Podcasts about sweet mandarin

#AD We want our homes to smell great all the time, with a scent wardrobe to match every mood. Baylis & Harding's Signature Hand Wash collection lets you do just that: luxurious, affordable, and perfectly crafted to elevate your everyday. We were so happy to partner with Baylis & Harding for this episode, and to talk about our absolute favourites in their Signature collection…Both of us love the Sweet Mandarin & Grapefruit Hand Wash, a refreshing citrus blend with mandarin, grapefruit, soft florals and warm amber. We also adore the creamy, indulgent Jojoba, Vanilla & Almond Oil Hand Wash, rich with vanilla and sandalwood, plus the sophisticated Black Pepper & Ginseng Hand Wash, spicy with black pepper, bergamot and cedarwood. Nicola's picks include the fresh and floral Jasmine & Apple Blossom Anti-Bacterial Hand Wash, combining wild jasmine with crisp apple and peach, and the soothing Wild Lavender & Geranium Hand Wash, with eucalyptus, citrus, lavender and cedarwood. Suzy's favourites are the warm, woody Vetiver, Cedar & Lemongrass Anti-Bacterial Hand Wash, blending vetiver, juniper berries and moss, and the vibrant Peony, Lychee & Vanilla Hand Wash, a romantic mix of peony, pear, lily, rose, lychee and vanilla. Each hand wash is £2.25 and available at Waitrose, Amazon, Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrisons and Ocado. Discover more at @baylisandhardingplc and baylisandharding.com PLUS, in this episode, after our deep dive into scenting our world and moods, we're thrilled to bring you an interview with @richard.e.grant – actor, author, broadcaster and founder of @jackperfume – about how he was ‘led by his nose' all his life, and eventually created his own fragrance house (hugely influenced by his own scent memories). Don't miss it!

Hi Bakers, Citrus Cheesecake is another top episode of 2022 that can't be beaten! I've made a lot of cheesecakes and this is my new favorite flavor! The mix of citrus together is even better than lemon or orange and has a sunny taste you can't find in a store-bought cake. The recipe takes a bit of time but none of it is very complicated. I will walk you through all the tricks and you'll see how easy it is to make this amazing dessert. This recipe was created with a slight twist on a lemon cheesecake I made years ago. I wanted a light and fresh taste with less tartness. Sweet Mandarin oranges were just the thing to round out the lemons and add to the citrusy feel. Another bonus is the beautiful orange color of the curd topping! If you choose to make the sour cream topping instead, the cheesecake will have a more subtle citrus flavor. The recipe link is included here since the whole recipe was too long for the show notes! I hope you have fun and let me know how it goes -Carolyn https://drive.google.com/file/d/1u5xB0g412hkIG37bdS9FY8w4I6n62rCe/view?usp=share_link --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/carolyn-hillyer/message

Hi Friends, It's time to bake again! I'm so happy to have you here with me in the kitchen. We are baking a beautiful Citrus Cheesecake today. I will walk you through all the tricks and you'll see how easy it is to make this amazing dessert. This recipe was created with a slight twist on a lemon cheesecake I made years ago. I wanted a light and fresh taste with less tartness. Sweet Mandarin oranges were just the thing to round out the lemons and add to the citrusy feel. Another bonus is the beautiful orange color of the curd topping! If you choose to make the sour cream topping, the cheesecake will have a more subtle citrus flavor. The recipe link is included here since the whole recipe was too long for the show notes! I hope you have fun and let me know how it goes -Carolyn https://drive.google.com/file/d/1u5xB0g412hkIG37bdS9FY8w4I6n62rCe/view?usp=sharing --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/carolyn-hillyer/message

In this next episode of Northern Lights Armoghan Mohammed speaks to Helen Tse MBE, lawyer, restaurateur and successful author, where she talks about her early life as first-generation Chinese, growing up in Manchester and the two things that keep her going - her passion for food and the family business, Sweet Mandarin; and secondly, the professional life of a lawyer.

