Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Peter Choe. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Peter thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Talk to us about building your team? What was it like? What were some of the key challenges and what was your process like?

Quick background on me, although being born in the U.S., I was a traditionally Korean raised speaking only Korean in the household growing up. All I was taught to do was to study and learn key musical instruments and participate in hobbies that “helped me” be a better student. My job growing up is to be the best of the best student. I had to graduate in the top 10% of my class. I was never expected to have a part time job nor was I able to have a job because I wanted. Everything in my life was paid for, as long as I stayed in school, studied, and maintained good grades. After all that, I was a drop out dental student. Now I am 23 years old, missing work ethic, its culture, and lacked is experience.

I have had many businesses before Tokki, and I realized that experience is not always the best trait when it comes to hiring employees. Before even opening Tokki, I have encountered and made relationships with at least hundred plus of employees by now. Either from car detailing services to fine dining sushi and steak, and to the opposite spectrum from to quick service carry out Chinese food and deli style wings. During my first few ventures of running businesses, I assumed experience was knowledge and wisdom. As my life progress with failed business and successful ones, I realized that I was hiring people incorrectly. Instead of experience, I started to hire people based off discipline. So, the current team now here at Tokki has been here since day one, thankfully. I call them my kids, and I try my hardest to treat them that way. My current babies are all majority from a gym called VASA. I have been working out with them much before Tokki existed, when I had been running a Liquor Store that started about 4 to 5 years ago. My kids have minimal to no restaurant or bartending experience. Majority of them were or still are students and college athletes. All of them are the most disciplined young 20s adults you will ever meet. Discipline is something that will be hard for me to teach any adult in my life who has been raised or lived in different environments and situations. But customer service? food running? and cleaning? Any disciplined person can learn and do those things naturally if taught correctly.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Tokki-Go @LUNCH (11AM-2PM Mon-Fri) brings nicely packaged and easy to eat on your lap or on a trip Gourmet Korean Food. Cuisines are bitesize and doesn’t need to be heated up, and tightly packed into which are easy to carry around!

Tokki Bar & Asian Tapas @DINNER (5PM-10PM Sun-Thurs & 5PM-MID Fri-Sat) is Colorado Springs first Asian tapas cocktail lounge. Serving beautifully infused and artsy cocktails that can be paired with mouthwatering and savory Asian fusion tapas dishes, Tokki is the new place to relax, relieve stress, and make friends, while enjoying some random nights of different live entertainment.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Loving our guests and my employees i think really helped me gain my reputation. My guests meaning i participate in most local fund raisers donating as much as possible to the community and city. The Center of American Values charity even being one of the most successful we were able to generate thousands of dollars in a couple hours. My employee love you have maybe felt in the hiring section. My employees here are my second family and kids. I know everyone’s birthdays and graduation dates. We as a team attend peers important sporting events and personal events like birthdays, graduations, etc. My business partner and I also have gifted all our 1st group of hired 1yr employee automatic luxury watches for fashion, and “not to be late to work.”

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

The conveyor belt sushi restaurant was my biggest restaurant and biggest failure. I was young, ignorant, and did not know was doing. My 2nd biggest failure was opening a business with family using family trust money.
3rd semi failure is the liquor store. Not in my control but 4 years after transitioning to buy a liquor store the state of Colorado legalized alcohol sales in grocery stores.

Most Reasons for Failing
1st reason for failing- can’t own a business trying to profit from the beginning.
2nd- don’t open to make money without passion. a good idea isn’t always a money maker. Having passion behind what you sell you have a much higher chance of success.
3rd- You’re not opening to prove a point or compete. A true business entrepreneur opens a business that the demographics is missing or needs. Not every “good location” is a good location for your idea or concept.
I am currently looking at 4 locations in different demographics for Tokkis most perfect second location.

Thanks to the couple failures I have had and changing my perspective on business innovating,

Contact Info:

• Website: www.tokkicolorado.com
• Instagram: tokki_co
• Facebook: tokki_co