Singapore has one of the world's great food cultures. But walk into almost any British supermarket, and you'll find Thai, Japanese, Indian, Korean and almost nothing from Singapore. Megan Tan noticed that gap when she moved to London. Leaving her career in corporate law, she started running supper clubs from her flat. Then she launched her first product - a ginger chilli sauce inspired by Hainanese Chicken Rice - in March 2025. Within two months, Yumm Singa was listed in Selfridges.
The road there wasn't so straightforward. She had a brand name she loved, a trademark already registered, but received a legal notice from one of Hollywood's biggest studios. What she did next says everything about how she thinks and how she's building Yumm Singa.
In this conversation with Karen Green, Megan talks about the commercial logic behind every decision she's made, why she spent December 2025 zombie-walking through supermarkets mumbling brand names, and why she treats every failed sales conversation as a diagnostic question rather than a rejection. It's a conversation packed with ideas, insight and honesty.
Why you need to listen to this:
- Megan won a Selfridges listing two months after launch with a brand she now calls "cringe." The buyer saw the gap, not the packaging. There's a lesson in that for every founder.
- She explains why she chose sauces over ready meals. It has nothing to do with passion and everything to do with capital, logistics, and giving herself a chance.
- After spending months trying to define her customer, she was stuck. Find out the shift in thinking that made everything click.
- Warner Brothers sent her a legal notice over her planned brand name. How she responded is one of the best founder resilience stories you'll hear - and it's not what you think.
- Her prioritisation framework is genuinely useful: four categories, in order, that turn a chaotic to-do list into a productive working day.
Links:
Buy Yumm Singa and find stockists:
https://www.yummsinga.com/
Connect with Megan on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/megan-tan-761b73129/
On Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/yummsinga/
On TikTok:
https://www.tiktok.com/@yummsinga
References, books and podcasts mentioned:
Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss with Tahl Raz. The negotiation masterclass for founders
https://www.blackswanltd.com/never-split-the-difference
The Aspire podcast by Emma Grede - Megan's current favourite business listen
https://www.emmagrede.me/
Bread & Jam, the founders festival, where Megan pitched and won her Selfridges listing
https://www.breadandjamfest.com/
Chapters:
0:01:00 - The Yumm Singa elevator pitch — market opportunity and mission
0:03:32 - What is Singaporean cuisine?
0:06:13 - Is it spicy? Singaporean flavour versus Sichuan heat
0:07:56 - From Homey Kitchen to Yumm Singa
0:09:59 - The meaning behind the name
0:11:48 - Warner Brothers sent a legal notice - and what happened next
0:19:25 - Connoisseurs or the broad market? The hawker centre philosophy
0:22:06 - Psychographics over demographics - Ozzy and King Charles
0:25:13 - The commercials - pricing, co-manufacturing, format choice
0:27:41 - Getting the Selfridges listing - and keeping the rate of sale up
0:31:08 - Growth strategy - independents now, supermarkets next
0:33:02 - How to prioritise when everything feels urgent
0:34:51 - The hardest thing in the next 30 days
0:38:46 - Productivity tools and the one distraction she'd remove
0:40:32 - Books and podcasts — Never Split the Difference
0:41:49 - Where to find Yum Singa
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