After starting his career as a journalist, Anthony Sar spent years interviewing founders, CEOs and industry leaders.

Until one day, he realised he didn’t want to just tell their stories anymore, he wanted to build.

In this episode, we talk about what it takes to move from observing to building, pivot across industries and stay relevant over time.

Anthony shares how he built Finoverse, the company behind Hong Kong FinTech Week, one of the leading fintech events globally and how he’s now entering a new chapter in AI.

We also explore something deeper: why, in a world increasingly shaped by AI, human connection might become your biggest advantage.

In this episode, we cover:

– The shift from observer to builder

– Leaving journalism to start from scratch

– Building Hong Kong FinTech Week With Finoverse

– Why most founders misunderstand “staying relevant”

– How AI is changing the way we connect

– Why human relationships matter more than ever

Timestamps:

(00:00) Welcome to Asian Business Owners

(00:31) Meet Anthony Sar

(01:38) Journalism Roots

(02:45) From observer to Builder

(03:36) Entrepreneurship MBA

(05:34) Risk and Curiosity

(08:18) Moving to Asia

(10:06) First Startup in HK

(12:37) Founding Finoverse

(13:38) Reinventing Conferences

(16:06) Hong Kong Fintech Week

(16:58) Scaling with Storytelling

(18:43) Beyond Events Community

(20:04) Challenges and Trust

(22:47) Earning Trust Early

(23:26) Co-CEO Dynamics

(24:54) Why Pivot to AI

(26:52) Events Need Better Matches

(28:53) Samantha AI Explained

(31:44) Voice Calls and LLMs

(32:57) Business Model Insights

(34:00) AI for Real Connection

(37:34) Ethics of Humanising AI

(39:43) Relevance Through Values

(43:46) Stay in the Game

(47:10) Closing and Outro

👉 To find out more:

Finoverse

Check out Anthony on LinkedIn

To follow my journey:

💬 abo.pod

📲 Find me on LinkedIn

🎧 Subscribe to Asian Business Owners wherever you listen to it!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After more than 80 conversations with founders, I realised that I don’t remember everything, I remember one thing., one perspective, one piece of advice.

That may be enough to change how I think and decide.

In this solo episode, I reflect on what really stayed with me after all these conversations and how it changed the way I listen.

I talk about:

• how little we actually retain from conversations
• stories of patience, resilience and determination
• the lessons that stayed with me from past guests

Timestamps:

(00:00) Welcome to Asian Business Owners

(00:47) Reflecting on How Much We Remember From a Conversation

(04:24) Alison Chan's Father's Inspiring Journey

(07:55) Laurie Mias's Determination with MONO Skincare

(11:14) Jingjin Liu on Pricing with Confidence

(13:16) Conclusion

Listen to the entire episodes:

Alison Chan and her father's story

Laurie Mias and how she built MONO Skincare

Jingjin Liu about building confidence and owning up to your pricing

Follow the journey:

💬 abo.pod

📲 Find me on LinkedIn

🎧 Subscribe to Asian Business Owners wherever you listen to it!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For a long time, I thought I was on the right path. Good job, stable career, clear trajectory but something didn’t feel right.

After years in the corporate world in Paris, I hit a wall: burnout, loss of motivation and a growing feeling that I needed to change something.

In this solo episode, I (re)share the story behind that turning point. How I left corporate life, moved abroad and slowly rebuilt a career that felt more aligned.

I talk about:

• what burnout really looked like for me
• the decision to leave everything familiar behind
• starting over in Hong Kong
• finding my first clients and building my marketing agency
• launching the Asian Business Owners podcast

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(00:27) My life in Paris before COVID

(03:17) Burnout and losing motivation

(06:17) The decision to move to Hong Kong

(07:33) Starting over and finding purpose again

(11:05) Launching my podcast

(14:10) Lessons learned & reflections

(18:18) Closing thoughts

Follow the journey:

💬 abo.pod

📲 Find me on LinkedIn

🎧 Subscribe to Asian Business Owners wherever you listen to it!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Entrepreneurship changes how you see people, what you expect from them and what support really means.

This is Part 2 of my conversation with Rasheed, entrepreneur and host of Entrepreneurs Stories Podcast.

