Ben Yeo Worked Part-Time As A Pest Control Technician When He Started His First Business As He Wasn’t Making Enough Money

Looking back on his journey, Ben joked that there’s a very curious similarity between all the organisations he’s been a part of.

“All of them have either shut down or moved,” he quipped. “Those that moved are safe and still exist today. The first primary school that I went to closed, as did my secondary school. I attended SHATEC, which moved. I was at the police academy when I was in the army. It used to be at Thomson, but now it’s moved too. I worked at a French bakery… All the shops that I’ve worked at are no longer around.”

Ben continued, “Later on, I joined showbiz. I thought that MediaWorks… I truly thought that it wouldn’t shut down, but it did. It merged with Mediacorp [in 2004], which was located at Caldecott for over 40 years, but we’ve moved too. Isn’t it amazing?”

The two stores — one selling footwear, and the other, fashion — he started years ago have also shuttered.

Ben was only 21 when he started his first business selling streetwear.

“I didn’t know better when I was younger," he said. "I borrowed $20K from my mum and my partner also invested $20K, which is how we started our business. It was the happiest point in my life, but it was also the most difficult. On one hand, I was doing something that I liked, but it was tough because some months, I wouldn’t even bring home $400. We had to use the money to buy more stocks.”

“I had to support myself by finding a part-time job. I was a pest control technician… You know the guys who [fumigate places to get rid of mosquitoes]? That’s what I did.”

These setbacks have actually been a source of motivation for Ben.

In 2017, he wasn’t doing well financially and that spurred him to do culinary live streams as he wanted to cement his image as a celeb with a passion for cooking.

“It was tough,” said Ben. “I had some financial problems and I’m very thankful to the good friends around me, my mother-in-law and my mum. I borrowed money from them to make ends meet.”

“I started the channel in hope that I can turn it into a business idea (…) I persevered and saw the fruits of my labour three years later."

Click here to watch the rest of Ben's interview on Hear U Out on meWATCH.

Here's the video for Ben's interview on Hear U Out:

Photos: Ben Yeo/Facebook, Mediacorp