Starting a business is a risky endeavor for anyone. But when Rachel Lim set out to reinvent the retail industry, the stakes were especially high — her mom’s life savings were riding on it.
The then-21-year-old was facing a five-figure fee for quitting college early to pursue her dream. And with no money of her own, she turned to the only person she could.
“I was bonded to the government, so I had to pay off the bond to stop school to start the business,” the Singaporean entrepreneur told CNBC Make It. “I obviously didn’t have the money, so I had no choice but to go to my mom and ask for a loan.”
It could hardly have come at a worse time for the family: Lim’s mom was already working two jobs to support the family after the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis upended her dad’s shipbroking business. However, Lim said it was the pressure she needed to ensure her business was a success.
“That’s one of the reasons why I knew I could not fail. I could not let her down,” she said.
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