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The Golden Duck

The Golden Duck is a Singaporean food business specialising in the retail of gourmet snacks. The brand broke into the industry with its salted egg yolk snacks. Since then, it has placed its products on the shelves of retailers in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong[1] and the Philippines.[2][3] As of June 2020, The Golden Duck is managed by Jonathan Shen (Chief Executive Officer)[4] and Christopher Hwang (Chief Strategy Officer)[5].

The Golden Duck's product packaging as of June 2020.

Background

The Golden Duck was incorporated on 28 July 2015.[6][7] In 2017, it won the ‘Most Promising Startup Award’ at the Emerging Enterprise Awards 2017.[8] That same year, the co-founders of The Golden Duck, Chris Hwang and Jonathan Shen were featured in the 'Retail & E-commerce' category of the Forbes 30 under 30 Asia list.[9]

Founders

 
Jonathan Shen (left) and Chris Hwang (right). Photo from Time Auction.

Christopher (Chris) Hwang

Christopher Hwang has spearheaded enterprises such as the boutique nightclub, Suite26 and Impressionist: The Interview Specialists — a job interview consultant company.[10] Chris studied at the Singapore Sports School and Raffles Junior College. From 2008 to 2011, he represented Singapore as a national athlete, competing in tenpin-bowling.[11] He discontinued his law studies at the National University of Singapore to commit full-time to The Golden Duck.[12]

Jonathan Shen

Before The Golden Duck, Jonathan Shen has co-founded the digital marketing agency, Plot Creative and the food and beverage consulting agency, Elevate. From 2012 to 2016, he was the Group Communications Manager for the entertainment company, Massive Collective where he headed media relations and brand strategy. Jonathan studied at Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road) and Ngee Ann Polytechnic where he obtained a Diploma in Mass Communications.[13]

Origins & product launch

Chris and Jonathan first met through a mutual friend in 2012. In 2015, the duo noticed a rising consumer interest in salted egg yolk flavours.[14] After five months of research and development, The Golden Duck produced its first snack product - the salted egg yolk potato chips.[15] For its public product launch, the brand opened a pop-up store at Suntec City that was stocked with 100 packets of its product. They were reportedly sold out within six hours.[16]

Business expansion

Following its successful debut, The Golden Duck set up a website that also served as an online store. In partnership with the online ordering system, Oddle, The Golden Duck extended its product reach to offices located in Singapore's Central Business District.[17] As of June 2020, the brand delivers overseas to various parts of Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and America.[18]

Product timeline

 
The Golden Duck's newest product (as of June 2020) is the Sichuan Mala Hot Pot Fragrant Mix. Photo credit to Eatbook.sg.

In 2017, The Golden Duck obtained the Halal certification for its products.[19][20][21] Over the years, it has also expanded its range of products. The table below lists the timeline of the brand's product diversification.

Year Product Refs.
2019 Sichuan Mala Hot Pot Fragrant Mix [22][23][24]
2018 Singapore Chilli Crab Seaweed Tempura [25][26]
Salted Egg Crab Seaweed Tempura
2015 Salted Egg Yolk Potato Chips [27]
Salted Egg Fish Skin Crunchy Crisps

As of June 2020, The Golden Duck has five signature products.[28]

Retail timeline

As of June 2020, The Golden Duck has three outlets in Singapore.[29] The following table lists a timeline of its retail expansion in Singapore.

Year Outlet Refs.
2018 Changi Airport Terminal 2 [30]
ION Orchard [31]
2016 Chinatown Point [32]

The Golden Duck has also placed its products in 7-Eleven stores, Cold Storage outlets and Fairprice Finest supermarkets. Its products are also sold at Kris Shop, Singapore Airlines’ inflight and online retail store.[33]

Branding

According to The Golden Duck's founders, the brand's name pays homage to duck eggs which give off a golden-orange colour when cured. These eggs are commonly used in creating salted egg yolk dishes. The word 'golden' is meant to evoke the notion of premium quality.[34][35]

Marketing efforts

The Golden Duck's fans who have joined the brand’s mailing list are called ‘loyalists’. The brand engages with ‘loyalists’ through private film screenings, exclusive event invitations, giveaways[36] and surprise deliveries.[37][38] In 2017, The Golden Duck partnered with the National Day Parade (NDP) organisers to include its product in the NDP fun packs.[39] In 2019, the brand launched a personality quiz[40] and an online game titled ‘Mala Chase’[41] to promote the ‘Sichuan Mala Hot Pot Fragrant Mix’ snack.

