Food brings people together and for local online-based business Shu, it is on a mission to spread joy with their rich and sweet homemade baked goods.
Specialising in pastries, Shu’s business journey started with their own modern take of choux au craquelin before expanding into eclairs and viennoiserie such as croissants and pain au chocolat, among others.
Full-time youthpreneur Brendent Jee came up with the idea to open the business when the first pandemic wave hit the country, realising that the situation has hindered interactions between people.
The 25-year-old wanted to give people a reason to reach out and celebrate one another without the need of being physically present – all via the sweet, assorted bakes.
“Shu has two meanings; one being a wordplay on choux, as that is what we have invested the most time into. Secondly, it is based on the mandarin word (‘属’ or belonging) which is pronounced as ‘shu’, further reinforcing our actions for people to support each other during adversity as human emotions have the need to feel affiliated or a sense a belonging and that they’re not alone in this,” said the entrepreneur.
Image courtesy of Shu
The business started over a year ago and has grown positively ever since, especially during the second wave where demand for the pastries is overwhelming as people are staying at home and active with online purchases.
Moreover, Jee is keen to expand his business and aspires to own a modern bakery where he can serve customers face to face.
“At the bakery, we eye to offer viennoiserie bakes to customers in the morning to pair with a hot cuppa coffee as well as transitioning into pastries and entremets in the afternoon for tea time! Alongside that, we planned to expand beyond baked goods into branded merchandise and other variety of products,” said the full-time youthpreneur.
Being a home-based business, the main platform for Shu is mostly through their Instagram @shu.bwn and run ads on the platform for marketing to gain traction from existing and new customers.
For Jee, he knows that it may not always be easy and believes that there is always a way to work through it while making the best of what he has and growing from trial and error.
Image courtesy of Shu
“The first step is always the hardest… Take things one step at a time but also always have alternative paths when things don’t work out the way you want. Be a visionary, and have a good outlook of the future,” said the brain behind Shu.
Jee continues to strive with his business by keeping a strong mindset that sometimes has its own ups and downs, but it is where he learns to be better than yesterday.
“The final step is to push through with a strong mindset as it’s not going to be sunny every day and work on feedbacks along the way (but do not mentally dwell into it). Believe in yourself,” concluded Jee.
For Jee, despite the challenging times, he hopes that the business continues to be a reason for connecting people and imparts happiness through the gift of sharing good food.
Explore the pastries that Shu offers and connect with people all around by giving them a taste by visiting them on Instagram @shu.bwn.
This article was first published on 04 December 2021 in our Weekly E-Paper issue 170 |
THE BRUNEIAN | BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
