The enterprising 24-year-old, currently a student at the Singapore Institute of Management, came to be his own boss eight months ago when he and two partners pooled together about $10,000 to rent and renovate a coffeeshop.
The store, D E Eating House, is located in Geylang Lorong 17 and houses a total of seven stalls.
However, working and studying at the same time does not come easy for the banking and finance undergraduate.Mr Lee, who will graduate in June next year, told Lianhe Wanbao that he works seven days a week, rain or shine. Together with his employees, he does all tasks at the coffee shop, including brewing coffee.
As his two partners have their own businesses to take care of, the third-year student has to supervise the daily operations of the coffeeshop.
Whenever he runs into problems at the shop, he will consult his more experienced partners for advice and learn from putting their words into practice.
First coffeeshop in Geylang to have free wifi
Having a young boss can sometimes bring about new ideas for the industry. For instance, Mr Lee has introduced a free wireless Internet service at his coffee shop.
His eatery is believed to be the first in Geylang to do so.
Customers can surf the Internet at the coffee shop upon obtaining a log-in password from the staff.
Cheng Wee pointed out to Lianhe Wanbao that the main motive of this 'free Internet' move is to attract more tourists and white-collared workers.
However, he emphasised that the coffee shop would not neglect other customers or place a premium on food or drinks to cover the cost of providing Internet access.
A father's encouragement
Mr Lee also shared with the Chinese daily that he decided to take this business plunge because of his father's encouragement.
"My father has always cultivated an entrepreneurial spirit within me since young. He was very supportive of my decision to start a business," he explained.
He also revealed that, apart from food and transport fees, every single cent he earned had been re-invested into the coffee shop.
"We should take advantage of our youth to try new things and pick up experience.
"I hope I can break new ground in the food and beverage industry," adding that he hopes to run a chain of youth-oriented coffee shops in the future.
Source: AsiaOne
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