In this next episode of Northern Lights Armoghan Mohammed speaks to Helen Tse MBE, lawyer, restaurateur and successful author, where she talks about her early life as first-generation Chinese, growing up in Manchester and the two things that keep her going - her passion for food and the family business, Sweet Mandarin; and secondly, the professional life of a lawyer.

When we communicate with people, it is polite and nice to make some compliments in a nature way. In today's story, we are going to look at when you are making compliments to Chinese people, what they might say. Hope you enjoy the story. Join other motivated learners on your Chinese learning journey with maayot. Receive a daily chinese reading in Mandarin Chinese in your inbox. Full text in Chinese, daily quiz to test your understanding, one-click dictionary, new words, etc.
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After a stint of being a comedian, Sara Polon started to spiral downhill and it wasn’t until she decided to do a triathlon, that she started to move her life around. But how did she decide to feed herself? With her mother’s soups of course. And that’s kind of how Soupergirl started. With constantly changing innovative flavors such as Split Pea Mint and Mexican Black Bean Sweet Potato and speedy delivery service, Soupergirl is growing fast. Soupergirl has been featured in the press multiple times and has critical acclaims of the taste and health benefits of the Polon’s family soup. Rumor has it, they’ll be appearing on Shark Tank very very soon. Check the show notes for more details. Anyways, super insightful interview with Sara Polon. I learned a ton about passion, motivation, and high pressure processing. A quick note, we talk about Alexa during this interview and while editing, Alexa added 5 apples to my shopping cart… NEW Sponsor - FoodLabelPro.com Is your product packaging compliant with the new FDA rules?  The compliance deadline is January 1st, 2020. At FoodLabelPro.com we will upgrade your current panels for only $50. FoodLabelPro.com also provides package and claim reviews, laboratory analysis, shelf life testing, printer/graphics services, and menu analysis.   We are your one-stop shop for food packaging: FoodLabelpro.com. Sponsor - BAKERpedia This episode is brought to you by BAKERpedia – your one-stop, resource that answers all your questions on industry trends, ingredient information, food safety and more. It’s shared knowledge, freely available, always. BAKERpedia.com – we do all the thinking so you can focus on your business. Show Notes James Altucher – Comedic Journey We want Soupergirl to be happy, fun and approachable Washington Post Article about Soupergirl When someone asks what you do for a living, what do you tell them in a sentence or less?: I’m Soupergirl, I deliver whole food, vegan soup to the masses “Sara Polon is going to clean your colon” We rebranded the cleanse concept and put it as more on the meal If you eat four soups a day, you’ll eat less but you’ll feel more energized New and innovating flavors every week Beet Gaspatcho Peach Gazpacho We try to get traditional flavors and give them a twist Lay’s Do Us a Flavor Queso Chips Frieka Bulgar New flavors work when you pair something new to something old My mom cooked from scratch. We started this company because we saw how many things are low quality and had so many preservatives Why did you start Soupergirl?: After I stopped doing Comedy, I slowly slid to rock bottom. I signed up for a triathalon and paid attention on what I eat. Michael Pollan – Omnivore’s Dilemma We first started in the kitchen. I just invited people to my apartment. When we started delivering, we got press because we were authentic. We started catering, then selling to Costco, then ship How did you get a first customer?: We had a launch party. I asked 6 friends who didn’t know each other and they spread it their friends and it brought 100’s of people. The invite went viral and got forwarded to the press. Daily Candy – begged them to not get the scoop What is the hardest part of the business?: Growth is hard. You have to keep people interested, loyal and still have great quality What are ways to manage growth: Try to hire proactively. Some of the worst mistakes I’ve made was reactively hiring. For example, we hired a kid to deliver soup and he got a hit and run and didn’t tell anyone. What is the most important skillset you can have?: Leadership. You need to learn how to delegate. Do you have any books about leadership?: Actually. No. It’s more about people. How do you choose advice?: You have to be passionate about it. If you're not passionate about the