Industry

A Young Man’s Enterprising Spirit

Written by By Christine Chan

Patrick Wee knows business. At the age of 34, the man is the managing director of not one, but three companies: Mypartners Sdn. Bhd., JM Asia and Myalternative PR. Patrick takes time off to talk about the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur and how his time at Limkokwing University helped him soar. Christine Chan tells the story.

Patrick Wee started his first business venture in 2005 armed with two laptops, two employees and one Visa Mastercard. Today, the man holds the role of managing director for three companies: Mypartners Sdn. Bhd., JM Asia, and Myalternative PR.

“Setting up your own company pushes you to move forward. Being an entrepreneur enables you to make a difference in your life, and you find yourself constantly pushing yourself to achieve double bottom line.”

The 1995 Presidential Gold Award winner and Limkokwing University of Creative Technology alumnus did not plunge immediately into the world of entrepreneurship. After graduating as a Business Communications student from Limkokwing University, which was then located at Jalan Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur, Patrick Wee served as the university’s Director of Marketing for five years.

“I’ve learned a lot in the university while overseeing the marketing department. Because execution is everything, I had to instill in myself that commitment towards excellence and always go the extra mile to make sure that I can achieve more, even if it meant doing quick improvement on your work at the very last hour,” he said.

Under the guidance of Professor Emeritus Tan Sri Dato’ Dr. Lim Kok Wing, Patrick developed an eye for detail and the ability to work within an extremely tight time frame. “Plans are often laid out, and if the first plan doesn’t work, you must have two or three back-up plans to embark on,” Patrick explained.

After five years of working in Limkokwing University, Patrick decided that it was time to move on to something else. Joining AOE Worldwide, one of the leading and most successful independent film companies in the world as a Marketing Manager out of a love for the film industry, Patrick was promoted to the role of Managing Director in less than a year.

The job took him to countries as far as the United States, Korea and Hong Kong to attend film festivals and observe how the marketing process is tied to a film’s production and promotion in these respective countries. Shortly after, Patrick moved on to entertainment marketing consultancy Nao Entertainment, where he again held the position of Managing Director.

During his stint there, Patrick managed and conceptualized some of the largest entertainment marketing campaigns in the country. Some movie campaigns that he has worked on are the campaign for the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Initial D.

In 2005, Patrick decided that it was time to make the leap into entrepreneurship, and started Mypartners Sdn. Bhd. and JM Asia. Mypartners Sdn. Bhd. specializes in youth marketing and events management, and their impressive list of projects include Movie Carnival 2007, Robotcon 2007, the SciFi & Fantasy Festival 2007 and the ‘Scream’ Halloween event at Sunway Lagoon.

In order to succeed, you need to put in a lot of effort to achieve your goals, but you cannot do without creative thinking. Be aware of your surroundings, care about your community, widen your horizons, and most importantly, have a sense of purpose in your life

JM Asia is a company specializing in branding and strategic marketing communications. Currently based in Singapore, the company does branding, events, advertising, seminar-organization, project consultation and many more.

“It was just the right time,” said Patrick on his decision to leap from his high-profile job in the film industry into running his own companies, “I’ve reached a point when I needed to move on and do what I needed to do: to be independent, to build a challenging career, and to have the complete freedom to create and produce and the excitement that comes along with it.”

Patrick’s most recent venture is Myalternative PR, a boutique PR agency that is strongly linked to JM Asia.

It’s not about leading a very glamorous or extravagant life. If you are going to be a front desk person, be the best front desk person you can be

Growing up in Batu Pahat under the care of a single parent, his mother, along with his three siblings, Patrick learned the value of hard work from a young age. Asked on what his advice is to youth, Patrick replies, “Realize that we all have a very short time span on earth, so make sure that whatever you do has to be fulfilling.”

“It’s not about leading a very glamorous or extravagant life. If you are going to be a front desk person, be the best front desk person you can be,” Patrick affirms.

In Patrick Wee’s books, Professor Emeritus Dato’ Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing is one such man who has lived his life in a fulfilling way. “The man is a visionary who introduced within Malaysian tertiary education strategic and critical thinking, which is often lacking in our education system,” said Patrick, who added that from a small institution with a niche market, Limkokwing University has grown into a global phenomenon.

“In order to succeed, you need to put in a lot of effort to achieve your goals, but you cannot do without creative thinking. Be aware of your surroundings, care about your community, widen your horizons, and most importantly, have a sense of purpose in your life,” Patrick concluded.