Fitlion boss pays it forward at Nanyang Polytechnic

SINGAPORE — Young, passionate and driven, Tan Tse Yong is the perfect example of a Singapore success story — a heartland boy raised by hawker parents who now heads a multimillion-dollar business in health supplements, fitness accessories and a gym chain.

Tan’s story is also one that will resonate with, and inspire, many Singaporeans.

More than a decade ago, the National Junior College student found himself at the crossroads of his academic life after failing the General Paper at the A-Level examinations twice. The result meant that he could not gain admission to university.

Racked with feelings of self-doubt and failure, Tan decided to enrol at Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) to pursue a Diploma in Sport & Wellness Management. While there, the budding young entrepreneur blossomed, as he emerged as the top student during the three-year course.

In 2009, Tan started sports supplements e-store FitLion in a 200sqf warehouse space. While the early days saw the two-man team getting only one to three orders a week, the business has grown significantly over the past seven years and it now employs 20 staff and operates out of a 20,000sqf warehouse. Orders via its e-store have grown to up to 250 a day, and it raked in revenue of S$10.2 million last year.

Tan’s other company, Gymmboxx, which started with one gym outlet at a multi-storey carpark in Bedok, will have eight outlets by the end of the year.

Crediting his success to NYP, the group CEO of FitLion and Gymmboxx has decided to give back to the institution by sponsoring a new integrated scholarship programme for students.

From April next year, the FitLion/Gymmboxx programme will sponsor the tuition fees of S$8,000 for one student from the Sport & Wellness Diploma, with a 21-week internship also included in the programme. The scholarship holder will also serve a one-year bond after graduation.

Speaking to TODAY on the sidelines of the 20th anniversary of NYP’s Diploma in Sport & Wellness Management, Tan said he was happy to support the scholarship after it was mooted by NYP.

“I was here for 12 years, first as a student, and after that they gave me opportunities to run my business here,” said the 36-year-old.

“NYP was very helpful in setting up the foundation for my business and I’m very grateful to them.”

Scholarship applicants will not be evaluated solely on grades, as he added: “I do not want this to be purely about academics. Usually scholarships require a 3.8 GPA … I’m looking at between 2.3 to 3.8 GPA. The Sport & Wellness people are very good, but they might not be so academically driven.”

Tan also shared his story of failure and success with students from the Sport & Wellness Management course at a Business of Sport in Singapore seminar held at the polytechnic on Monday (Nov 21).

The entrepreneur was joined on stage by Singapore Rugby Union president Low Teo Ping, as well as NYP alumni Jimmy Beh (First Kick Academy head and academy director) and Nicholas Teo, co-owner and programme director of Team Axis.

Urging NYP students to stay hungry in the pursuit of their dreams, Tan added: “Failing the ‘A’ Levels was a huge setback for me — I felt like a failure and I started to doubt myself. But my worth in life is not decided by a piece of paper.

“In poly I told myself not to give up, and to pursue excellence. I learnt from my failure and overcame it.”