business, the advice you take can destroy you. Passion will sort out the right advice Soupermeals Any stories about your soup?: One of our customers got her bloodwork done and the Soup meals gave her the best blood results Cancer treatments, harsh illnesses Parents use their soup for kid’s diets Food Trends and Technology: For trends, plant-based. For technology, clean meat High-pressure Processing (HPP) – Our gaspacho is HPP HPP increases shelf life from 10 days to 95 days HPP used in Hummus and things HPP can have your product explode your product The biggest challenge a food producer needs to face: If you have an idea and you want to cook something, there’s not a lot of shared kitchen spaces to try a product. There’s barely any guidance for this. You need a lot of physical assets that are hard to get. More people are getting sick in food because your food comes from everywhere Maker’s Space shuts down Cottage Industry Laws One thing in the food industry you’d like to know more about?: The future. Things are changing so rapidly. The tension between retail, farmer’s market, so much technology is going on. Trends will boom, but there are niches that will never go away Coconut Oil Who inspired you to get into food?: My mother and Michael Pollan What’s your favorite kitchen item?: Just a knife and a cutting board. I also use my Vitamix. However, to make soup, you just need a knife and cutting board Food Mills Why are you closed on Friday and Saturday?: I’m Jewish and we’re a kosher company so I have to follow the law. Sometimes it’s frustrating, but I’m glad that it forces me to have a vacation How many of your customers are orthodox jewish?: A lot of my customers are not orthodox and vegan. Most of my customers just love good food. How do you like working with your mother?: I’m really lucky. My mom is so energetic How do you make vegan challah?: We make a water challah. We get it from a kosher bakery Any advice to get into the food industry?: Life is short, do it! Regret is the worst feeling in the world. Start small, don’t invest too much until you’re ready. You get to the point: Do this, or do nothing else. Every time I’ve had a Where can we find you for advice?: Our website. Just send me a message. Twitter: @soupergirl Supergirl Like This Episode? Then You Might Like Hugh Thomas - Ugly Drinks: Also exploding in the US, Ugly Drinks is a snarky, CPG brand that is just fun and enjoyable. I learn a ton about marketing from Hugh and this would give you the best steps to start small. Lisa Tse - Sweet Mandarin: Lisa heads Sweet Mandarin, a very popular restaurant and sauce line in the UK. It seems like in the restaurant world, press is king.  

Kim Wilde joins presenters Aasmah Mir and Richard Coles. She sold ten million albums, and after retiring, having a family and then a successful gardening career, has returned to the stage. She has a new album out and is about to embark on her first UK tour for 30 years. We also have Helen Tse who is a lawyer, writer and restaurateur whose book about her family story, Sweet Mandarin - also the name of her restaurant - has been turned into a play about to open at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester. Lutalo Muhammad is a British taekwondo athlete who represented Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympics, winning a bronze medal, and the 2016 Summer Olympics, winning a silver medal. He won the Gold medal in the -87 kg class at the 2012 European Taekwondo Championships. John Connell is a writer and a farmer. Farming has been in his family for generations but he never intended to follow in his father's footsteps. He followed the academic route, going to study in Australia, becoming a documentary maker and then to Canada, but he ended up finding his way back to the family farm in County Longford, Ireland and began to learn the ways of the farmer and the way of the cow. We have the inheritance tracks of cricket commentator Henry Blofeld who chooses Tit Willow from the Mikado and Bring in the Clowns by Barbra Streisand. And we'll speak to Dr Nic Rowley, one of four sports doctors are taking part in a Sport Relief challenge. They are attempting to cycle the height of Everest (29,400 feet). Kim Wilde's album Here Come the Aliens is out now, and her tour of the same name starts 30 March. Mountains: The Dreams Of Lily Kwok is on at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester. The first night is 22nd March in Manchester and then it goes on tour from 18th April to 2nd June. The Cow Book by John Connell is out now. Over and Out by Henry Blofeld is out now and he is touring theatres with a brand new show, 78 Retired.

