FROM TEA TO TRIUMPH

Growing from strength to strength, here’s why the Tealive founder is turning into an F&B magnate of his own

- ZECH PHARAMOND

Before Bryan Loo became synonymous with unyielding entrepreneurial zip, Augustman first outlined his star at its Men Of The Year event in 2014. And today, as the founder of Tealive, Loo is still making waves in the industry. After all, hasn’t bubble tea run its course, been resurrected, and interred several times?

Yes, we know a few things about him, like his appreciation for snazzy Italian autos, or that he grew up in a nondescript shophouse in Perlis. And he hails his dad as an unparalleled paragon of fatherhood and business leadership. But today, he’s offering Augustman an honest look into his thought processes, which is basically a masterclass on all things entrepreneurship.

EMBRACING TURBULENCE 

So maybe entrepreneurship doesn’t spark ultimate joy for Loo. But it certainly doesn’t turn him off. Salaried rabble like you and I are not threatened by the trepidation of leaving a stable environment for the dynamic highs and lows of entrepreneurship. When asked if things have gotten easier for the entrepreneur at heart, Loo says, “Not at all.”

He now spends three weeks a month travelling and working abroad, specifically in the Philippines. After a decade of start-up living in Malaysia, he’s doing it all over again. “We’re working very hard to establish Tealive in the Philippines. That means starting from day one all over again. And there’s no way you can run an F&B business from afar. You just have to roll up your sleeves and get to the ground.”

That’s not the only place he’s focused on. Tealive also has business interests in Dubai, Australia, Brunei, Myanmar, Canada, the Philippines, the UK, Cambodia and Mauritius so one can imagine the nuttiness of it all. A

REALITY CHECK