Wang Tse building a 21st Century Campfire of collaborative co-working spaces.

What’s your story?
Always been fascinated with business and entrepreneurship. Began my business career aged 21 – Property and F&B were my first ventures, followed by Education, Jewellery, Agriculture and now Co-working spaces.

What excites you most about your industry?
As an Entrepreneur involved in many industries, I can’t really say I am only tied into one industry, it’s also difficult to say my involvement in one is more exciting than another.
What I can say is that Entrepreneurship and Business is what gets me out of bed. I live and breath this stuff. A constant belief that I uphold is to strive for innovation and differentiation. I guess you can say, by holding to these values, excitement is a given!

What’s your connection to Asia?
Born in Hong Kong, raised in Australia. I have always felt I understood the market better in Asia. Moreover, I truly believe, Asia rewards hard work, especially in Hong Kong

Favourite city in Asia for business and why?
Hong Kong, it is flexible yet regulated. The business culture is also very entrepreneurial – connections are made easily and there’s always a solution to problems around the corner.

What’s the best piece of advice you ever received?
“When you hit a wall, you’re about to breakthrough” . This is by far the best advice and truest thing I can relate to in business. It’s amazing what you can achieve and the breakthroughs you experience by being resilient and persistent.

Who inspires you?
Ricardo Semler, Tony Robbins, Steve Jobs, Elon Musk, Sir Alex Ferguson, Jeff Bezos and my Mum.

What have you just learnt recently that blew you away?
Create something bold and innovating – attach the right strategy and money follows.

If you had your time again, what would you do differently?
Realise earlier when a partnership breaks down or when they are not meant to be formed in the first place. Founder issues are the biggest success and failure factors

How do you unwind?
Play a football match.

Favourite Asian destination for relaxation? Why?
Phuket, has everything, quiet as you like and bustling as you like. The island really does go at your pace .

Everyone in business should read this book:
Don’t have enough time to read books!

Shameless plug for your business:
Campfire.work is my latest venture – the fastest growing co-working space in Hong Kong. It is conceptualized as a place where like-minded entrepreneurs can gather to share their experiences and work together. Being industry-focused (marketing, tech, fashion, etc), we will have 5 sites by end 2017 to stand out in allowing for more relevant networking opportunities, events, and collaborations.

How can people connect with you?
[email protected]

Twitter handle?
@campfire_hk

This interview was part of the Callum Connect’s column found on The Asian Entrepreneur:

CallumConnectsCallum Laing invests and buys small businesses in a range of industries around Asia. He has previously started, built and sold half a dozen businesses and is the founder & owner of Fitness-Buffet a company delivering employee wellness solutions in 12 countries. He is a Director of, amongst others, Key Person of Influence. A 40 week training program for business owners and executives.

Take the ‘Key Person of Influence’ scorecard <http://www.keypersonofinfluence.com/scorecard/>

Connect with Callum here:
twitter.com/laingcallum
linkedin.com/in/callumlaing
Get his free ‘Asia Snapshot’ report from www.callumlaing.com

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