I gave up studying in Boston

I gave up studying in Boston
By May Yip


NEXT UP: Two years after opening his first Timbre bar, Mr Edward Chia has opened another. He is now thinking of opening a pizzeria and holding a Timbre music festival. -- ST PHOTO: MAY LIN LE GOFF

YOUNG GUN #2
EDWARD CHIA, 23
Co-managing director of live music bar Timbre Music Bistro

JUGGLING copious amounts of alcohol, late nights and term papers is something most university undergraduates are familiar with.

But for National University of Singapore third-year political science and economics undergraduate Edward Chia, bar-hopping isn't a weekend pastime - it's a business.

After all, the 23-year-old is the co-managing director of The Substation's live music bar, Timbre Music Bistro, and had just opened a second outlet last month.

'I was accepted to study at Boston University and I had enough money for the first few years. But I knew that coming up with the remaining funds would be a strain on my parents,' says the bespectacled Mr Chia. 'I figured I could use the money that would be spent overseas to start a business, which would, in turn, have the potential to make more money.'

Two years since the opening of the first Timbre, he and his three partners managed to make enough to recover their $225,000 investment and start a riverside outlet at The Arts House.

The second and new outlet, which takes up the first floor of the short-lived Q Bar location, boasts live music in the alfresco area and a sports bar-concept indoors.

To the casual observer, an unlimited bar tab and access to inebriated women may be the obvious reasons for a 21-year-old to set up a bar. But Mr Chia's business model was a whole lot more pragmatic.

'When I was 18, I started a non-profit organisation to promote the arts to youths called Arts For Us All,' says Mr Chia, who is also an activist for this year's Speak Good English Movement.

'We were organising a lot of music events, so I wanted a model that didn't require me seeking out sponsors all the time. F&B (food and beverage) was a logical step.'

But for a 21-year-old with absolutely no experience in running a business, establishing a bar and cafe was no easy task.

'The pressure was very intense because I would look at sales numbers every day and the figures can scare you quite a bit in the beginning,' says the earnest man, sounding years older than his age as he waxes lyrical about sustaining a business.

'Being young, I also have to be humble and earn the respect of my staff. I still get behind the bar and help the cashier.'

While he believes in a good education and would not drop out of college, he counts life experiences as a must-have for astute business sense.

'You have to be street-smart in business because, at the end of the day, it's about human relations,' he says. 'You can learn case studies in the classroom but in real-life situations, you have to be nimble and be able to change things on the spot.'

And what's next on the plate for this student entrepreneur?

'We're looking to diversify the Timbre brand. People know us for live music and our pizza, so perhaps a pizzeria or even a Timbre music festival.'

Let's not forget that a master's degree programme is also an item on his must-do list.

So who says men aren't great multi-taskers?