Ep 145: Are You a Masochistic Book Lover? | Kenny Chan (ex-diplomat & ex-Senior Director at Kinokuniya Book Stores (Asia Pacific))

“Are you a masochist?”“Do you love books that much?”If you want to be a bookseller, than those are the questions you need to ask yourself - according to Kenny Chan, the former Senior Director at Kinokuniya Book Stores (Asia Pacific) - he spent ~20 years of his career there prior to his retirement!But prior to bookseller, Kenny was a foreign diplomat at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore, where he was posted to London as their Trade and Culture Attache.He then switched to bookselling, first at Popular Holdings Limited, then MPH Bookstores Sdn Bhd, and back again at Popular when they launched their IPO!And finally interviewed for a position at Kinokuniya.The President & Chairman of Kinokuniya flew from Japan to Singapore to conduct the interview and asked Kenny just one question:“Do you love books?”As it turns out, Kenny gave me the exact answer he was looking for!And even after retirement, Kenny remains deep in the bookselling world.If you haven’t already guessed it, Kenny is the latest guest on STIMY!And we dive deep into all things books & the art of evangelising.❓Why does Kenny not judge people by their educational level?❓Why did he initially become a foreign diplomat?❓What was it like opening bookstores throughout Asia Pacific, Dubai and New York?❓What was it like working at his dream company?❓What is the secret to buying books & why is bookselling a spiritual experience?❓How can aspiring authors can get Kenny’s attention?Are you intrigued yet?The YouTube version is out now too. 😎Highlights:1:01 The Punisher1:50 Don’t judge people by their level of education2:59 Do your best in everything that you touch3:58 My education was a roller-coaster5:31 Didn't want to be a bookseller!7:56 Getting into foreign affairs9:51 Hunted down a book for Lee Kuan Yew & the power of connections11:35 Lee Kuan Yew was a hard task master14:54 Life isn't fair18:32 How to get rid of inventory/books for bookstores20:21 Leaving Popular for MPH21:00 Introducing comics & Sanrio (Hello Popular) to Singapore22:12 How Kenny knew it was time to bring Hello Kitty in24:07 Memorable stories26:43 What was it like working in his dream company?27:46 Becoming store manager of the MPH Stamford Bookstore28:22 You need to be a dictator32:22 A great success36:23 The IPO37:11 The secret behind buying books & working at Popular41:29 Moving to Kinokuniya43:03 Meeting 43:30 The 1 question asked by the President & Chairman of Kinokuniya from Japan44:44 Working with someone who doesn’t understand English46:09 The spiritual aspect of book selling47:01 Opening a store in Dubai48:16 Love of books49:13 The Kinovirus & training to become a great bookseller50:45 The Speech52:05 Biggest achievements while at Kinokuniya54:44 Kinokuniya isn’t a bookstore. It’s a lifestyle choice56:15 The importance of building a brand58:51 The Twin Lemons Act59:50 Getting Kenny’s attention1:00:25 Ask a bookseller, what questions should you ask yourself?🙊 Like STIMY? Buy us a ☕️?: https://beacons.ai/sothisismywhy 🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/1uCeI8LOI5Y 📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/145💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/acd5bd1062✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442