In this episode, we talk about the personal side of building a business and the part that affects your life outside of work.

What we discussed:

• Why not everyone will understand your journey
• Why your close circle isn’t your target audience
• How your priorities and lifestyle naturally evolve
• Friendships, expectations and letting go
• Choosing energy over expectations

🎧 If you haven’t listened yet, start with Part 1: Clients, boundaries and the people around you.

Timestamps:

(00:00) Welcome to Asian Business Owners

(00:27) The Mountain Mindset

(01:46) Gym Discipline

(04:17) Look Back Progress

(05:21) Goals and Balance

(07:00) Unexpected Podcast Origin

(09:33) Crafting Real Conversations

(12:39) Entrepreneur Personal Growth

(14:16) Therapy and Self Awareness

(16:12) Loyalty and Consistency

(17:40) Loyalty to Values

(18:16) Therapy as Investment

(19:40) The Ten Year Game

(21:13) No Shortcuts Myth

(22:45) Social Media Reality Check

(23:45) Founder Life and Family

(27:11) Passion That Spreads

(29:10) Five Pillars of Purpose

(30:47) Purpose Without Pressure

(32:51) Keep Your Childlike Wonder

(33:58) Closing

👉 To find out more:

Listen to Entrepreneur Stories podcast

Check out Rasheed on LinkedIn

To follow my journey:

💬 abo.pod

📲 Find me on LinkedIn

🎧 Subscribe to Asian Business Owners wherever you listen to it!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Building a business changes more than your work, it changes how you handle clients, how you set boundaries and who you spend time with.

In this special episode with Rasheed, host of the Entrepreneurs Stories podcast, we talk openly about the less visible side of entrepreneurship.

Here's what we cover:

• Why building in public feels vulnerable at first
• The challenge of setting boundaries with demanding clients
• People, teams, delegation and the difficulty of letting go
• How entrepreneurship changes your friendships, priorities and support system
• Why energy matters so much

Timestamps:

(00:00) Welcome to Asian Business Owners

(00:37) The Fear of Building in Public

(02:18) Entrepreneurship Never Stops

(05:20) How Carmen Started Her Marketing Agency

(06:48) Client Boundaries Reality

(07:39) Cross Platform Marketing Agency

(08:45) Small Clients Ask More

(12:54) Rasheed's Multiple Businesses

(14:09) People and Team Energy

(16:32) Delegation and Trust

(18:04) Hands Off vs Micromanage

(21:35) Reframing Client Conflict

(24:18) Setting Client Boundaries

(26:03) Friendships and Entrepreneurship

(30:05) Changing Priorities and Drinking

(31:08) Support Systems and Spouses

(32:51) Entrepreneurs See Each Other

(34:38) Closing of Part 1

👉 To find out more:

Listen to Entrepreneur Stories podcast

Check out Rasheed on LinkedIn

To follow my journey:

💬 abo.pod

📲 Find me on LinkedIn

🎧 Subscribe to Asian Business Owners wherever you listen to it!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I thought some things would get easier with time but they didn’t so I just learned to live with them.

This is Part 2 of this personal solo episode of Asian Business Owners. I continue sharing what I still find difficult as a founder, what the reality behind running a business is.

If you haven't listened to Part 1, where I talk about unstable income, ups and downs and mental load, go have a listen before tuning to Part 2.

In this second part, I talk about:

• The challenge of managing time
• The weight of responsibility that comes with entrepreneurship
• The expectations we carry as founders

These are things we don’t talk about enough but that most founders experience.

Timestamps:

(00:00) Welcome to Asian Business Owners

(00:45) More Aspects of Entrepreneurship I Struggle With

(01:19) Time Management

(02:37) How to Deal With Priorities And Energy

(04:49) Carrying The Weight On Your Shoulders

(06:18) A Vision Without Guarantees

(08:01) Support the Podcast

(08:52) Outro

Follow the journey:

💬 abo.pod

📲 Find me on LinkedIn

🎧 Subscribe to Asian Business Owners wherever you listen to it!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When things feel off, most founders try to reset by doing more: more goals, higher objectives, more expectations, which goes with more pressure.

That’s the mistake.

In this Quick Wins episode, I talk about a different way to reset, to actually create clarity and sustainability.