Key Takeaways How leaders use family as a support network How to not only innovate, but how to introduce new ideas Should you incubate or join a mastermind if you choose to start on your own? Other Links Pina Romolo, CEO from Pico La Cucina  Rohini Dey, Founder from Vermillion Naz Athina Kallel, CEO from Save Good Food Crystal MacKay, CEO from Farm and Food Care Lisa Tse, CEO from Sweet Mandarin Mike Hewitt, CEO from One Haus Raf Peeters, CEO from Qcify Ali Bouzari, CSO from Pilot R+D Dr. Howard Moskowitz from Mind Genomics Terra Chips Dang Foods Taco Bell Fancy Food Show Expo West Foodgrads Peas On Moss Transcript The last ten episodes had a bunch of startups and businesses that are not only innovative, but also are down to earth and realistic. It was amazing to talk to the owners! In this context, we’ll refer any owner, and founder as a CEO, though sometimes this isn’t the case. What I loved about learning from the CEOs was that these people were in a stage where they made something profitable but can also tell us the tangible tips needed to succeed in the food industry. This episode will take a lot of excerpts from past episodes, such as Pina Romolo, from Picco La Cucina and Rohini Dey from Vermillion as they have also created businesses from the ground up. The last ten episodes brought on a great amount of guests including Naz Athina Kallel from Save Good Food, Crystal MacKay from Farm and Food Care, Lisa Tse from Sweet Mandarin, Mike Hewitt from One Haus and Raf from Qcify. Within these interviews, we see a common thread that hopefully you can dissect in terms of starting something… and executing something. The word CEO, is fancy and powerful. Those that hold the title know that theya re the ones with the final say in anything that goes. Any initiative they bring will override any other opinion. Being the Chief requires a special type of person. A person obsessed with science might actually not make a good CEO. Take for example both Dr. Howard Moskowitz and Ali Bouzari. Both are Chief Science Officers and rely on a CEO with a different skill set. Ali Bouzari’s story on pilot R+D’s role describes this well. A team of three creative food professionals had hired Dana Peck to run their finances. Once they realized how essential she was on the team, they made her CEO. She was CEO because she knew much more about finance, a which is the blood that runs companies, and that her business experience trumped all three of her partners. Her experience with mergers and acquisitions in her past life brought a point that she could get clients and manage them well. So it’s very important for a CEO to generate money and be a champion of what their company stands for. I think in most situations, a CEO is designed to generate money needed to fund the other arms and legs in the department. Anyways, I have about 6 core topics that I found beneficial from interviewing these guests and the idea is to distill the information well enough where you can be innovative, supportive, and efficient. Let’s begin Family Matters Both Pina and Lisa are in family companies. Pina has her mother do the R and D work, and Lisa collaborates with her sisters. From their interview, you can tell that they are big picture, and that they are risk takers. All of the founders we’ve interviewed are. Though I don’t want to be biased, being younger, more ambitious, and the most adaptable in your family seems to be the best indicator of being considered a CEO. Some people like the spotlight, or rather, are willing to sacrifice being in the spotlight. Another side of the coin is Mike Hewitt, who wanted to start his own business because he wanted to spend more time with his family. The chef is life is hard, with 12 hour days and minimum pay, Mike had to decide to change jobs. They say that an entrepreneur has to sacrifice working 40 hours a day to work 80. But most people who work those hours have their family supporting them, which I think is vital for success. Whther you work with family or for family, a support network is necessary to succeed. We drive into this a little bit further down, but I want to state it now. The people who you care about are probably your first customers. And like all businesses, it’s important to make your customers happy Challenging Unfamiliar Concepts and Trends Naz and Rohini both made concepts that were risky. Naz found opportunity in ugly fruit and Rohini decided to take on ethnic indian cuisine. Both, however, added their own little twist. Naz combined ugly food with technology and created an amazing app that allows her to pick up ugly food and Rohini decided to add a fine dining element to Indian cusine to make Vermillion a hit. Something I’ve noticed during a lot of lectures on innovation is a specific formula that is quite common. Combining a new concept with an old one and creating a new yet familiar concept. This has been the best way to introduce something really new and pairing it with something old. A big example of something new with something old is an example I gave about an article about the Fancy Food show. Terra Chips, who make specialty vegetable chips. I was fortunate to listen to the Financial officer speak and their story was interesting. Two chefs were working under this superstar chef at a restaurant and the chef started deep frying things like lotus root and putting them on top. Everyone raved about them. However, the two chefs could never be as good as the superstar chef so he started to be better at something else. They took off and decided to start frying vegetables like lotus root on their own. Soon it became things like orange sweet potatoes, purple potatoes, taro, etc. They started with a bicycle, then an ice cream truck, then finally got a distributor going. Terra Chips uses the unfamiliar