Over the course of ten years as a founder, Chieh Huang bet twice on the ubiquity of the smartphone. The first time was in 2010 with Astro Ape, a mobile gaming company that he founded with a few friends out of an attic. The second time was with Boxed, a mobile bulk-retailer that he co-launched in 2013 out of his New Jersey garage. Chieh and his tiny team scrambled to send out their first boxes of toilet paper and laundry detergent, gambling that they could compete with monster retailers by offering fewer items, competitive prices, and a hand-written note in every box. Since its launch 8 years ago, Boxed has sent out tens of millions of boxes of groceries, and has been valued at over $600M.
2:20 - Intro
5:28 - Chieh’s childhood as an immigrant
8:25 - College at Johns Hopkins
10:28 - The JET Program in Japan
15:04 - Starting a career in law
18:00 - Looking for something else
20:45 - Joining a mobile game company
30:30 - The first game gains popularity
34:35 - Raising money
39:15 - Astro Ape gets acquired
42:07 - Leaving Astro Ape
45:15 - Thinking about selling bulk items
49:00 - Strategizing
55:13 - The first breakthrough
58:39 - A big break with The Today Show
62:40 - Going without a membership
65:35 - Handwritten notes
68:45 - Delivering fresh goods
70:40 - Finding a niche
71:20 - Starting their own label
74:45 - Doubts
77:46 - A path to profitability
79:00 - Automating work
81:14 - Offering tuition to employees’ children
84:29 - Staying safe in Covid
86:22 - The possibility of being acquired
87:33 - Luck vs. hard work
Boxed
Chieh Huang
The Blue Ocean Strategy
The Red Ocean Strategy
Astro Ape
Johns Hopkins
JET Program
Niigata, Japan
Proskauer
IPhone 2
Crash of Lehman Brothers
Chris Cheung
Farmville
Office Heroes
Zynga Games
Jared Yaman
Boxed on The Today Show
Prince & Spring
