Kevin Thach
Within a year of graduating with a BA in Sociology, Kevin Thach had landed a sales job at Rise, a payroll software company, then quit in January before launching one food truck in April, and another in July. He now manages a small company of 10 people. Arts talked to Kevin on the phone in advance of Homecoming 2019, when he’ll return to UBC with NaMì, his Vietnamese food truck.
When did you get the idea for NaMì?
It was actually my dad’s idea to begin with. It’s something that he’d always wanted to do, and it was something I was very interested in doing as well. I wanted to create something. It spiraled into this whole bigger thing that ended up working.
What challenges did you face in launching the food truck?
The whole idea of starting your own business in one of the hardest industries to be a part of: the food industry. The bigger picture was really daunting at first. To overcome it, I learnt that you’ve got to break everything into little pieces. Nothing has been too too challenging, but with food it’s being able to execute near perfection, essentially. Even the smallest mistake can become the biggest detriment, especially in our day and age of social media.
What were some of your most meaningful experiences at UBC?
For me, most meaningful experiences were in the extracurriculars I was a part of. I was heavily involved with my fraternity. I was also heavily involved in the Arts Undergraduate Society. In both of those I took leadership roles, which I attribute to learning a lot from and being able to apply that to what I’m doing now. I was exposed to various different roles, whether it was financial roles, or delegation roles – having to be organized and moving many parts within the organization. With the AUS, for a bit I was the VP admin, then I went over to become their social coordinator, as well as planning the year-end sendoff. I did that two or three times. With the frat I was doing multiple positions at the same time.
It was a combination of doing many smaller roles that put me in this rhythm of multitasking which translates to what I’m doing now—running a business where I have to oversee everything at this small stage. [I do a lot of] relationship building with my own suppliers; the various services I use, like my POS [Point of Sale], my transaction system; as well as I have people who help me with my social media and my PR. Those are smaller aspects that you wouldn’t really think of within a food business, but they’re the backend stuff that you need to be cognizant of.
What skills did you gain as an Arts student that have helped you in launching your food truck?
The tenacity to be able to learn in a very short amount of time. It’s how I approached school. There are a lot of learning curves in learning the industry itself and knowing what to do. Just like in school, there are deadlines I have to hit. You have to make everything happen and get ready for the launch day.
What skills does someone need to have to be a successful entrepreneur?
I don’t want to say work ethic, but I’m going to say work ethic – or just being able to be on top of everything. Not letting smaller problems combine and grow into bigger problems. Being able to tackle one thing at a time and being on top of that.
What advice would you give to students or alumni interested in breaking into the food industry?
I would say do a lot of research on food in itself. Make sure everything is perfect on the day of, because people are ruthless. It doesn’t matter if you’re new, you have to be perfect and be on the same level as everyone else in the market that you’re entering.
What was your favourite place to eat on campus?
At the Gallery. I spent too many hours there.
What’s your favourite dish from NaMì?
I would say the Chasu Pork [Bánh Mì].
What’s your favourite Vancouver food truck not named NaMì?
I’m going to go with Mr. Shawarma. It was right outside my office at Rise and I would go there once a week.
What are your memories of Homecoming as a student?
I think this was 2016. That year I found out that the prize was a Honda Fit, one of my favourite cars to begin with, and it was outfitted with Pikachus on it. On the event page you had to make a bio and why you wanted to be the guy to do a 50-yard kick for the car. I was the only one who made a bio. Essentially, I got picked for it. But I also had a friend who was very athletically inclined. I pitched him to do the same thing. He made a post literally the day before the game and they asked him to do the kick as well. He’s a 6’5”, 250-pound ogre-man.
That same day that we got picked, we went out to one of the football fields [on campus] and practiced 50-yard kicks all day and we never even got close. The day came… the kick came up. My friend Toph went for the kick and he just shanked it. We only had one shot. We stormed out of the arena. And to this day I regret that. The thing is, I signed up a week before the game, and I think if Toph had that entire week to practice he could’ve gotten it. The closest he hit was 45-yards. He was close. I think if I wasn’t so selfish and I had brought the idea [to him earlier] we would’ve had a Pikachu Honda Fit right now.
What are you excited about for Homecoming this year?
I’m excited to be back in general. I’m actually going to be doing the block party the day before as well. It’s just nice to be at UBC and serving to a different crowd and getting that exposure as well. It’s also my birthday that day as well, so it’s going to be fun.
Wish Kevin a happy birthday and grab a bite from NaMì at UBC Homecoming on September 14th.
