He recently ventured into the food and beverage business and Andie Chen has revealed the hardships he went through revamping Typhoon Cafe.
In a YouTube video posted on May 5, the 40-year-old local actor, who currently serves as chief marketing officer of F&B group Creative Eateries, shared how he was assigned to revamp the Taiwanese cafe within two months from December 2025 with a tight budget.
“I kind of half-hustled, half-convinced Kate, my wife, to lead the project because I had a lot on my plate,” he said.
Actress Kate Pang, who is Taiwanese, has experience in F&B operations and managed the project from Taiwan — where the couple and their two children are mostly based.
Andie shared that while the arrangement started out well, “cracks” started to form over time as they started figuring out issues.
In February, Kate flew to Singapore to visit the cafe — which is located in Plaza Singapura — and oversaw the operation process, including food-tasting and equipment assessment.
This visit also affirmed that there was too much for her to manage alone and from overseas.
Andie continued: “I started to argue with my wife over work. Basically, it was straining our relationship.
“Eventually, it got to a point where I just made the call and this arrangement stopped.”
He added that Kate stepped back as the project leader to become a consultant for the project.
He’s led the revamp on his own since early March, feeling “fully inadequate” to do it.
He said: “I felt very underqualified. I felt like I’m going to screw things up. I felt like I’m going to let down everybody that is working so hard on this project.
“I was in this mindset for a while, and it was getting a bit disruptive.”
Andie took a break to rest his mind and eventually came to the conclusion that while he didn’t have any experience with F&B management, he knows what he stands for.
With that understanding, he created four pillars to help him manage the business — a comfortable space, unbeatable value, yummy food and something special.
Andie was also asked what made him persevere in the cafe’s revamp despite the hardships he faced, and he replied: “I know it’s important for the company.
“I promised my brother Adam that if he’s going to take the risk of acquiring Creative Eateries, then I will do everything in my power to make sure he succeeds.”
Andie and his two brothers Adam and Ash acquired Creative Eateries for a seven-figure sum in 2025.
The group houses 13 homegrown brands including Suki-Ya, Siam Kitchen and Barossa Steak & Grill.
Speaking to AsiaOne last November, Andie shared that while working with his siblings can get quite “nasty”, he knows that there is only love and best intentions with each other.
He added then that Creative Eateries now holds a unique sense of “extra security” with their brotherly bond.
[[nid:735130]]
No part of this article can be reproduced without permission from AsiaOne.
Read the full article here
