OH! Magazine - Australian Version February 2014 (Australian Version) | Page 7

that nothing will get in her way or that of the Misschu chain. And given her journey to where she is today, it’s little wonder. Chu, her mother, father and four siblings immigrated to Australia when she was nine years of age and, after stints at Box Hill and the Hunter Valley, settled in Melbourne. Having spent the previous four years in Thai refugee camps after fleeing her homeland of communist Laos, where she was born in 1970, Chu grew to become a hard working opportunist. ‘Most people haven’t come from a background where if you don’t eat today or tomorrow then you might die but I’ve been so hungry and suffered disease on such a third world level that I see opportunities here [in Australia] that most people don’t. I’ve had a great life because I’ve embraced all the bad things that have happened to me and I’ve turned them into good points. I think people should do that more; instead of dwelling on the negatives, try turning them into a power tool.’ Chu is aware that, were it not for her refugee beginnings, being where she is in life today would be very unlikely. ‘It’s highly likely that I would have gotten married really young, at the age of 18 or 19, and had a lot of children, and they’re the two things that haven’t happened to me. I’ve been able to be an independent woman without children, without being scorned upon, and that’s a really dramatic thing.’ As accepting as society has been towards this independent woman, she’s still been subjected to the traditional family wishes. ‘My mother is surprised at how well it [Misschu] is doing. I don’t think she realised the gravity of what I was trying to execute. In 2006 I made an animation that made it into the Sydney Film Festival as a test film and I said, ‘Look, Mum, this beautiful film has made it to a really important film festival,’ and she sort of said, ‘yeah, care factor [of zero]. Are you married yet? Have you bought a house yet?’ And I said ‘Mum, you don’t understand. I’m having a conversation with mainstream Australia about our heritage and history. And that’s far more profound and important to me than buying a stupid house in the suburbs.’’ While neither has happened yet, are marriage and kids on the Chu radar? ‘It’s not in me,’ she says earnestly. ‘There are people who feel that their lives are not complete until they are married and have children. I’m not that person. My thing was ‘I’m not a complete person until I’ve invented something’ and I’ve been like that ever since I was a teenager. I’ve always wanted to be the person that invented an idea that changed people’s lives and that’s kind of happening on a small scale. For me, that’s enough.’ And change lives, she does. Philanthropy is a way of life that runs deep for Chu with five per cent of all Misschu profits going to charitable projects such as anti-human trafficking organisation HAGAR (http:// hagarinternational.org), and by working closely with artist Tracey Moffatt to help educate and employ Aboriginal Australians. While her passion for philanthropy is no laughing matter, Chu’s humorous take on the stereotypical white Australian [email protected] ALISHA SMITH schoolyard taunts to which she was subjected as a child, shows a selfdeprecating aspect to the brand. But not everyone has seen the humourous side. In early 2013, the Advertising Standards Bureau received a complaint regarding the use of the slogan ‘You ling, we bling!’ in relation to Misschu’s home delivery service. The Bureau dismissed the complaint with the Misschu camp explaining that the slogan ‘is a call to arms, a humourous mechanism to remind people that Misschu take away is fast and efficient’ and, ultimately is about ‘… taking ownership of conventional stereotypes.’ With her days full to bursting point as Chu continues to build an empire, take on competitors and detractors, and make a difference in the lives of those less fortunate than herself, it’d be hard to imagine that there’s much time for exercise. Not so, she says. ‘I’m really busy these days so I have a trainer who I see four times a week. He makes me work hard and I eat well naturally,’ she insists. Together, they hone her svelte body using a mixture of cardio and resistance exercise but while she’s prepared to work as hard on her physique as she is on her business, she remains judicious. ‘I’d love to have a sexy body, don’t get me wrong, but I’m not going to have an eating disorder over it.’ It’s this refreshing pragmatism that makes it hard not to root for Chu’s continued success. ‘I think I’m one of the luckiest girls in the world. I also know that I’m one of the hardest working girls in the world and b