SMU alumna Mandy Chan co-founded a startup when she was still a teenager six years ago. The startup, called The Bold Company, was incorporated in 2016. That same year, Chan took a gap year from university to pursue her business dream – to make backpacks that served multiple functions and could be carried in various ways. She shared how she juggled her studies at SMU and work over four years – although she admits putting a greater priority on her company. Her perseverance and zeal paid off when she received the National Youth Entrepreneurship Gold Award in 2017 and The Bold Company chalked up a 7-figure revenue in 2020. Mandy plans to expand her business abroad in US and hopes to launch her next big idea – an online community-driven platform – in the second half of next year. Mandy is also exploring taking Bold's community into the metaverse, a virtual reality space that some now believe could be the next evolution of social connection.