concept of fried root vegetables but sine they serve it in a familiar chip bag Here’s a twist on it: I was listening to the snacking innovation summit the other day and Dang foods was speaking. He was saying it was thanks to Whole Foods white labeled coconut chips that they were able to be successful. An old entity introduced a new concept and people realized that these coconut chips were there the whole time. The most important thing to know is that not everyone will like your innovative concept, but there are people who love those things. As many of our CEO guests have said, follow your audience. From Novice to Expert and when to split The basis of any consulting business is to be an expert in your field that is so good, people will pay you directly for your services. Can the same be said for starting your own business? From what I’ve been researching, it depends. From who I talked to, most businesses are born out of passion or born out of solving a problem. So based on our guests, about 3 guests who started their business out of passion are people like Pina, Rohini, Lisa, and Naz Rohini started with a high paying job in the business consultant industry but she found a gap in Indian cuisine. Because she absolutely loved food, she decided to dive in and conquer the ethnic up-scale dining scene. Lisa and her sister sold their houses to continue on their family restaurant and took it to the next level. Though they might have had some restaurant experience as children, they took it to the enxt level as adults with a  sauce line and cookbook. Sometimes other types of experiences can work. And Naz’ story is amazing. She started her business after her bout with cancer. Absolutely amazing. She has embraced technology and is solving our food waste problem. The other 3 guests I want to analyze are people who started something because they could do it better, and that would be Mike Hewitt, Raf Peeters, and Crystal Mackay. These people have actually experience in their field and have used their network to leverage their business. Mike Hewitt created One Haus with about two years of Human Resource experience. Maybe that’s all you need. However, Mike’s previous experience in the hospitality and restaurant industry gave hi the ability to make One Haus unique. Raf Peeters has said that Qcify is created based on a need in the market place, but his decade of experience in optics electronics has helped him build a stable and profitable business. Crystal Mackay has been an educator all her life and from pigs to pretty kuch the whole Canadian food industry, she’s the best at telling stories. I guess what I’m saying is that, does experience matter? I guess not. I think (as Raf has said), passion matters. You can start something any time you want if you have decades of experience, or none at all. Innovate! I’ve written a couple articles about this on linkedin. All CEOs are innovative, either rn product, or process. It’s extremely important to develop this type of mindset as this will not only help you make great products, but also help you develop a mindset to create new products, or let me try and say it in a way you should think of it…. To develop a mindset to solve problems. Learn How to Look for Solutions Every day it seems like there are problems. Every second something happens at the white house, there are a bunch of problems. Though those are problems that are a bit harder to solve, it’s important to think of ways to fix them. Just imagine, nothing else. Write it down. Now more than ever, social media shows us so many things wrong with the world. If we just thought of solutions, it would make the world a better place, right? Ugly food has been a creeping problem recently. Funny enough, we discussed it about 3 years ago in food science class and now we see people doing something about it. Naz was able to see the problem, and not only think of a solution (giving technology for farmers to tell her to pick up excess produce) but also build a business out of it! I started the podcast the same way. Nicole from Foodgrads wrote an article about a problem, I thought of a solution to use a podcast to interview people about their jobs. It was an idea I was floating around and once I saw that someone else had a problem, I gave her a solution. People who can analyze problems and figure out solutions are so valuable and those that execute are worth their weight in gold. So I leave you with a challenge that every time something on the news makes you mad, sit down and write how you would solve it. Be on the Cutting Edge Naz mentions “uberification” to gather her ugly fruit around San Diego. Uber is technically a cutting edge industry and anyone who hops on the trend to empower people to share their assets. Podcasts are also cutting edge technically. A lot of big advertisers are looking into podcasts because they’ve noticed the podcast model makes the consumer trust the brand more. So how can you be on the “cutting edge”? Expos like the Fancy Food Show help, even farmers markets, but also articles like foodbeast and Food Dive show amazing food trends no one has ever heard of. This is hard to realize, but if you are an expert at something, you might actually be on the cutting edge! 99% of the world’s population is probably not as smart as you are in a specific subject. If I were to boil down my experiences, am I on the cutting edge of my industry? I focus a lot of my time on food. My facebook is full of it, I go eat at trendy restaurants for fun, I work at a private company (more on this below) that does a billion/year so they have innovation to burn, I’m networked with amazing professionals and I always ask my friends “what new technologies are really exciting you right now?” This is not to brag, but I put a lot of time into food, and