Grace Ann Chua co-founded her social enterprise Friendzone to create conducive spaces for strangers to meet and interact with each other
Born out of the idea of creating spaces to have meaningful conversations, Friendzone is the brainchild of Grace Ann Chua and her two other co-founders, Tham Jun Han and Valencia Wong. The trio found themselves reminiscing about the strong sense of community they experienced during their time living on campus as undergraduates.
“I was living around other people who were in a similar life stage, yet different at the same time. There were lots of opportunities to meet and connect and I gained much insight from the conversations I had with my neighbours,” says Chua.
“They soon became my friends. Living among friends was fun. There was much laughter, but also people to turn to when I needed help, resources, advice or a listening ear.”
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Whether it was a spontaneous game of midnight soccer or borrowing outfits for a photoshoot, Chua says the contrast was apparent when she moved back home after graduation. She felt isolated from her neighbours and didn’t know how to approach them.
“I figured that it wasn’t that young people didn’t want to connect and have friends. As we grow older we lose friendships when we transition through different life stages. Young people don’t know how to and can’t find many meaningful opportunities to form new friendships in our neighbourhoods.”
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What originally started as a voluntary passion project has now become a social enterprise that has helped many thrive. Chua says that through her gatherings she has seen people get introductions to new jobs and internships, receive clarity on decisions they were trying to make, and discover new friends and exercise buddies.
From initially hosting neighbourhood gatherings, the company has also expanded their range of conversation topics and target groups. Whether it is developing industry-based or life-stage-based events, Friendzone’s goal is to help individuals feel connected to one another and has created communities with the People’s Association, National Library Board and National Youth Council, to name a few.
