An entrepreneurial brother and sister duo are turning to crowdfunding in a bid to bring their allergen and preservative-free Vietnamese and East Asian sauces to the market.
Jon Mao and Nham Lee are using the Crowdfunder platform to launch new business Vi, which means flavour in Vietnamese, in the hope that they can raise the £60,000 they need to start the full scale specialist production of ready-made sauces with organic, traceable ingredients. The venture will see the company work alongside local charity partners and could see up to 10 new jobs created over the next two years.
The pair came up with the idea for Vi after both their daughters were diagnosed with eczema and Nham started to look at the role that diet plays in allergies and other conditions. Jon and Nham’s parents arrived in the UK with their five children after fleeing Vietnam in the 1980s, settling in the North East and setting up a traditional East Asian takeaway. Jon said: “Nham and I have worked behind the scenes in the food industry for our parents since we were small so potential investors can be reassured that we have first-hand experience of the hard graft involved.” The pair already have the keys to a new production unit in Ashington. They are planning to give consumers a taste of the new products at forthcoming street food festivals, popup shops and events across the North East.