to be on the cutting edge, it does take commitment. CEOs are experts int heir field, and theya re also the tip of the spear when it comes to making innovative postions. In factm I would say the best part about being the head of a company is that you can direct innovation in a way that you want to do. However, it’s very important to realize is that you aren’t the one driving the decisions, it’s your customers. Make Little Bets If you read any self-help, startup book, this is a common thread. The point of making little bets is that you have to actually do something for you to be truly innovative. Yes, to actually become the definition of innovative, you actually have to start something! This might sound scary, but it gets easier the more times you do it. Not only does making little bets make you more creative, but it builds up your confidence and thought process where you can execute great ideas over and over again. I’ll talk about an example. In the past, I was in a group of product developers. We conceptualize new products. Before, there was old management who would shoot down every possibility because in theory, it sounded dumb, or other political BS. But once we started actually making the product and then doing a sensory test of 20 people, people started to change their minds Another example I give is from small projects. People are usually overwhelmed with huge goals. For example, starting your own Tech Company, or grocery store, or national soda brand. They think they have to start with a million dollars in capital to succeed. Not really. It takes maybe $500 dollars to make a product, create a label, and start a farmer’s market stand. Good luck! Should you incubate? Naz is the only person I’ve intereviewed who went though an incubator. Does that mean you should? A common theme I’ve seen through these leaders is that they have mentors and likeminded people surrounding them. Incubation is a great tool when it comes to networking but from what I’ve researched, it isn’t 100% necessary. In fact, most businesses that are sorted out are more or less focused on at least having a mentor or 5 and a support network of friends. Mentors seem to be a vital resource to succeed in life and I’ve had guests on the podcast who are not business owners praise their mentors. I’ve had a decent amount of mentors, some I’ve paid and some that I’ve earned. Some failed in their ventures, and some say they haven’t failed. Mentors are hard to choose from, and like any relationship, it might take a while for the relationship to click. You have to be in constant contact with each other, and in most situations, YOU have to be the one to take initiative to contact them. My advice to finding mentors? You can join start up incubators as a guarantee, but I feel like working hard and publicizing your work is the best way to bring attraction. Not only in side projects like this one, but also in your career. Sometimes a mentor isn’t necessarily set as a title, but rather the way you communicate. I have weekly office meetings with the Chief Science Officer, he makes room for these meetings because he likes to see me grow. When we talk, he talks about his experiences in the past on how to deal with people, or how he talks about not only the best way to solve the problem, but also why it’s the best way. The way him and I interact, where he is passing down knowledge to me, and I am receiving and executing. That is mentorship. A support network is also important. And an incubator can give it to you because there are people in the same boat as you. Some people throw around the world mastermind, which I fell in love with the idea at first, but then I realized they kind of suck. I think if set correctly, they can be a huge asset, but I’ve noticed they are only for MLMs and dreamers. Especially for starting something new, goals are really really hard. Accountability is extremely necessary, but surprisingly, you only really need one person. The most effective way to have a support network is constant yet separate contact with people who love what you do. I’ve found tis to work in the podcast when making certain decisions. I am in constant contact with Nicole Gallace from food grads, Kim Schaub from peas on moss, Katie Lanfranki, and others when it comes to making decisions. I call them, ask for advice, and take it to heart, and execute. They do the same. What I’m getting at in most cases, it just takes one person to help you get motivated and help you with decisions. 3 is way too many. So finally, is incubation a good thing? You don’t need it, but you also don’t need to buy a $100 dollar outdoor fireplace, you can build one yourself. If getting the resources for a mentor and support network is too time consuming, then an incubator is a very good option, The Food Industry is more than being a chef. After 50 episodes ranging from chefs, product development, food authors, consultants, engineers and recruiters, I can safely say that the food industry is much more than restaurants. Mike really hits this home in his interview. You don’t have to play with food to be part of the food industry. All you have to do is contribute to feeding people. Though we do have the CEOs who have restaurant businesses here, who’d ever thing you can be like Raf and combine technology and quality control! You can be a manager of a liquor store, or hustling people to buy wheat protein as a broker. If you love actually being involved in quote: feeling the food, that you can get a stable job and become a research chef, or you can be a food scientist. The food industry has so many different opportunities because as we’ve heard before, everyone has to eat. And you can be just one piece of the puzzle for feeding the world. Whether you help the big companies or carve your own path.

