Championing Equity Through Mentorship: Highlights from Bynd Artisan's first live panel conversation, hosted at Cult Singapore. 

Photography by Arron Teo: Art

Earlier this year, we had the pleasure of partnering with Bynd Artisan to host their first live panel conversation at our Cult Singapore showroom.

A special group of champions spoke on a topic close to their hearts - 'Championing Equity Through Mentorship' - to a buzzing room of engaged attendees. The panel included three mentors and a mentee — Winnie Chan (co-founder of Bynd Artisan), Tina Tan-Leo (co-founder of Privato), Dennis Cheok (Creative Director of UPSTRS_) and Jaycie Foo (Business Development Manager at OSIM). Each person generously shared the many different forms and outcomes of mentorship (career, technical, sponsorship, reverse mentorship, etc), their personal experiences, as well as what they’re each doing to bend the curve.

We’ve put together some our favourite moments and quotes from the conversation - read on for more. 

The panel discussion topic, 'Championing Equity Through Mentorship', was explored in all kinds of thought-provoking ways by the experienced panelists. What does it mean to mentor? What does it take? How important is the role of chemistry in a mentor-mentee relationship? How can good, effective mentorship make an impact for those on the receiving end? And ultimately, in what ways is mentorship a powerful opportunity to produce equitable outcomes and the positive changes we wish to see in the world?

Guests enjoyed refreshments from The Oyster Bank and mingled amongst Cult Design's stylish and colourful furniture, lighing and homeware from Danish brands such as HAY and &Tradition. Thank you to the panellists and everyone who came out to join us and share your stories, it was such a meaningful and memorable evening!

Highlights from the conversation. 

Winnie: “I believe that leaders who invest the time in making their organisations more diverse, equitable and inclusive will be able to see the results of a successful and happy workforce. Bynd Artisan, for example, has always been inclusive in our hiring decisions. We have older craftsmen in our team who have helped the younger staff cultivate empathy, respect and compassion. As leader in the workplace, it is about being able to help your team discover their strengths and weaknesses, and to design job scopes that can optimise their talents.”

Tina: "For a lot of people, the biggest obstacle that they have is fear. Fear of not making it, fear of not doing it correctly, fear of so many things. That’s a mindset. As a mentor, you hope that you can help them change that mindset — to help them not to be afraid, to think out of the box and go forward. (When I started my business) there was no mentor, no social media. It was just ‘you better know how to do it!’. It was a learning curve, a journey, and I wanted to share with other entrepreneurs this journey to being successful in business. It takes a while and you just need to be patient and have perseverance." 

Dennis: “I wouldn’t be where I am as a designer without someone like Colin Seah as a mentor to me. All in all, I think a mentor is someone in your life whom you know you can turn to at key junctures in your career when you need the external wisdom, someone whom you can trust to help you make informed decisions.”

Jaycie: “As a mentee, mentorship has been a journey of self-discovery and actualisation for me. It has taught and encouraged me to get out of my comfort zone, do things that scare me — like saying yes to this conversation — to learn from a role model and someone experienced, inspired me to grow and lead a more purposeful life.”“I think it’s important for mentorship to not be limited to working professionals. It should also extend to women who are younger, who may be feeling lost and uncertain emotionally and mentally. They may be of a lower socio-economic status, or from minority groups.”

Richard Munao pictured at the Cult Singapore showroom. Image by Lavender Chang

INTERVIEW. Bynd Artisan x Richard Munao

Following this panel talk event, our founder and CEO, Richard Munao, sat down with the Bynd Artisan team for an in-depth conversation about Cult Design's journey over the last 25 years. Here, Richard shares lessons and wisdom on business and life from his own experiences. We invite you to take a short break from your day and read some of our favourite interview snippets - thank you Bynd Artisan for the inspiring conversation!