8 Asian-American entrepreneurs share how their immigrant and first-generation backgrounds shaped their businesses and leadership styles

The company said it recently closed an oversubscribed round that included Kraft Heinz and Jing Gao — the founder of the Sichuan-based food brand Fly By Jing — as investors. However, Deleon declined to share how much he raised and how much his company booked in revenue last year.

Meanwhile, he's also prioritized giving back: In April 2021, Fila Manila partnered with Project Barkada, a nonprofit focused on supporting the Filipino community and frontline workers.

"The way we give back, we do more than just a percentage of sales," Deleon said. "We give back with our time and something significant that means something to the community, because they supported us from day one."

Sandro Roco got his idea for Sanzo — Asian-inspired flavored water — in 2018, when he saw an increased interest in Asian-inspired consumer products and Asian creative works, like the film "Crazy Rich Asians."

Meanwhile, the 34-year-old Roco was not impressed with the sparkling-water flavors stocked in his office's fridge and decided to combine his two observations. He launched Sanzo in 2019, tapping the Asian flavors he grew up with like calamansi and lychee.

Today, major retailers like Whole Foods and Target sell Sanzo. What's more, Roco has raised a total of $11.3 million, including a $10 million Series A round Circle Up led. Roco declined to share revenue figures.

Roco, a first-generation Filipino American, said he internalized the realization that his parents took a big risk when immigrating to the US.

"People talk about entrepreneurs taking risks in this country — you leave it all on the line," Roco said. "But as a first-gen, I feel like that's nothing compared to our parents' immigrant experience."

Vietnamese-American sisters Vanessa and Kim Pham started Omsom, a line of food kits that package together sauces, aromatics, and seasonings for traditional Asian dishes like Thai larb and spicy bulgogi. Vanessa Pham said the duo's motivation for launching the business in May 2020 was to accelerate their ability to shape cultural dialogues.

"My parents equipped me with a deep commitment to ethics and doing things that are reflective of my innermost values," Vanessa Pham, 28, said of her parents, who moved to the US from Vietnam. "They've always lived their lives that way."

As she's scaled Omsom, Vanessa Pham said her personal and professional selves fused.

"I realized how my professional aspirations and challenges are so imbued by my personal narratives and they feel one and the same," she said.

Since Omsom's launch, the company has sold more than 800,000 packages, sold out of inventory 10 times, and has 55,000 customers, according to the company. Vanessa Pham declined to share revenue figures.

Alexandra Dorda founded Kasama Rum after having two realizations. First, she learned that the Philippines — where her mother grew up — is one of the largest rum-producing countries in the world. Second, she saw that the rum category, compared to other spirits categories in the US, is small and underdeveloped.

"I realized I had an opportunity to both celebrate my culture and tell the story of the Philippines," Dorda, 30, said. "But also do it in a way that's filling a real gap that I saw in the market."

It helped that both of her parents are entrepreneurs: Her father, Tadeusz Dorda, is a cofounder of the Chopin and Belvedere vodka brands, and her mother sold things out of the family's car to put Dorda through school. Additionally, Dorda's maternal grandmother owned bars and clubs in Manila.

"Seeing determination and being a part of it was something that really influenced me," Dorda said. "That's something specific to being Filipino — women taking the reins and starting these businesses and making things happen for their family."

Kasama, which means "together" in Filipino, distills and sells seven-year-old rum from the Philippines. Dorda said Kasama is bootstrapped and did not share revenue figures.

Growing up, Priyanka Ganjoo said she didn't feel beautiful. Born in New Delhi, India, Ganjoo said her South Asian community imposed "a narrow and toxic beauty standard" and further reinforced the belief that wearing makeup was only to lighten the skin or to attract men.

"We rarely see South Asians represented in beauty," Ganjoo said, adding that there's a lack of products made for South Asian skin tones and undertones. "We grew up thinking that beauty isn't something that could be possibly tailored to our wants and needs."

This inspired the 34-year-old Ganjoo to start Kulfi Beauty, a brand of eyeliners that she hopes will show customers there are products for them created by someone who looks like them. She launched the business in February 2021 and declined to share revenue figures.

Ganjoo wants the next generation to grow up viewing beauty from a more holistic perspective, she said. She also wants to encourage entrepreneurs to trust their instincts.

"When I was pitching Kulfi, many executives told me that South Asian beauty was not aspirational or that I needed a celebrity cofounder to be successful," Ganjoo said. "I've had to unlearn expectations imposed on women of color to not speak up or take risks."

When Rooshy Roy, 32, grew up in Michigan, her household was as "Indian as it could be," she said. Roy's parents wanted their daughter to have the same values, traditions, and morals as they did in Kolkata, India.

This deep connection with India, both through visits and the home her parents created, are what led to Roy creating Aavrani in 2018. Her New York City-based skin-care brand draws on ayurvedic South Asian rituals and ingredients that someone from any background can use. To date, Roy has raised $10 million, but declined to share revenue figures.

Her company is a huge part of how Roy keeps in touch with her Indian roots, especially because she has lived in the US her whole life and her busy schedule doesn't allow for frequent visits to India.

"Aavrani has served as a catalyst for me to keep in touch with my Asian heritage," she said. "It keeps me grounded and in touch with who I am."

In 2020, Lily Liu launched Piñata, a New York City-based software company that helps users manage tasks and goals. Her business understanding comes from watching her father, who had his own small manufacturing business. She and her siblings would help their father wrap and box shipments every single night, which taught her the value of grit when running a business.

Liu's family emigrated to the US from Taiwan when she was two years old and she watched her parents establish themselves in a new country. Liu said that the values she learned growing up in an Asian household are what she embodies every day, especially as a CEO.

"Coming from an immigrant family, there was always an emphasis on education, grit, and community," she said. "I feel like that grit is in everything we do at Piñata."

To date, Piñata has raised $13 million in a Series A funding round. Liu declined to share revenue figures.

Deepica Matyala grew up in Sugarland, Texas, and didn't feel like she fit in with her peers: As a young Indian girl, she had darker skin than most of her blond-haired and blue-eyed classmates.

"Indian beauty standards are generally geared toward women with fairer skin," Mutyala, 32, said. "This led me to hiding from the sun under an umbrella so I would not get darker."

Those experiences are why she started the New York City-based company Live Tinted, a vegan and cruelty-free make-up brand that sells products like huesticks and sunscreens for people of all different skin tones. Last year, Live Tinted raised $3 million in seed funding. Mutyala declined to share revenue figures.

"It was important to me that I created a brand for people who looked like me and to inspire them to embrace their skin as it is a representation of their culture and identity," she said. "That's what makes them beautiful and unique."