Our Story

Hey, my name’s Chris and I’m a host that comes from a startup background. I’ve seen it all (from pitches so bad the whole room died of laughter, to experiencing my own failed startups and some success with Groupon Singapore which has allowed me to reach a financial goal) – and it’s not as smooth as the ‘overnight success story’. In fact, starting a company is more about failure than it is about success.

Watch the latest TV show in Japan with Channel NewsAsia before COVID-19 hit.

Why the name, “Ramen To Riches”? Apart from being an Asian play on the phrase ‘rags to riches’- in startup folklore, there exists a threshold when a startup becomes ‘ramen profitable’. First coined by Paul Graham (Y-Combinator) in one of his well-known essays, it means that you are profitable, but make only enough to afford instant ramen and cover the basic living expenses of the founders. It’s a good sign, but it doesn’t mean your idea has gone gang-busters yet. And that’s the point, your journey will be marked not by the riches at the end of it, but by the challenges- and there’s many of them throughout- and how you cope and deal with them. And when you get there, you’ll look back and reminisce over the times when all you could afford was instant ramen in simpler times.

And why do this? In my (early) 30s, I’ve been beset with a mix of failure and some success, but I’m also looking past financial ambition and instead want to find stories that encapsulate the fighting human spirit. On a personal level, being able to tolerate the sound of your own voice in a video or podcast is probably the highest form of self-acceptance. I am also an entrepreneur and know exactly how it feels to be guide-less and isolated. I’ve met a lot of kind people on my travels who were willing to help me and this is my way of paying it forward.

We’re now into Season 2 and this season I’ll look to improve the production quality and storytelling standards. While COVID-19 has unfortunately disrupted a lot of the recording process, we’ve been inundated with messages of hope and useful feedback. Thank you and take care.

Hear real-life advice from entrepreneurs and leaders who’ve reached high, done it, and had egg on their face to prove it. “Ramen To Riches” presents a new podcast episode each week with lessons that will edge you closer to your success.

Our stories are local, featuring Asian entrepreneurs, idealists and trendsetters, and how they overcame struggles to build brands, movements, and companies that impact our daily lives. Failure and success go hand in hand, you cannot have one without the other.

From the moments of sheer melt-your-heart ecstasy to those mornings where you want to curl your sleep-deprived body under a blanket, being an entrepreneur is like nothing you’ve ever experienced before. This podcast is dedicated to telling it how it is. No sugar coating, no-nonsense. This is how it is. And it’s all been created for you.

But what – apart from the obvious – do you need to do to get there? What happens along the way? And what the hell do you do when it all breaks down?

Fear not. We’ve got your back, by providing real-life experiences from real-life people. Not textbook theory, not predictable stuff you can find anywhere, but reality – funny, heartbreaking, and practical reality.

Podcasts are perfect for busy people who can listen while they walk, gym, work or shop. You don’t have to attend a physical event and you don’t have to look at a screen.

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