Gem Of A Business – Choo Yilin

Choo Yilin is the founder of a Choo Yilin Artisan Jewellery, a luxury jewellery label based on sustainability and modern style. NanzInc finds out how she was inspired to start this business from scratch.

By: Ng Lin-Li

Why did you start Choo Yilin Artisan Jewellery?
I’ve created jewellery for a long time, first as a side business-cum-hobby when I was working full-time in 2004 as an analyst. Making jewellery was a creative outlet for me and I sold these pieces at independent luxury boutiques in Singapore. In 2007, I moved to Bangkok because my husband was relocated there for work. Having given up my career and feeling the need to do something that I perceived to be meaningful, I applied my skills in jewellery design and this translated into to a full-time job of building a high-end artisanal jewellery label.

What was it like starting your business?
The beginnings were huge stabs in the dark. I was in a foreign land where I didn’t speak the local language. I had no contacts, both social or professional, and it was really a matter of just taking a deep breath and making cold calls to people. I experienced plenty of rejection, misses, and wild goose chases before seeing results. The business is funded with my personal savings and I sometimes joke with people that my lack of awareness was, ironically, my saving grace. I might not have had the courage to proceed otherwise.

How did you find your suppliers, craftsmen and other business partners?
Besides a lot of cold-calling, I was fortunate enough to meet JP, a Frenchman who has been in the jewellery industry for 34 years. He was generous and kind enough to share his experiences and industry trade secrets with me. I doubt I would be where I am today without his immense help. I regard him as my teacher and mentor.

What shaped your business model?
I decided that my business had to be socially meaningful as well as profitable since I was going to invest all my time and energy into it.

The opportunity presented itself when I learned about hilltribe artisans who did beautiful silver work. A traditionally marginalised group, many volunteer organisations in Bangkok were working with them in the capacity of distributing aid or raising funds in order to promote education. While these projects are very laudable, I wanted to do something different from charity. As such, I decided to work with them in order to help preserve their cultural art-form, and in the process generating employment and income for them and helping them to become self-sufficient in the long-term.

I’ve also researched the ecological destruction caused by the jewellery industry and address it by working with only eco-friendly, reclaimed precious metals, both silver and 18-carat gold as far as possible.

Moving to Bangkok also exposed me to many volunteer organisations that were involved in many causes. I was engaged with some of them and also co-founded an organisation that, amongst other things, helped match women who wanted to do meaningful volunteer work with the appropriate charitable organisations. I realised that sustainability was more than just “doing good” – it was an issue that extended into every aspect of running an organisation, for profit or otherwise. This further reinforced my conviction to run a business in a sustainable way, in every step, from the supply chain to the marketing and sales aspects of the business.

What advice would you give to an aspiring entrepreneur?
Allow yourself to fail. It may sound a bit like a cliché but I have met an incredible number of people whose fear of failure was the one thing that stopped them from starting their own business. While this is understandable, it is imperative that you allow yourself to fail and get over the fear of failure for an opportunity to succeed as an entrepreneur.

Keep overheads at a minimum by being innovative and creative. For example, rather than overspending on marketing, use social media sites, blogs and other high-traffic sites to generate brand awareness. If a brick and mortar shop doesn’t make financial sense in the beginning, familiarise yourself with e-commerce and make it easy for people to purchase from you. Outsource what you can in order to keep overheads low, especially in the beginning. When things are more stabilised, come back to the table again and re-evaluate the needs of your business. Think of how to achieve similar results with a lower cost.

For more information on Choo Yilin Artisan Jewellery, go to www.chooyilin.com, or www.cate.com.sg to shop for your personal piece.