[Exec For A Day] Christy's Story

At our recent International Women's Day conference, we offered our members a chance to be an Executive for a Day, and job shadow some of Vancouver's top executives! One of our winner's, Christy Liu, wrote this wonderful story about her experience meeting Christy Nguyen, CEO of Urban Bella!

As I stepped into Starbucks on a bright sunny day around 2:30pm, I knew I was one step closer to meeting Christy Nguyen, the CEO of Urban Bella. This was my first time meeting a professional, whom has the same name as me, so I was quite nervous!

I purchased a cup of warm Green Tea Latte and waited patiently, hoping to find an empty table on a crowded Wednesday afternoon. Luckily, I was able to spot one fast enough. I took a seat, took out my notebook and pen and got my list of around twenty-three questions ready. I have warned her that I am a curious person! I have sent Christy a list of my questions earlier so that she could prepare her answers.

While I sat patiently, I suddenly felt a tap on my shoulder and heard my name being called – it was Christy Nguyen! I quickly got up and shook her hand. We were both excited to meet each other. When she took a seat, I gave her an introduction of myself and I remember her telling me to relax and just “be authentic.” Feeling at ease, I began asking her my questions on her life as a CEO, her experiences, and her company.

Christy told me a lot about herself, from her interest in acting to how her business came to life. She told me it all started with ideas on a tissue paper while eating at Tim Hortons with her friend who turned out to be her business partner. Christy’s business, Urban Bella, has been a great success. Her company helps major marketing companies promote their products through events such as campaigns and trade-shows. I was also surprised to hear that in the first two years of her business, she was extremely busy, but now, she attends many networking events and has time to exercise and read books.

Christy now manages Urban Bella by herself and works together with her great team of employees. She tells me that “there are no bad employees, there are only bad managers.” Thanks for the tips, Christy!

My conversation with Christy was casual yet delightful and comfortable. I was really grateful that I was lucky enough to able to meet with Christy and learn so much from her. My perspective of the real business world has changed a lot and my motivation to become an entrepreneur has surely grown stronger. I look forward to meeting with her again!

- Christy Liu