References/ Citations

  1. ↑ The Golden Duck Co. - Hong Kong. “Debut of The Golden Duck physical store at Langham Place, Mong Kok”. Facebook. July 2, 2018. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  2. ↑ Sium,JP. “The Golden Duck: These Singaporean Salted Egg Chips are Finally in the Philippines!”. WhenInManila.com. January 15, 2018. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  3. ↑ “30 Under 30 Asia 2017: Retail & Ecommerce”. Forbes. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  4. ↑ “Jonathan Shen”. LinkedIn. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  5. ↑ “Chris Hwang”. LinkedIn. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  6. ↑ “THE GOLDEN DUCK PTE. LTD.”. SGPBusiness.com. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  7. ↑ “THE GOLDEN DUCK PTE. LTD.”. Opengovsg.com. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  8. ↑ Shiao, Vivien. “Celebrating entrepreneurs who dare”. The Business Times. October 6, 2017. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  9. ↑ Chan, Melissa. “Meet The 23 Individuals In Singapore Who Have Just Been Listed On Forbes' 30 Under 30 List”. Vulcan Post. April 18, 2017. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  10. ↑ “Chris Hwang”. LinkedIn. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  11. ↑ “1st Asian Youth Games 2009”. Asian Bowling Federation. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  12. ↑ Quek, Eunice. “Meet the young serial entrepreneurs behind The Golden Duck brand of addictive salted-egg snacks”. The Straits Times. June 25, 2018. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  13. ↑ “Jonathan Shen”. LinkedIn. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  14. ↑ Zhu, Kathleen. “The Secret To Millennial Entrepreneurship: The Golden Duck’s Salted Egg Chips Speeds Ahead To Success”. AsiaStyle.asia. May 23, 2016. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  15. ↑ Salim, Zafirah. “The 'Duck' Side Of Biz: They Lost $1M To Failed Nightclub, Struck Gold With Salted Egg Snacks”. Vulcan Post. June 14, 2019. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  16. ↑ Syarafana Shafeeq. “The Duck that lays the Golden egg”. The Business Times. September 21, 2017. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  17. ↑ Salim, Zafirah. “The 'Duck' Side Of Biz: They Lost $1M To Failed Nightclub, Struck Gold With Salted Egg Snacks”. Vulcan Post. June 14, 2019. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  18. ↑ “Find Us - The Golden Duck Co.”. The Golden Duck. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  19. ↑ “THE GOLDEN DUCK PTE LTD”. Singapore Halal Directory. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  20. ↑ The Golden Duck Co. - Singapore. “Spot the halal certification!”. Facebook. October 4, 2017. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  21. ↑ Syarafana Shafeeq. “The Duck that lays the Golden egg”. The Business Times. September 21, 2017. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  22. ↑ Lee, Sean. "Stock Up On This All-New Mala Hotpot Snack From The Golden Duck Co Now Available In SG". Seth Lui. May 6, 2019. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  23. ↑ Liao, Suphon. "The Golden Duck’s New Ma La Fish Skin Comes With Real Peppercorns, Beancurd Skin, And Mushrooms". Eatbook.sg. May 21, 2020. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  24. ↑ “The Golden Duck Is Introducing A Sichuan Mala Hot Pot Fragrant Mix With Fish Skin & Mushrooms”. Shout. April 16, 2019. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  25. ↑ Yip Jieying. "The Golden Duck Launches New Salted Egg Crab And Chilli Crab Seaweed Tempura Chips". 8 Days. September 28, 2018. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  26. ↑ Cheng, Jasline. "The Golden Duck Co’s New Chilli Crab & Salted Egg Crab Seaweed Tempura Is Topped With REAL Crab Meat". Seth Lui. December 10, 2018. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  27. ↑ Shafeeq, Syarafana. “The Duck that lays the Golden egg”. The Business Times. September 21, 2017. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  28. ↑ "Our Story". The Golden Duck. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  29. ↑ "Find Us". The Golden Duck. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  30. ↑ Quek, Eunice. “Meet the young serial entrepreneurs behind The Golden Duck brand of addictive salted-egg snacks”. The Straits Times. June 25, 2018. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  31. ↑ The Golden Duck. Facebook. March 16, 2018. Accessed on 10 June 2020. Retrieved from: https://www.facebook.com/TGDSG/posts/now-open-at-ion-orchard-basement-3-opposite-hmbe-the-first-20-customers-each-day/789254181265683/
  32. ↑ Salim, Zafirah. “The 'Duck' Side Of Biz: They Lost $1M To Failed Nightclub, Struck Gold With Salted Egg Snacks”. Vulcan Post. June 14, 2019. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  33. ↑ “The Golden Duck Co”. Kris Shop. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  34. ↑ Ho, Erica. “10 questions with Chris Hwang: the brains behind The Golden Duck's worldwide success”. City Nomads. August 4, 2019. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  35. ↑ Quek, Eunice. “Meet the young serial entrepreneurs behind The Golden Duck brand of addictive salted-egg snacks”. The Straits Times. June 25, 2018. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  36. ↑ The Golden Duck Co. - Singapore. “National Day Giveaway”. Facebook. July 27, 2018. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  37. ↑ Pauzi Othman. “Thank you for the Hari Raya surprise The Golden Duck Co. - Singapore!”. Facebook. June 4, 2019. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  38. ↑ L, Calvin. “Meet The Brains Behind Asia’s Snacking Phenomenon The Golden Duck”. Hive Life. August 12, 2019. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  39. ↑ Khoo, Hedy. “Celebrate with a touch of gold”. The Straits Times. August 4, 2017. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  40. ↑ “TGD Personality Quiz”. The Golden Duck. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
  41. ↑ Farzanah Farveen. “SG-brand The Golden Duck uses old-school arcade game Snakes to push new product”. Marketing Interactive. June 4, 2019. Accessed on 10 June 2020.
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