Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Andrew Lee. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Andrew, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
I think my resilience stems from when I was playing golf competitively. I started playing golf when I was 6 years old. Then started playing tournament at 8 years old. I learned very early that you never give up no matter how bad you are playing. There are a lot of times where you have a blow up hole in the middle of the tournament but, if you stay focused and persevere you’ll still have a chance to win.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Hi my name is Andrew Lee, owner of ZinDrew. A lot of people ask me why my chili oil brand is called Zindrew. Well my wife is Zin Lee. I initially made the sauce at home for my wife Zin. We both grew up eating chili oil with all our meals. The only chili oil that was available was from the asian supermarkets. Even though we used the store bought chili oils, we were not completely satisfied with the flavor and quality especially Zin. So one day I decided to go out and buy my own ingredients and attempted to make my own chili oil from scratch. After many trials I found the perfect combination. My goal of making something our own and a flavor that Zin loved was accomplished. That’s why I called our sauce ZINDREW.
In 2023, we will be participating in a lot of the food festivals such as 626 Night Market and FoodieLand Night Market. Our goal this is year is also trying to expand our retail footprint. At the moment we have about 50 retail stores around the country that carry our product. Our ongoing goal ever since the beginning is to make our sauce more accessible and convenient for our customers to buy.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
For me it was passion. My wife and I are both foodies, I am also looking at ways on how to upgrade and appreciate food. Second is my love for business. I have always wanted to be my own boss. After working in the golf Industry for so long under someone, I decided that I didn’t want to work for anyone again. Therefore, I always wanted to start my own business. Lastly is drive. Now that I have my own business, you gotta keep going. Always working towards making the company better.
Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?
When I first started Zindrew, all I knew how to do was to make the chili oil sauce and sell it. My cousins Donald and Mike were a tremendous help on setting up the foundations to actually start a company. With their skills and experience they were able to guide me to be more efficient in the company operations.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.zindrew.com
- Instagram: @zindrewchili
- Facebook: @zindrewchili
