01: From Unilever to Restaurateur, Chris Cheung
Chris Cheung is a restaurateur and have started multiple food and beverage concepts in Hong Kong, starting with Bread & Beast (a sandwich restaurant inspired by Hong Kong flavors), Kong (an Asian fusion restaurant), White Lemon (a B2B catering service focused on servicing gyms) and Black Garlic (a grain bowl based, fast casual restaurant focused on the office crowd).
In this episode he shares his experience launching multiple F&B concepts in HK and how he has navigated the recent protests in HK and COVID-19.
3 Key Takeaways
(i) Lack of passion for what he was doing in the corporate world led Chris to start Bread & Beast, a sandwich restaurant inspired by Hong Kong flavors. He didn’t actively decide on starting a sandwich shop when he left. It was serendipitous, and a slippery slope.
(ii) Managing overhead expenses is the number one thing you should pay attention to when starting a restaurant
(iii) While Chris built a business with multiple F&B concepts to counter the peaks and troughs of the F&B industry, there will always be unforeseen forces (e.g.: HK protests and COVID-19) that you cannot plan for. And when that happens, it is crucial to adapt.
Looking to skim the podcast?
00:52 - How did you go from marketing at Unilever to starting Bread & Beast?
6:36 - How did you know how to start a restaurant?
8:10 - Once you decided to set up a restaurant, how did you grow?
10:34 - Why did you decide to expand into Kong, White Lemon and Black Garlic?
21:29 - Out of the 4 businesses, which was the one that did the best?
25:01 - You recently decided to shut down Bread & Beast and Kong after 6 years of being in business. Did it have anything to do with the protests in Hong Kong and COVID-19?
28:29 - Knowing how everything would turn out, would you do this all over again? Or would you have stuck with a corporate job?
31:10 - What are your thoughts about pursuing your dreams vs pursuing financial security?
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If you’re feeling unhappy with your corporate job and looking for some guidance, you can find me on -
(ii) Instagram @ongjennifer_
(iii) LinkedIn
(iv) Or download my free guide to finding your passion here.
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