to finding your passion here.
(iv) Want to work with me 1:1? Sign up for a FREE discovery call to learn more about my career coaching program here.