Cover Ong Ning-Geng, Anabelle Co-Martinent and Renyi Chin (Photo: Tatler Malaysia/Anabelle Co-Martinent)

Ong Ning-Geng of Chocolate Concierge, Anabelle Co-Martinent of La Juiceria Superfoods, and Renyi Chin of myBurgerLab on why they joined 'the club'

Clubhouse, the new iPhone app endorsed by Elon Musk, isn’t just for tech types. These food and drink personalities in Malaysia also use it to compare notes and to survey the scene. Taking his influence a step further, Renyi Chin, co-founder of myBurgerLab, founded a mentoring chat room for fledging and fellow industry personnel. We attended the first session on March 1, 2021 and were among some 400 participants—not bad for a Monday night!

TATLER TIP: Follow @renyichin on the app to stay in the know of the F&B mentoring group, which happens every Monday at 8.15pm.

See also: 3 Malaysian Business Leaders On Why They Joined Clubhouse

Ong Ning-Geng, founder of Chocolate Concierge

Tatler Asia
Above Ong Ning-Geng, founder of Chocolate Concierge (Photo: Khairul Imran/Tatler Malaysia)

Why did you join Clubhouse?

I'm tech-curious and an iPhone user, so it didn't take long for me to check it out.
 
What interest groups are you a part of?

Food and beverage, chocolate, sustainability, education, politics, investment, pitching, tech ideas, physics, botany, gardening, creatives, marketing and Bitcoin.
 
Would you tweak anything about the app?

No.
 
What wisdom have you gleaned from the chat rooms?

I am learning to be a good moderator on Clubhouse.

A memorable quote from Ong on Clubhouse:

Being in F&B during the pandemic has been a blessing in disguise. Be as it may, people have still got to eat.

Watch: How Ong Ning-Geng Has Carved A Name For Single-Origin Malaysian Chocolate

Anabelle Co-Martinent, founder of La Juiceria Superfoods, Super Saigon and Hawker Hall

Tatler Asia
Above Anabelle Co-Martinent founded a slew of health-focused eateries in Malaysia (Photo: Courtesy of Anabelle Co-Martinent)

Why did you join Clubhouse?

It's a whole new social media platform and everyone's curious. When you heard me in Renyi's F&B mentorship talk, it was my first time participating as a speaker. I'm super happy to have a platform to share some of my experiences and to give back to others. I used to be a producer for BFM's Enterprise programme before I started La Juiceria Superfoods so Clubhouse feels like a bit of a throwback.
 
What interest groups are you a part of?

Food and beverage, marketing, branding, meditation and art.
 
Would you tweak anything about the app?

One of the things I really wish Clubhouse had is a feature allowing participants to write out their questions. That way, as a speaker, you could pull up speakers with relevant questions; it would save everybody time and sieve out quality questions. BFM taught me to control and edit conversations that air over the space of a short time.
 
What wisdom have you gleaned from the chat rooms?

I quite enjoy personalities who are able to give straight to the point answers. When giving speeches, I am trying to be more specific and spot on!

A memorable quote from Co-Martinent on Clubhouse:

You don’t have to pursue a degree to learn something new.

Related: What Fuels The Creative Juices Of Anabelle Co-Martinent, Founder Of La Juiceria Superfoods

Renyi Chin, co-founder of myBurgerLab and myPizzaLab

Tatler Asia
Above Instead of waiting for others to initiate change, Renyi Chin takes it upon himself to be the instigator (Photo: Khairul Imran/Tatler Malaysia)

Why did you join Clubhouse?

I read an article about it in late January and saw a few Facebook friends' posts.
 
What interest groups are you a part of?

Marketing, F&B and local politics. Someone I listen to religiously is Chris Do, a designer and marketeer who teaches people how to better sell their products; he's very genuine and knowledgeable.
 
Would you tweak anything about the app?

There have been so many suggestions, such as allowing messaging between individuals and creating a better way to schedule rooms, but honestly, I like it the way it is now, without complicating things. If you want to talk to someone you can just exit Clubhouse and contact them on other existing apps. There is a certain charm to Clubhouse's simplicity.
 
What wisdom have you gleaned from the chat rooms?

It has been less worldly wisdom and more about the little things, things we already know but need reminding of. Going back to Chris Do, I've learned how to handle clients, refine communication, and improve social media. Some rooms are moderated by genuinely great speakers—just keep your mind open to what people have to say about different subjects.

Serious stuff aside, one of my favourite rooms was created by Axel Mansoor, one of Clubhouse's current icons. Around 11pm in America every day, the Lullaby Club goes live and participants sing each other to sleep and speak in whispers. In Malaysia this happens around midday, but it still cheers me up.

A memorable quote from Chin on Clubhouse:

Never serve anything to your guests that you would not want to eat yourself.

ICYMI: Homegrown Heroes Of F&B: Inside Scoop, myBurgerLab & Rotiboy

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