“Our partnership with Costco has always been a win–win situation.
Through our brand Red Dragon, we provide safe, high-quality,
innovative and competitive food products to customers shopping at
Costco’s convenient and comfortable environment, creating an enjoyable
customer experience.” – Moses Lee, Vice Chairman, K&K FoodsRichard said he had to fight against instituting
“moving targets” in those early days, as many were
anxious to see the company turn a profit. “If we
were changing our business model every six months,
people who liked us already would become confused
and wouldn’t want to shop with us,” he says.
“We had the fortitude and the perseverance to
stick with the model because we had confidence in
it. It was hard that first year, it got better the second,
and by the third year, we could see the light at the
end of the tunnel.”
As soon as Costco became profitable in 2002,
it began opening more warehouses, expanding into
Taipei in Taiwan, where the business model had
more of a chance of being embraced. From there,
the company developed momentum; now, Richard
says most major cities in Taiwan have a Costco.“You can’t be an empty
box; you have to have
something in your
stomach and between
your ears, and that
something is content.”
34 | theceomagazine.com
INSPIRE | Interview