Name: Julie Chen
Job title: Co-founder and CEO
Company: Cheeky Panda
What was your first job? Business development in commodity trading with a Japanese multinational trading house. Travel, long meetings, and the occasional late-night karaoke session with colleagues.
What’s been your worst job interview? An admin job interview, when I realised within five minutes that I wasn’t the right person for it.
What was the first music single you bought? Wannabe by the Spice Girls, I loved the Spice Girls at that time.
“Shelves are still dominated by legacy brands, leaving consumers with limited choice”
How do you describe your job to your friends? I tell them I sell toilet rolls made from bamboo. It usually gets a laugh, and then I explain that we’re actually saving trees while making sustainable essentials.
What is the most rewarding part of your job? Seeing our products on supermarket shelves and knowing they’re making a positive impact. It’s the mix of purpose and progress that keeps me buzzing.
What is the least rewarding part? Admin. I’m not naturally strong at it, and while I can find it a bit boring, I recognise how important it is to run a successful business.
Recently I’ve been implementing more automation and AI tools to handle the repetitive parts, freeing me and my team up to focus on the bigger picture while still ensuring the detail gets done properly.
What is your motto in life? Think big, start small, outsource what you are not good at.
If you were allowed one dream perk, what would it be? Unlimited sandy-beach massages.
Do you have any phobias? Trypophobia – anything with dense little patterns gives me the creeps.
If you could change one thing in grocery, what would it be? If I could change one thing in grocery, it would be increasing the availability of sustainable alternatives in the toilet paper and tissue aisles. Today, those shelves are still dominated by legacy brands, leaving consumers with limited choice.
Bamboo, along with other renewable and recycled fibres, offers a variety of sustainable choices. We’re making strong progress in this space, and it’s inspiring to see the B Corp community growing in this space – proving that brands can be both commercially successful and purpose-led.
Read more:
x
What luxury would you have on a desert island? Endless sunshine and daily massages – paradise sorted.
What animal most reflects your personality? A panda, of course – they’re calm, playfully creative and love bamboo.
What’s your favourite film and why? Gone with the Wind. Scarlett O’Hara is complex, resilient, and fiercely determined, which I admire (minus the drama!).
What has been the most embarrassing moment in your life? Singing karaoke badly.
Which celebrity would you most like to work with and why? David Attenborough. I once wrote to him and he replied!
What would your death row meal be? A giant bowl of spicy pho.
No comments yet