‘We were gutsy, a little foolish’: Co-founder Lyn Lee on how Awfully Chocolate became a cult cake brand early in the game

While the pandemic took its toll on business in Singapore, Lee says they pulled through by biting the bullet and forgoing their salaries, for the most part, during those trying months. “One of my business partners who did a lot of work restructuring companies during the Asian Financial Crisis shared that those that made it had teams that came together and believed that they would come out stronger if they made the sacrifices,” she related. “When everyone starts thinking about themselves, that’s when you see the whole thing fall apart.”

Working with her friends for close to three decades, she insists, has been a blast, with no major conflict to grouse of. “I’m very much a frontline person — I always think like a customer. Some of my partners, on the other hand, aren’t that way,” she laughed. “But that’s the wonderful diversity and synergy between different personalities.”

While the close-knit group may wax facetious about the “cliche” of building a business on Lee’s love of chocolate, it’s proven to be a richly layered endeavour. For one, delving into the nuances of the Singaporean palate has deepened her appreciation for her country itself.  Locals, she observes, tend to favour dark chocolate that’s neither overly rich nor cloying, with a warm, toasty finish.

“I almost liken this to how amazing Singapore’s food is. Like how there must be wok hei (smokiness),” enthused Lee. She volunteered that she eats chocolate cake for breakfast — a habit her kids “find weird.” “I love that we have our own Singaporean identity when it comes to chocolate preference, and I hope that we can share that more with the world.”