Are you curious how Secretlab’s CEO, Ian Ang, turned his passion into a global unicorn? If so, then keep reading. The story behind it: Why did Ian create Secretlab?
Let’s look at how
Meet Secretlab’s CEO and co-founder, Ian Ang, named EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2020 in Singapore. Ian says, “I was definitely not a good student.” However, since childhood, he has had a true passion for sports and games. On school nights, he used to get up at 3 in the morning to play video games.
Ian Ang’s Story as CEO
The story begins in Singapore, where Ang was born in 1992. Ang was the younger of two children. He spent much of his childhood living with his aunt in Chong Pang, while his parents managed their automobile repair business.
Ang completed his studies at Chongfu Primary School and Orchid Park Secondary School, then graduated from Ngee Ann Polytechnic with a diploma in business studies. While Ang was a teenager, he was also a competitive e-sports player and won a regional StarCraft II tournament.
What inspired him to go into business?
During his college years, Ian needed a gaming chair. Ian, along with his business partner, Alaric Choo, made significant efforts to find a gaming chair. Nevertheless, both were unable to find a gaming chair.
After that, they became frustrate with their never-ending search for a gaming chair. Ultimately, they made the decision to design and manufacture their own gaming chair. And this is how Secretlab was born.
What is Secretlab?
Ian Ang and Alaric Choo founded the Singapore-based gaming chair company Secretlab in 2014, using savings of S$50,000. Secretlab, an award-winning chair company, provides comfortable chairs for top e-sports gamers and work-from-home professionals who spend long hours seated every day. It has been chosen by more than 3 million people, including gamers and creators.
Ang’s journey has led him towards success.
- In 2018, Ang was listed in the Forbes 30 under 30 Asia lists.
- In 2020, Ernst & Young honoured Ang the Entrepreneur of the Year for consumer products and Singapore’s Entrepreneur of the Year.
- Ang was nominated for the Singaporean of the Year award presented by The Straits Times.
- He won the 37th Singapore Business Awards’ Young Business Leader of the Year title in 2022.
This is the story of a college dropout to become a successful entrepreneur turning his passion into a global unicorn.
