Episode 079 - Wing Lam
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Wing Lam left his corporate job to start Wahoo's Fish Taco restaurant with his younger brothers Eduardo and Mingo, little knowing how soon the restaurant would become a global franchise. The Lam brothers grew up close to the ocean in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and brought their love of surf culture and fresh healthy food with them when their family moved to the USA. Wing grew up helping out in his parent’s restaurant which gave him the knowledge and experience he needed to open that first restaurant beside the beach in Costa Mesa, Orange County.
Wing joins me today to tell the extraordinary tale of coming from Brazil with his family, learning English via schoolmates and the family business, and the moment he decided to seize the opportunity to try a new venture and open Wahoo’s Fish Tacos. He shares his experience of working with his brothers and how they keep each other accountable and what Wing sees as the key to the franchise’s ultimate success. Wing also discusses the faith component that kind of interweaves the personal and professional aspects of his life.
"Most people don't fail because they give bad service, or they can't cook - the reason you fail is you don't know how to market and get people to come in buy your services.” - Wing Lam
“You got to lead by example.” - Wing Lam
“You’ve got to have a little faith.” - Wing Lam
This week on The Wow Factor:
How Wing and his two brothers started Wahoo's Fish Tacos and why they were confident it would be a success
How the menu at Wahoo’s Fish Taco evolved and why they ended up buying futures on wahoo fish
The moment that changed the trajectory of the company
The lucky break that offered the opportunity to scale their business to more restaurants and stores
Stories of times when things went wrong and what the brothers did to get back on track
The impact of COVID-19 on Wahoo’s Fish Taco and what the company did to get in front of the problems
How and why Wing tapped into his network to continue delivering food to nurses in the local hospitals
How the company pivoted to keep the business running during the lockdown
Wing Lam’s Words of Wisdom:
Life is not about accumulating stuff, it's about being able to share and give back to the community that you're in.
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