This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Yann Schuermans, the CEO of Baskit, who is based in Jakarta, Indonesia. His words have been edited for length and clarity.
By 30, my career looked ideal on paper, but I couldn’t ignore the pull to create something of my own.
When I was studying international management at the University of Manchester, I spent a year abroad in Hong Kong. That experience opened my eyes to Asia’s pace and possibilities, and I knew I wanted to be part of it.
In 2016, two years after graduating, I joined AB InBev’s Asia Pacific headquarters in Shanghai. With my Belgian-Brazilian background and a family history in brewing, stepping into the world’s largest beer company felt both ambitious and familiar.
I threw myself into the work. By my mid-20s, I was chief of staff to the region’s CEO, then general manager for Hong Kong and Macau, and later strategy director and head of M&A for the region. Each role brought more responsibility, more travel, more wins. On the outside, it looked like everything was falling into place.
But inside, I felt married to a single corporate identity. The path ahead was predictable — move back to the Americas and climb higher into the corporate ranks. It would have been a safe choice, but it wasn’t what I wanted.
I kept coming back to the same question: What would it look like to start something of my own, without the safety net?
Leaving behind the comfort job
In 2021, I left AB InBev and moved to Singapore to join a hyper-growth startup. That year confirmed that I was ready to take the leap.
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The next year, I co-founded Baskit with my wife, Yoonjung Yi. Our goal was to digitize Southeast Asia’s fragmented supply chains and help small and medium-sized brands reach the market with better distribution, support, and credit.
The reality hit fast. More than 50 VCs turned us down. We nearly lost our visas, couldn’t pay ourselves, and survived on $100,000 in savings from family and personal funds.
But persistence eventually paid off. Through mentors and local networks, we raised $5.5 million. The capital mattered, but the bigger shift was psychological. Once I was responsible for other people’s money, failure was no longer just personal.
Embracing the unpredictable
Entrepreneurship tested me, but I drew on lessons from corporate life.
At AB InBev, I often faced unpredictable situations while traveling to more than 100 countries. Improvisation became second nature, and that mindset turned into my survival kit at Baskit. Ideas rarely show up fully formed. Baskit today looks very different from what I imagined on day one. The key has been composure, resilience, and adaptability when things go sideways.
Fast forward, we’ve grown to more than 50 people, and we’ve had a few profitable quarters under our belt. Our early scrappiness built muscles we still rely on.
Day to day, the contrast with corporate life is stark. At AB InBev, my schedule was structured and supported. As a founder, each day is chaos and filled with a mix of sales pitches, fundraising calls, product pivots, and customer complaints. But it’s liberating too.
Moving closer to the problem
In 2023, we moved from Singapore to Jakarta to be closer to our customers. To really understand the market, we had to live it. We had to sit in traffic with distributors; watch goods move through small shops; and see late payments or stalled deliveries firsthand.
It wasn’t easy. Building trust meant hours with wholesalers just to earn another meeting. Infrastructure gaps, language barriers, and constant pivots made every day complicated. But Jakarta was where the lessons — and opportunities — were.
The past two and a half years have been the steepest learning curve of my life. I’ve had to become a generalist overnight, from treasury management to crisis leadership. I’ve gained the confidence that I can figure it out.
Working with my partner
Building Baskit with Yoonjung has been both the biggest risk and the biggest gift. We share the roller coaster — celebrating wins together, pushing through low points side by side. But our lives, careers, and future plans are all tied to one venture, which can compound the stress, especially as we think about starting a family.
During the toughest fundraising days, we leaned on each other’s resolve. We’d met at AB InBev, where she worked as HR Manager, so blending work and life always came naturally.
Now, we balance responsibilities. I focus on external growth and sales, while she manages operations and team culture. With our third co-founder, Abhishek Pansari, covering strategy, we’ve learned to complement one another without overlap.
If I’ve learned anything, it’s that you don’t wait for the “right” time to leap. Corporate life will always tempt you with another promotion, another bonus, another milestone. Cover your basics, then take the jump. The rest, you’ll figure out along the way.
Do you have a story about moving to Asia that you want to share? Get in touch with the editor: [email protected].
