Ctrl + Alt + Career Podcast:
Female Founders 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_)
02: From Architect to Artist & Calligrapher, Joyce Chiang
Joyce Chiang is a licensed architect, calligrapher, artist and the founder of Joyce Chiang Design Studio. After graduating from UCLA with an Environmental Science degree and UPenn with a master in Architecture, she returned to Hong Kong and started her career at an architecture firm. Along the way she picked up calligraphy and 3 years later left her job to pursue calligraphy and her creative business full time.
In this episode she shares -
How she found the courage to leave her architecture job
How she grew her personal brand and Instagram following
How she found her first corporate customers and prices her work
How she expanded from calligraphy into jewelry, fine art and has just launched Aspire, an online membership subscription where she teaches others how to establish and build their own creative business.
And many more…!
—
You can find out more about Joyce via her instagram @joycechiang_ or her website www.joycechiang.co.
She has also been very kind to offer a free guide on the 5 stages of building a creative career. You can download it here - https://view.flodesk.com/pages/5edeb70d2eacb000260d4557
03: From Yale to Social Entrepreneur, Jasmine Lau
Jasmine is a Yale graduate and the founder of PIM (Purpose in Motion), a social enterprise focused on teaching young leaders in China how to be the social entrepreneurs of the future. PIM has two main arms - (1) where they partner with universities to offer immersive courses to teach students the business behind philanthropy, and (2) is an accelerator program that incubates social impact start ups.
Along the way, Jasmine has been awarded Forbes 30 under 30 for her work with PIM, and aside from her day job running PIM, she is also part of the Gates Foundation Goalkeepers Initiative and serves as an advisory board member for them.
In this episode she shares -
How she went from a girl who had no idea what she wanted to do after graduating from college to turning her interest in community service into a company
How she managed to redefine success for herself and found the courage to pursue an alternative career
How she managed to get the CFO of Alibaba Joe Tsai to reply to her cold email
The difference between for-profit and non-profit fundraising
What the philanthropy landscape looks like in China
How she found ways to get the corporate experience since she had never worked in the corporate world
And many more…
You can find out more about PIM at https://pimglobal.org/
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/
07: From consulting to founding Forested Foods, Ariana Yuen
Ariana is the founder of Forested Foods, an agroforestry enterprise who’s main goal is to combat deforestation. They do this by incentivizing farmers in Ethiopia to grow honey and other products in the forest instead of clearing out the forest to grow crops.
Before starting Forested Foods, Ariana worked at Booz Allen Hamilton as a management consultant.
In this episode she shares -
How she left her consulting job in the US and moved to live in Ethiopia full time
How she discovered her passion for agriculture
How she balances having one foot in the supply chain in Ethiopia and one foot in the US with customers of her premium honey
Why she decided to go to business school
And many more…
In celebration of 3 months of podcasting - I’d love it if you could leave me your feedback so I can keep making content that’s relevant and helpful for you!
https://forms.gle/Q7z2t3TopyzVB77G6
09: From Marketer at Marina Bay Sands to Musician, Priscilla Tan
Priscilla started her career as a marketer in Marina Bay Sands, and left to pursue a career in singing after a few years. She then decided to return to the corporate world and spent almost 5 years at Singapore Press Holdings before breaking out again to pursue music full time.
In this episode she shares -
Her journey and struggle between a traditional and alternative career path
How she pivoted her business when all her gigs/income disappeared because of COVID
How she balances motherhood and work
And many more…
You can find out more about Priscilla via her Instagram @priscillatanmusic !
10: Jennifer Ong, your podcast host
For the season finale, I’m turning the mic onto myself today. Hear how I went from Columbia to BlackRock (with stints in NY, HK & London) to Style Theory, how I got started with this podcast, and the exciting new online course I am launching at www.ongjennifer.com/ctrl-your-career.
===
To learn more about Kevin (my podcast host today), you can find his very own podcast Almost Home here - https://open.spotify.com/show/6gBAc9Ioo4omBvPC8MXPXP
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!
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!
16: Carolyn Yim, from Saks Fifth Avenue to founding Ply-Knits
Carolyn Yim is a multi-hyphenate designer-businesswoman. She founded two knitwear labels, Ply-Knits and Dreyden, and also helps her family modernize their three-generation knitwear manufacturing business.
Her work, particularly on design-forward sustainable knitwear, has earned praise in Vogue, Wallpaper, Business of Fashion, and WWD. She sells her knitwear through Lane Crawford, FarFetch, and online.
Prior to this she studied English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University, and worked at Saks Fifth Avenue, Jack Dorsey and Kering-funded e-commerce startup Fancy.com.
In this episode she shares -
How she built her direct to consumer knitwear brand
How she got her brand into Farfetch and Lane Crawford
How to work with suppliers and find wholesale partners
Her thoughts on sustainable fashion
And many more…
For more about Ply-Knits - https://ply-knits.com/
—-
BTW - I just launched my 1:1 Career Coaching Program, if you’re interested to find out more, head on over to my Instagram @ongjennifer_!
19: Jada Poon, from lawyer to award-winning photographer
Jada Poon is an award-winning wedding and portrait photographer based in Hong Kong, and the founder of Jada Poon Photography. Prior to this, she studied law at Oxford University and was a practicing lawyer for a couple of years.