Kevin Thach
Within a year of graduating with a BA in Sociology, Kevin Thach had landed a sales job at Rise, a payroll software company, then quit in January before launching one food truck in April, and another in July. He now manages a small company of 10 people. Arts talked to Kevin on the phone in advance of Homecoming 2019, when he’ll return to UBC with NaMì, his Vietnamese food truck.
When did you get the idea for NaMì?
It was actually my dad’s idea to begin with. It’s something that he’d always wanted to do, and it was something I was very interested in doing as well. I wanted to create something. It spiraled into this whole bigger thing that ended up working.
What challenges did you face in launching the food truck?
The whole idea of starting your own business in one of the hardest industries to be a part of: the food industry. The bigger picture was really daunting at first. To overcome it, I learnt that you’ve got to break everything into little pieces. Nothing has been too too challenging, but with food it’s being able to execute near perfection, essentially. Even the smallest mistake can become the biggest detriment, especially in our day and age of social media.
What were some of your most meaningful experiences at UBC?
For me, most meaningful experiences were in the extracurriculars I was a part of. I was heavily involved with my fraternity. I was also heavily involved in the Arts Undergraduate Society. In both of those I took leadership roles, which I attribute to learning a lot from and being able to apply that to what I’m doing now. I was exposed to various different roles, whether it was financial roles, or delegation roles – having to be organized and moving many parts within the organization. With the AUS, for a bit I was the VP admin, then I went over to become their social coordinator, as well as planning the year-end sendoff. I did that two or three times. With the frat I was doing multiple positions at the same time.
It was a combination of doing many smaller roles that put me in this rhythm of multitasking which translates to what I’m doing now—running a business where I have to oversee everything at this small stage. [I do a lot of] relationship building with my own suppliers; the various services I use, like my POS [Point of Sale], my transaction system; as well as I have people who help me with my social media and my PR. Those are smaller aspects that you wouldn’t really think of within a food business, but they’re the backend stuff that you need to be cognizant of.
What skills did you gain as an Arts student that have helped you in launching your food truck?
The tenacity to be able to learn in a very short amount of time. It’s how I approached school. There are a lot of learning curves in learning the industry itself and knowing what to do. Just like in school, there are deadlines I have to hit. You have to make everything happen and get ready for the launch day.
What skills does someone need to have to be a successful entrepreneur?
I don’t want to say work ethic, but I’m going to say work ethic – or just being able to be on top of everything. Not letting smaller problems combine and grow into bigger problems. Being able to tackle one thing at a time and being on top of that.
What advice would you give to students or alumni interested in breaking into the food industry?
I would say do a lot of research on food in itself. Make sure everything is perfect on the day of, because people are ruthless. It doesn’t matter if you’re new, you have to be perfect and be on the same level as everyone else in the market that you’re entering.
What was your favourite place to eat on campus?
At the Gallery. I spent too many hours there.
What’s your favourite dish from NaMì?
I would say the Chasu Pork [Bánh Mì].
What’s your favourite Vancouver food truck not named NaMì?
I’m going to go with Mr. Shawarma. It was right outside my office at Rise and I would go there once a week.
What are your memories of Homecoming as a student?
I think this was 2016. That year I found out that the prize was a Honda Fit, one of my favourite cars to begin with, and it was outfitted with Pikachus on it. On the event page you had to make a bio and why you wanted to be the guy to do a 50-yard kick for the car. I was the only one who made a bio. Essentially, I got picked for it. But I also had a friend who was very athletically inclined. I pitched him to do the same thing. He made a post literally the day before the game and they asked him to do the kick as well. He’s a 6’5”, 250-pound ogre-man.
That same day that we got picked, we went out to one of the football fields [on campus] and practiced 50-yard kicks all day and we never even got close. The day came… the kick came up. My friend Toph went for the kick and he just shanked it. We only had one shot. We stormed out of the arena. And to this day I regret that. The thing is, I signed up a week before the game, and I think if Toph had that entire week to practice he could’ve gotten it. The closest he hit was 45-yards. He was close. I think if I wasn’t so selfish and I had brought the idea [to him earlier] we would’ve had a Pikachu Honda Fit right now.
What are you excited about for Homecoming this year?
I’m excited to be back in general. I’m actually going to be doing the block party the day before as well. It’s just nice to be at UBC and serving to a different crowd and getting that exposure as well. It’s also my birthday that day as well, so it’s going to be fun.
Wish Kevin a happy birthday and grab a bite from NaMì at UBC Homecoming on September 14th.
