PASSION IS KEY TO FRANCHISING SUCCESS

Robert Chua has made the successful transition from television to catering, learning a thing or two about franchising along the way.

“It was all by chance,” is how television producer Robert Chua describes how he became involved in the restaurant business. “I got started in the food industry when I was lucky to get the Tim Ho Wan franchise,” says Mr Chua.

Mr Chua was brought up in Hong Kong and has spent more than 50 years in broadcasting. He created one of the most successful television programmes in Hong Kong’s history, TVB’s “Enjoy Yourself Tonight” and founded China Entertainment Television, or CETV, which was bought by AOL Time Warner in 2000.

Mr Chua and his brother obtained the Tim Ho Wan dim sum restaurants franchise in the Asia-Pacific region from the Hong Kong restaurant’s chef and owner, Mak Kwai Pui. The brothers opened the first Tim Ho Wan branch outside Hong Kong in Singapore about three years ago. The decision to award the brothers the franchise “was obviously based on trust”, Mr Chua told Macao Image after giving a keynote address at the 2016 Macao Franchise Expo. “He had already received proposals from more than 100 people, most of them professionals, and he turned them all down,” he says. “I’m very passionate about what I do and, even if I don’t have experience in catering, my passion will go into what I do.”

The Tim Ho Wan chain has now more than 30 branches in the Asia-Pacific region. One of its restaurants in Hong Kong has a Michelin star. Mr Chua describes the expansion as being “well beyond our expectations”.

Mr Chua says his accumulated experience in broadcasting serves him well in the food business. He compares enjoying eating to enjoying television. “My food products are my TV programmes,” he says. “I really found a lot of similarities, while keeping my passion and enjoyment. After all, just like with television, in food you will always get a reaction from people.”

A year ago he started the French-style boulangerie and patisserie A La Bakery, which imports all its ingredients for bread and pastries from France. “It is growing and building up a reputation because of the quality products we offer,” he says.

“I know everything is consistent because it’s coming from top suppliers in France,” Mr Chua says. “We offer high-quality products that follow the best practice of tradition and are free of any artificial enhancers.”

Commitment to high standards and passion are qualities that Mr Chua looks for in A La Bakery franchisee. What is most important is choosing the right franchisee, he says. “If a billionaire comes and says that he will open 100 of your shops, it does not guarantee success. If you do not succeed in the first few, you will not open 100 shops,” he says. “To succeed, you need to have a successful team and product to help build up the brand. I don’t want my brand to be part of a collection. I want it to be the main trophy. I’d rather look for someone who is passionate and fully committed to developing the brand.”

Robert Chua found his second calling in the food industry