In this episode she shares -
How she found her passion in photography and pivoted from a career in law
How to price your services and set your own rates
What she hopes to achieve through her work, such as the empowerment of other women
Her thoughts on balancing both financial security and passion
And many more…
For more about Jada - https://www.jadapoonphotography.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_, I’d love to see how I can help!
20: Renee Wu, from Microsoft to owning a pole dance studio
Renee Wu is the owner of a pole dance studio Inspiration Studios and national champion of many pole dancing competitions. Before all this, Renee studied physics at Caltech, pursued a PhD at Stanford with plans to become a professor, and had a stint in Microsoft as an engineer.
In this episode she shares -
How she shifted from pursuing the sciences to chasing her passion in pole dance
How she coped with the pandemic and her plans for the studio moving forward
Her approach to taking risks and making life-changing decisions
And many more…
For more about Renee’s pole dance studio - https://www.inspirationstudios.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_, I’d love to see how I can help!
21: Jamie Lee, co-founder of The Kind Friend
Jamie Lee is the co-founder of The Kind Friend, a wellness company that helps people live a more mindful life through kindness. Prior to this, she started two education businesses and was also helped Carousell expand their operations to Australia as their regional partnerships lead.
In this episode she shares -
Her journey and lessons learned from building and growing three separate businesses
How to build relationships and gain connections throughout your career
Her thoughts on pursuing success while prioritising physical and mental health
And many more…!
For more about The Kind Friend - https://www.thekindfriend.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.
23: Christina Wong, from doctor to founding 10X Study Academy
Christina Wong is the founder of 10X Study Academy, an online training programme that has helped thousands of students around the world learn how to study better and achieve better results in school. Before starting 10X Study Academy, Christina studied medicine at Imperial College London and served as a junior doctor in the United Kingdom.
In this episode she shares -
How she turned her tutoring side hustle into a full-time business
Factors to consider when pricing your services
How to balance both a traditional full-time career with your passion
And many more…!
For more about 10X Study Academy - www.10xstudy.org
—-
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.
24: Amanda Chong, lawyer, poet and co-founder of ReadAble
Amanda Chong is a full-time lawyer trained at Cambridge and Harvard with a focus on gender justice. On the side, she is also a published poet and the co-founder of ReadAble, a non-profit organization that runs weekly English literacy classes for children and migrant women in an underserved neighbourhood with the aim of improving social mobility.
In this episode she shares -
How to find your passion
How she balanced her full-time career, side hustles and also me-time
Her thoughts on careers in general and pursuing the arts as a side hustle
And many more…!
For more about ReadAble - https://www.readablesg.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.
25: Renée Chow, YouTuber, Gothamista
Renée Chow is a YouTuber with her popular YouTube channel, Gothamista, where she covers beauty and skincare from a very scientific angle and has currently over 650,000 subscribers.
Before this, Renée started her career as a buyer at the fashion retailer company, Toppy, and then at luxury brand Hermès, eventually working her way up to being the General Manager of Hermès China. After that, she started her own brick and mortar lifestyle store in New York City, selling products from skincare, cosmetics, specialty toys and more. She eventually sold her business to Walgreens.
In this episode she shares -
How she started her own brick and mortar store
How she stumbled into building her YouTube channel
Her thoughts on entrepreneurship and starting a career in social media
And many more…!
For more about Renée - https://www.gothamista.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.
26: Vinnie Ong, from Morgan Stanley & Blackstone to founding Happy Human
Vinnie Ong is the founder of Happy Human, a sustainable startup selling refillable cleaning care that reduce single-use plastic waste and carbon emissions. Prior to this, Vinnie worked in finance at Morgan Stanley and Blackstone.
In this episode she shares -
How she started her own business from scratch
What customer research and product testing is like
How to get funding for your business
And many more…!
For more about Happy Human - https://www.heyhappyhuman.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.
37: Tanya Zakowich, from NASA & Boeing Engineer to Math Tiktoker
Tanya is the Founder of Pink Pencil Math, a company that provided digital math courses. She also build the Tiktok account of the same name, amassing 1.7 million followers to date. Prior to this, she was an engineer at NASA - her childhood dream job, but decided to pivot away from engineering entirely. Listen to the full episode to find out why and how!
In this conversation, she shares -
(i) Her engineering experience and why she pivoted from NASA
(ii) The different ideas she was pursuing as a business
(iii) How she started Pink Pencil Math on TikTok
(iv) And many more…!
Find out more about Pink Pencil Math - https://www.pinkpencilmath.com/
To connect with Tanya, 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.
38: Sarah Garner, from Fashion Buyer to Founding Retykle
Sarah is the Founder and CEO of Retykle, a luxury resale platform for secondhand children’s wear. She started off her career in America, working at Bloomingdale’s and Holt Renfrew, before upending her life and moving across the world to Hong Kong. Then she gained more experience in the fashion industry at Lane Crawford, DFS, and Shanghai Tang. Sarah left the workforce when she became a mother for a couple of years, and came back wanting to build something she can be proud of. Her experience in bringing up her kids led to the founding of Retykle.
In this conversation, she shares -
(i) Why she moved halfway across the world
(ii) The Founding of Retykle
(iii) Juggling entrepreneurship and motherhood.
(iv) And many more…!
Find out more about Retykle - https://retykle.com/
To connect with Sarah, 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.