Jan Wong is an entrepreneur, online strategist and youth advocate who has launched eight start-up businesses since the age of 17.

The Staffordshire University alumni is also a part-time lecturer, an academic advisory board member for two universities, a three-times TEDx speaker and made the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list in 2017.

Jan started his first company while studying for a Staffordshire University degree in computing at Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

He went on to found various technology related businesses including eCommerce, fashion, app development and a marketing consultancy.

One of his most successful ventures to date, OpenMinds, started as a job application management company but later pivoted towards MarTech. It offers services including digital marketing, data analytics, technology development, training and consultancy and has been valued at more than $10m.

Jan’s experience and knowledge of the sector led him towards consulting and training at just 19 years of age. He took to the stage to deliver seminars, workshops and conferences at universities and corporations, including for Nestle, Vinda Group, Groupon, Maxis, IJM, MaGIC, SWIFT, Sime Darby, TechStars, DiGi, Bosch, KL SOGO, Prudential and more. He has also published his insights in various media, including Malaysia SME, The Edge, Personal Money, Astro, BFM, The Asian Entrepreneur and more.

Jan is often asked to speak on his entrepreneurial journey, leadership, eCommerce, digital branding, social media marketing, SEO and career related topics for crowds of up to 1,000 people, including a TEDx talk.

Jan said: “Throughout my journey I have been highly motivated to establish something that can be an inspiration, especially for the younger generations to come.

“Despite the pressure to give up and pursue a ‘stable’ career that stemmed from teachers, parents and even friends; especially when there were good corporate job offers along the way that could offer much more than what I was receiving, I was determined to create businesses from scratch, learning the ropes of bootstrapping and the importance of all administrative, operational and managerial details.

“Prospects, clients and suppliers were also initially sceptical of my reputation due to my young age and with the lack of role models and mentors at that time I had no one to turn to for advice. Instead, I picked up the necessary skills and experience and was determined to prove that it was possible to create a business from nothing.

“I continued to experiment with different business models to learn, grow and gain experience despite many failures.”