Marcus Chan

WHAT IS MARCUS’ CONNECTION TO THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY?

Marcus and his family came to SGV when he was just four years old in 1978. His family moved to Monterey Park and had been living in Alhambra.

Originally, his family was from Burma, now known as Myanmar. However, much of his family lived in Thailand.

WHAT WAS THE TRANSITION TO SGV LIKE?

At four years old, Marcus’ comprehension of the world around him wasn’t quite vast yet. However, in Thailand, he attended an international school. So, he learned English at a young age, which made the transition much smoother.

In addition, Marcus moved to SGV for preschool. This is a stage where none of the kids no anyone else, so he did not feel like he was at a disadvantage.

Marcus has a distinct memory of his first day at school. He walked up to the teacher, and he was wearing a shirt with a small elephant on it. The teacher bent down, assuming Marcus might not have known English, and asked him, “Hi, do you know what that is? Can you say ‘elephant?’”

To which Marcus emphatically said, “Yeah, ‘elephant!’”

WHAT OCCURRED AFTER HIGH SCHOOL FOR MARCUS?

Marcus moved to Irvine, CA, and attended the University of California at Irvine.

There, he joined a fraternity, and his grades drastically slipped. He was put on probation, kicked out, and his family ended up disowning him.

He had just about $100 to his name, and he actually went two years without speaking to his parents again.

This was a major turning point in Marcus’ life.

At this point, he had only worked at restaurants and in retail. He had very little money and not many skills to offer for high-income jobs.

One of Marcus’ friends, Connie, alerted Marcus about a company called MicroTech. She had interviewed, but she could not work full-time. She recommended the job to Marcus.

He interviewed and was very upfront with them that he did not possess any sales skills. However, they liked his personable skills and demeanor.

WHAT INITIATED THE NEXT STAGE OF MARCUS’ LIFE?

Eventually, Marcus and his father reconnected, and his father asked him to go back to school. However, Marcus was now fully invested in the workforce and decided against going back to school, which his father understood.

About a year later, Marcus’ uncle reached out to him to get dinner and offered a business proposition.

His uncle hated his job and suggested buying plastic materials from his father and distributing them in San Gabriel Valley. The plan would be to partner in the business 50/50, with his uncle handling the operational side and Marcus focusing on sales.

Marcus was very strict that he must handle the sales and pricing and not be interfered with.

To separate from the other plastics companies in the area, Marcus made a point to visit all of their customers, meet them face to face, and bring donuts.

He wanted to make a great first impression. They ended up losing $250,000 in 2003, their first year, and in their second year, they made $510,000.

They were only taking a $2,000 monthly salary at first to cover all of their business expenses. But by 2005, they earned 10 million in sales.

WHAT IS PARENTHOOD LIKE? WHAT IS MARCUS’ PARENTING STYLE?

Marcus grew up with a single mother and watched her grit and determination and embodied it. However, due to Marcus’ fear of laziness and drive to succeed and provide for his family, around the time his son was 3, he noticed he was like the “secondary parent.”

If his son had a question or needed something, the question was posed to his mother. So, Marcus made a point to cherish time with his son and focus more on family time.

Marcus considers himself more of the fun guy, but they try to be strict and set boundaries.

WHAT DID MARCUS DO AFTER POLYMER ONE?

Due to the success of Polymer One, Marcus had acquired a significant amount of wealth, but he didn’t want it to just sit in his bank account. He wanted to generate passive income.

At first, they got into real estate and rental properties. In 2008, Marcus and his wife saw a huge, massive line while driving. They were surprised to see the line and wanted to see what was causing the hype.

It was Yogurtland. He called them and asked them what it would take for Marcus to be part of the franchise. They asked for a meeting, and Marcus was nervous because he didn’t know enough about restaurants.

Thankfully, Marcus had a friend, Anthony, who owned a Subway and had restaurant management experience.

They went in together to the Yogurtland meeting and were surprised because they thought they would be intensely interviewed, but it was a simple “sign a form” process to get involved.

WHAT IS HAPPENING NEXT FOR MARCUS?

Marcus is honest that his aggressive years are likely behind him. Of course, if the right opportunity presents itself in front of Marcus, he will take action.

However, Marcus is finding himself seeking passive income opportunities to cement his retirement and allow him to continue spending more time with his family.

SGV III

1. Alexander’s Steakhouse – Marcus says they always treat you well, they know you by name, and the food is amazing. Plus, they have a whiskey club.

2. Rick’s Drive-Through – The best place for a burger! Although, Marcus admits this may be due to nostalgia.

3. Garden Cafe – This is where Marcus met his wife. And he loves the food.