Jake Yap

Co-Founder & CEO at Lifely

Not every empire starts in a boardroom, some begin in a brother's bedroom, with a laptop, an eBay account, and the kind of quiet stubbornness that refuses to call it quits. Jake Yap is the co-founder and CEO of Lifely, an e-commerce furniture brand that he built alongside his brother Chris from a single container shipment into a business that hit 30 million dollars in revenue within four years — entirely bootstrapped, entirely relentless. Originally from Malaysia and now based in Melbourne, Jake's story is one that young Malaysians who've dared to bet on themselves abroad will deeply recognise: the late nights flying between China, Malaysia and Australia, celebrating birthdays in factories, working 12 to 15 hours a day just to get the product right. What sets Jake apart isn't just the numbers, it's his conviction that the best businesses are built not by chasing everything, but by having the discipline to say no to almost everything, and yes only to what truly matters. A mission-first entrepreneur who is just as obsessed with mental fitness as he is with business growth, Jake is proof that where you come from has absolutely nothing to do with how far you can go, tune in, because this one will make you want to start something.