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

Hi Tom, thanks for joining us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I’ve always been drawn to art and creativity. That was really the starting point of everything. Back in 2014, I opened an art gallery in New York because I genuinely loved art and wanted to create a space that could support artists and bring people closer to creative culture.

Very quickly, though, I ran into a hard reality: galleries are beautiful in concept, but they are not always easy businesses to sustain. I realized that if I wanted the gallery to survive, I couldn’t rely on the traditional gallery model alone. So I began building other revenue streams around it, even if they were not directly related to running exhibitions.

One of the most meaningful things that came out of that period was helping artists find commercial opportunities. I started connecting them with branding, design, and creative projects so they could earn income while continuing to make art. That experience changed the way I thought about business. I began to see that creativity did not have to live separately from commerce. In fact, when done well, business could become a way to protect and sustain creativity.

Over time, that mindset naturally evolved into a broader business. I found myself doing more brand strategy, marketing, creative production, and commercial problem-solving, especially for businesses that needed strong storytelling and cultural understanding. Then the pandemic changed everything. It disrupted the original model completely and forced me to rethink what was sustainable, what the market actually needed, and where I could create the most value.

That was a major turning point for me. Instead of trying to preserve the old structure, I chose to transform. What excited me most was the realization that many businesses, especially immigrant-founded and growing brands, had great products and great ambition, but they lacked the creative and strategic support needed to truly stand out in the market. I understood both sides: the artistic side of building something meaningful, and the business side of making something survive.

So the business I have today really came out of that journey. It was not one sudden idea, but an evolution shaped by passion, pressure, and necessity. I was solving a problem I had personally lived through: how do you make creativity commercially viable without losing its soul? That question became the foundation of my work.

What made me believe it was worthwhile was simple logic. I could see there was a gap between creative vision and business execution. Many agencies were either too corporate and disconnected from culture, or too creative without understanding growth. I felt there was room for a more integrated approach, one that combined branding, storytelling, strategy, and real-world business needs.

What still excites me today is that this work is not just about marketing. It is about helping people turn ideas, identities, and cultural value into something sustainable and scalable. In many ways, I started by trying to save a gallery, but the bigger mission I found was helping creative people and ambitious brands build businesses that can actually last.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My academic background is actually in business — both my undergraduate and graduate studies were in that field. But personally, I always had a deep love for art and creativity. So when I started my entrepreneurial journey, I chose to begin with something I genuinely cared about, and that was why I opened an art gallery in New York in 2014.

At the beginning, it was very much driven by passion. I wanted to support artists, create a platform for creative expression, and build something meaningful around art and culture. But running the gallery also taught me a very real business lesson: passion alone is not enough to sustain a business. In order to keep the gallery alive, I had to build additional business lines around it.

One of the most important things that came out of that period was helping artists access commercial opportunities, so they could generate income and continue creating. That experience changed my perspective. It showed me that creativity and business are not opposites — when done right, business can actually help sustain creative work.

Over time, that naturally evolved into broader work in branding, marketing, and creative strategy. Then the pandemic changed everything and pushed me to fully transform the business. What started from the art world gradually became a creative and strategic business focused on helping brands tell their stories, clarify their positioning, and grow in a more intentional way.

Today, I work at the intersection of creativity and business. I help clients with brand strategy, storytelling, marketing, creative direction, and growth-focused execution. A lot of businesses have great products or strong ambition, but they struggle to express their value clearly or connect with the right audience. That is the gap I help solve.

What sets me apart is that I bring both business logic and creative sensitivity to the table. I understand that a brand needs to feel emotionally compelling, but it also needs to work in the real market. I think that balance is what defines my work.

What I’m most proud of is the journey itself — being able to evolve, adapt, and keep building without losing the original belief that creativity has real value. At the core of everything I do is the idea of helping people and brands turn vision into something sustainable, meaningful, and lasting.

We’d appreciate any insights you can share with us about selling a business.

Yes, I have.

One of the businesses I sold was Cloud Printing, which was originally built during the period when I was trying to support my art gallery and create more stable revenue. At that time, I realized very quickly that passion alone was not enough to sustain the gallery, so I started developing other business lines that were more commercially practical. Cloud Printing was one of them.

It served an important purpose in that chapter of my journey. It brought in consistent business, helped support the larger vision, and taught me a lot about operations, client service, margins, and what it really takes to run a business beyond just having an idea. In many ways, it was a very valuable business for me.

That said, over time I also became very honest with myself. The business had reached a point where it was no longer showing the kind of growth I wanted, and just as importantly, it was not aligned with the direction I felt most connected to. It was functional, but it was no longer exciting. I knew I was spending energy maintaining something stable rather than building something I truly wanted to grow.

So the decision to sell was both strategic and personal. Strategically, I did not want to keep holding on to a business with limited upside. Personally, I wanted to refocus my time and energy on work that felt more aligned with my long-term interests, which were always closer to creativity, branding, and building ideas with stronger cultural and emotional value.

One important lesson I learned is that not every business should be kept forever. Sometimes entrepreneurs treat selling as giving up, but I do not see it that way. Selling can be a disciplined decision. If a business no longer has meaningful growth potential, no longer fits your long-term vision, or no longer deserves your best energy, it may be smarter to exit and reallocate your focus.

Another lesson is that a business becomes more sellable when it is operationally clear, not just founder-dependent. Buyers want to understand the structure, the clients, the revenue logic, and how the business can continue beyond the founder’s personal involvement. Even if you are not planning to sell anytime soon, it is worth building with that in mind.

I also learned that entrepreneurs should be honest about the difference between stability and potential. A business can be stable but still not be the right vehicle for your future. That was the case for me. Selling Cloud Printing helped me make space for the next chapter, and looking back, I believe it was the right decision.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

Yes — one resource that had a surprisingly deep impact on me was Famous Last Words by Jane Goodall.

What stayed with me most was the idea that every person comes into this world with a certain mission or purpose. That thought really made me pause and reflect, not just on my own life, but also on the deeper value of the company I am building.

It pushed me to think beyond business in the narrow sense of revenue, growth, or efficiency. Instead, it made me ask bigger questions: What is the real purpose of our work? What value are we creating? Are we helping people, including our own team, move closer to the roles where they can truly contribute and grow?

It also changed the way I think about management. I started looking at team building less as simply assigning tasks, and more as understanding whether each person is in the right position to realize their strengths and create meaningful value. Sometimes good management is not just about asking people to work harder, but about asking whether we have placed them in the right environment to succeed.

That perspective has been very important to my entrepreneurial philosophy. It reminded me that a company is not only a commercial structure — it is also a system of people, potential, and purpose. And as a founder, part of my responsibility is not just to grow the business, but to build something where people’s abilities are recognized and better aligned.

So while the inspiration did not come from a traditional management book, it had a very real influence on how I think about leadership, team structure, and the meaning behind building a business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kpm.design
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kepler.kpm/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/85856002/admin/dashboard/

Image Credits

Kaylee Wong