Quek Siu Rui focuses on the human aspect of tech in Ferris Wheel merry-go-round

What goes around comes around, as Quek Siu Rui showed in a recent interview on Bloomberg.

He is co-founder and CEO of Carousell, an app for people to buy and sell their new or second-hand goods.

His journey started by focusing on the people behind big tech companies in Silicon Valley. Then came the marketplace technology. And now he chooses to tell stories of how the app connects people.

It's a winning approach many corporate spokespeople could learn from (instead of being product/service focused), and is one of the reasons why we have nominated him for the Hong Bao Media Savvy Awards 2020.

Watch and read below for my assessment.

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We launched the Hong Bao Media Savvy Awards in 2018 to recognise local business leaders for their communications skills, and to showcase authentic and credible home-grown communicators.

Supported by the Asia Pacific Association of Communications Directors, we highlight shining examples for other local business leaders to follow, and to build a culture of excellence in communication, to maximise the potential of Asian companies in the Asian Century.

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• Stories

Quek is a polished storyteller. He talked about how he and his co-founders went to Silicon Valley and were inspired by watching the presentations by famous companies such as Twitter, Facebook and Dropbox, and realizing that technology can make an impact in people’s lives.

His best story was about how he sold an old Macbook to a father who was buying it for his nine-year-old daughter. The father had wanted his daughter to learn about the internet but could not afford a brand-new computer. It made Quek realise that an item he did not want or use could actually create possibilities for someone else.

• Figures

Quek brought up figures during the interview as he talked about targeting the 15- to 24-year-old demographic helped them achieve growth, but that currently more than 60% of users are more than 25 years old.

• Messaging

Quek said: “we care about solving the problems for people”. And we think he brought the message home during the interview.

Carousell might hold appeal for minimizing human interaction by buying and selling online, but Quek emphasizes the human factor behind it. He talks about people who find joy in interacting with one another on the app. He gives examples of Carousell users striking up friendships and joining interest groups, and about building a community and holding events to celebrate the community.

We really like how Quek humanizes the app and tells stories about people, making his interview relatable.

If you know Quek Siu Rui, share this article with him and congratulate him on being nominated for the Hong Bao Media Savvy Awards 2020.