Founders in Motion with Thea Ngo 
About Ethan Yong
Ethan Yong is the founder of UmamiPapi, a Melbourne chilli oil brand he started in 2020 as a lockdown side project. The range has grown from original and extra-spicy chilli oils to include a hot honey and a chilli egg mayo, sold online and through retailers including Coles.
Yong was working as an analyst in finance when he developed the recipe, then left his job to run the business. He won a Coles listing after giving bottles to a Coles buyer he met in store; the brand went from Coles Local in 2022 to about 500 Coles stores by mid-2024. He also competed for investment on Gordon Ramsay's Food Stars and has taken the brand into Malaysia.
On Founders in Motion with Thea Ngo, he talked about turning a home-kitchen recipe into a supermarket brand.
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- Founder Journey, Marketing & Brand
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Founders in Motion with Thea Ngo Go straight to the good bits.
Key moments from He Quit a Six-Figure Consulting Job to Sell Chilli Oil | Ethan Yong, Umami Papi.
Umami Papi on Day One
Umami Papi is a Melbourne chilli oil brand founded by Ethan Yong, who developed the recipe during the city's 2020 lockdowns while working as a finance analyst and later…
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