Today we have Lisa Tse, CEO of the Chinese restaurant, Sweet Mandarin in Manchester, United Kingdom… well… she does a lot more than just that. The Tse family has done the impossible: in 12 years, Sweet Mandarin has an award winning restaurant, their own factory making sauces for the Queen of England, and they write best selling cookbooks. This is an interview you don’t want to miss as Lisa really gives you a run down on what makes her brand so successful. The stuff she does is not easy..like listening to customers, or being on TV shows like Gordon Ramsey and Dragon’s Den, but I try my best to dissect those secrets. I’m serious, there is so much good advice in this episode, I couldn’t even categorize it. Every single sentence that Lisa says, is valuable advice whether you’re in the restaurant industry, products industry, or even want to write a cook book. If you want to get into any of those things, this interview is for you. Apologize for a bit of noise, we’re in a kitchen that’s how hard Lisa works! Key Takeaways  - How Lisa got into Dragon’s Den (Shark Tank) and how her experience was - Believe in your product, know your target market, know your demand - The Queen of England buys their sauces Question Summary Why did you make your own factory?: We wanted to control the Gluten-Free, MSG free, and nut-free process The secret to amazing products: knowing your customer questions. Always answer customer demands. How did you get to where you are today?: Have a clear idea on what you want to do. General Advice: Gap in the market for Chinese food in Britain It’s good to forecast in the future Do a price point and ask why (can they afford it?) Her and 2 sisters sold their houses to start a restaurant in the middle of nowhere Partner with corporate customers Make customers return, collect their data through emails and facebook Influence the bloggers Partnering with public schools on how to learn how to cook Chinese food (lots of press) Was it one big day that caused your popularity to explode?: Yes: TV spots, cookbooks, products, brand equity Big Day, ITV British TV “Will the girls launch the restraurant in time?” Gordon Ramsey’s F word – They won best local Chinese Restaurants Cookbooks: New York Times Best Seller Her sister even wrote a book that got adapted in a play in Hong Kong Members of the British Empire for their sauces My Food Job Rocks: It’s all about the customers and their experience, also an amazing team and the team can make an impact How do you hire good employees?: They have to do the job description at the end of the day. No matter what. What food trends and technologies are really interesting you right now?: Street Food, Sugar-Free Sauces, Biggest challenge in the food industry we need to face?: Obesity One Thing you’d like to know about: Shelf-Space in Retail Who inspired you to get into food?: My Family, Ken Hom in Britian Cooking TV Favorite Quote: The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step Favorite Book: The Bible, I read it every day Favorite Kitchen Item: Her Wok, also Sweet Mandarin Wok: Licensing the brand Favorite Food: Sweet and Sour King Prawns Most Popular dish in Sweet Mandarin: Sweet and Sour Chicken, Clay Pot Chicken, Chicken Curry, Chilli Aubergines Any advice to start what Sweet Mandarin does: Write a business plan, find a mentor, working capital, focus on quality What’s next and where can we find you: Youtube videos; sweetmandarin.com; sweetmandarin.net; Instagram; facebook, linkedin; twitter. Dragon’s Den Online shop sweet mandarin Mable’s Clay Pot Chicken Meal Kits Ratatoullie Amazon.com Artisan Food Shops