What if the riskiest ingredient in your recipe for success was your own story? Jing Gao walked away from a secure tech career with no safety net to rediscover her Sichuan roots through food. She launched a fast-casual restaurant in Shanghai, apprenticed under a Michelin-caliber chef, and transformed a home-kitchen supper club into a crowdfunded CPG phenomenon—all to challenge stereotypes and rewrite the narrative around Chinese cuisine. Host Andrea Marquez unpacks how Jing had the courage to price her chili crisp at a high price when they first launched despite widespread belief that Chinese food “shouldn’t cost that much,” to reclaim her birth name, and to find a manufacturer that was willing to use the ingredients she preferred. If you’ve ever wondered whether sticking to your roots can pay off, Jing’s story proves that conviction is more than just a risk – it’s the secret ingredient.
Got a bold leap of your own? Share it with us in an Apple Podcasts review, Spotify comment, or email us at thisissmallbusiness@amazon.com – you might hear it in a future episode.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
(01:44) Have you ever lost touch with your roots and wondered how to find them again? Jing shares how a diasporic childhood led her back to Sichuan cuisine.
(06:22) Would you quit a secure tech job with zero backup? Jing talks about walking away from stability to follow her culinary passion and launch her first venture, Boaism.
(09:52) What do you do when you realize your first venture isn’t your true calling? Jing closed Baoism to apprentice under a Sichuan master chef and deepened her knowledge of ingredients before launching her next chapter: a food pop up called Fly by Jing.
(13:48) How do you test demand before you even have a product? Jing bottled her sauces for her travel pop-up, spotted a market gap, and crowdfunded.
(18:58) Have you ever hesitated to charge what you’re really worth? Jing defied the stigma that “Chinese food should be cheap” by pricing her chili crisp at a premium and reframing it as the must-have “hot sauce.”
(22:12) What happens when authenticity becomes your brand? Jing reclaimed her birth name during the pandemic, built customer trust, and sold out six months of inventory overnight after a New York Times feature.
(24:18) How do you scale from crowdfunding success to retail distribution? Jing on launching on Amazon, landing in Whole Foods, and forging dream collaborations.
(27:47) When should you take the next leap? Jing talks about blending deep research, unwavering conviction, and a touch of “delusion” to keep pushing forward.