You’ll hear:

• Why you should stopping adding more
• How to redefine success
• Why motivation isn’t the problem

Timestamps:

(00:00) Welcome to A.B.O. Quick Wins

(00:13) Do you reset by addiing new goals?

(00:27) #1 Remove before you add

(00:48) #2 What does success mean to you?

(01:15) #3 This is what to reset instead of blaming motivation

(01:46) Conclusion

Follow me on LinkedIn and Instagram for more tips and behind-the-scenes!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I thought some things would get easier with time but hey didn’t. So I just learned to live with them.

In this solo episode of Asian Business Owners, I share, very honestly, what I still find difficult as a founder. Just the reality behind running a business.

In this first part, I talk about:

• Unstable income and what money really represents
• The constant ups and downs
• Why doubt never fully goes away
• The mental load that never switches off

These are things we don’t talk about enough but that most founders experience.

Keep an eye out, part 2 is coming next week!

Timestamps:

(00:00) Welcome to Asian Business Owners

(00:37) What Aspects of Entrepreneurship Do You Struggle With?

(01:24) Unstable Income

(03:33) Never Ending Ups and Downs

(05:10) Doubt and Big Questions

(08:24) Constant Mental Load

(10:56) Wrap Up, Don't Miss Part Two

Follow the journey:

💬 abo.pod

📲 Find me on LinkedIn

🎧 Subscribe to Asian Business Owners wherever you listen to it!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You post consistently, people follow you, like your content but... they never become clients.

Do you know why?

In this Quick Wins episode, I break down why your audience isn’t converting and what to change to turn attention into actual business.

What you'll learn:

• Why most followers don’t understand what you offer
• How to communicate your offer clearly without feeling repetitive
• How to create urgency with the right offers

Timestamps:

(00:00) Welcome to A.B.O. Quick Wins

(00:13) Your follows don't buy anything from you?

(00:23) #1 Stop assuming this

(00:55) #2 Decision-making content

(01:34) #3 Human interactions

(02:05) Conclusion

Follow me on LinkedIn and Instagram for more tips and behind-the-scenes!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Data is supposed to help founders make better decisions. But how much of it is actually reliable?

And what happens when the data looks solid but the assumptions behind it aren’t?

In this episode of Asian Business Owners, I sit down with Tamir Abdel-Wahab, co-founder of Preferences AI, to talk about how founders can use data more critically, what most companies still get wrong about market research and why AI and Web3 may change the way businesses understand customers.

We talk about:

• Why many companies still make decisions based more on instinct than real data
• How bias, incentives and blind spots affect market research
• Why traditional market research is dead
• How AI tools can help founders understand customers faster
• What Web3 really means beyond the buzzwords and why it overpromised
• The keys for founders to think more clearly about data, ownership and decision-making

✅ Get your free day pass at Garage Society!

Timestamps:

(00:00) Welcome to Asian Business Owners

(00:54) Behind-the-scenes: Family Legacy and Values

(02:49) Behind-the-scenes: When to Have Kids As a Founder

(04:00) Behind-the-scenes: Always On Founder Mindset

(05:01) Meet Tamir and Preferences AI

(07:19) Data Bias and Confirmation

(10:59) Market Research Is Dead

(12:33) Digital Twins and Simulations

(15:31) Memory Layers Explained

(19:28) Philosophy of Prediction

(24:25) Trust and Data Quality

(26:21) Web3 for Verifiable Responses

(27:15) Enriching User Data

(28:11) Training the Digital Twin

(29:06) Tamir's Story: From Finance to Web3

(33:08) Web3 Explained Simply

(35:37) Web3 Hype vs Reality

(40:09) Data Ownership Incentives

(41:03) Next Two Years in AI

(42:53) Autonomous Agents and Safety

(45:30) Choosing Trusted Tools

(47:16) Founder Lessons From Tamir

(50:49) Outro

✅ Get your free day pass at Garage Society!

👉 To find out more:

Tamir on LinkedIn

Preferences AI website

Preferences AI on LinkedIn

To follow my journey:

💬 abo.pod

📲 Find me on LinkedIn

🎧 Subscribe to Asian Business Owners wherever you listen to it!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.