Iain Wang
Co-Founder & Co-CEO
I was born in Malaysia and have called Australia home for more than 20 years. I currently live in Epping, Sydney, with my family. I’m a husband and father, and despite being asked to write a bio, I’m not someone who likes talking about myself too much.
About me
- I’m much more comfortable building things behind the scenes than talking about myself.
- I’ve worked with some big brands like THE ICONIC and have tried on many hats in my career, from head of strategy to consulting and operations.
- ClassBento is not the only business I’ve (co-)founded. I’m also the founder of Scholaresque.
Top weekend activity
I love trying great food, and travelling and exploring new places.
Favourite craft
I’d love to spend more time doing still life drawing, and kokedama making is also high on my list.
3 top tips to recharge and unwind
- Find work that you genuinely enjoy. When your work is fulfilling, you’ll often feel less need to “escape” from it.
- Appreciate the beauty in ordinary moments. A colourful sunset, the sound of rain or even perfectly ripe berries can all become small moments of joy if you take the time to notice them.
- Get to know yourself. Some people recharge with others, while some prefer solitude. Some thrive on novelty, while others find comfort in routine. The key is discovering what works for you.
3 top tips for embracing creativity
- Remember that creativity comes in many forms. Whether you’re painting, designing a website, telling stories or tending a garden, there’s no single “right” way to be creative.
- Don’t let inexperience hold you back. If something sparks your interest, give yourself permission to learn and improve over time.
- Experiment often. Trying something new has very little downside, and you might just find your next favourite hobby.
Iain's stories
Craft Gift Experiences for Dad in Sydney
By Iain Wang
Our co-founder, Iain, shares his favourite crafty gift experiences for dads in Sydney!
Empowering Artists to Earn More, Doing What They Love
By Iain Wang
It can be tough being an artist and teaching your craft. Artists on average earn only $48,000, compared to an average of around $77,000It can be tough being an artist and teaching your craft. Artists on average earn only $48,000, compared to an average of around $77,000 for everyone else. This massively impacts their lifestyles – some artists even forgo having children because of their financial constraints. It isn’t a tiny problem. There are over 15,000 artists in NSW, and that’s just counting individual visual artists and musicians (e.g. not food artists like chefs or baristas, or garden artists like florists, or those who are unemployed). It's tough making a living, hustling to get money from grants, prizes, and unpredictably selling the occasional artwork. Many artists turn to casual work to make ends meet. Many consider participating in the gig economy. But the biggest Australian marketplaces out there, like Uber and Airtasker, aren’t great for artists. Being creative people, the idea of being stuck in a car, repeating the same task of taking people from point A to point B or delivering food, while earning minimum wage (or less), can be rather demotivating. Assembling IKEA furniture or moving boxes on Airtasker arouses similar feelings, in some ways it goes against the very essence of what it means to be an artist. Not exactly ideal jobs. At the same time, there’s strong (and in many cases, growing) interest in what these artists do – namely, arts and crafts. People (Australians in particular) are often looking for an artisan and unique experience, not something mass-produced and commoditised – the personal and creative touch that artists can provide is exactly what’s being sought after. This is why international brands, pushing their one-size-fits-all products, like Starbucks and Gloria Jeans, struggle so much in Australia – locals often prefer the brews made by their neighbourhood baristas, with the special twists they provide to make that experience just a bit more special and relevant. So why the disconnect? How can we connect this interest with the huge pool of talented artists in our cities, who walk our streets and maybe even live next door? Wouldn’t it be great if artists could do what they love, while earning more? Can’t the gig economy deliver our communities more meaningful and exciting jobs? This is a huge opportunity and forms an important part of our mission at ClassBento. We empower creative teachers to earn hundreds of dollars per hour while indulging in and sharing their passion. They don’t need to spend time on admin or on learning how to do marketing or website building, all of which can be hard for novices to learn and do well – ClassBento takes care of all of that. As many teachers would know, teaching is an incredibly rewarding experience. To be able to grant someone else the gift of skills and knowledge, to broaden their perspectives and to bring a smile to their face, is incredibly gratifying and even therapeutic. Teachers can do it to their schedule, only teaching when they want to, at places convenient to them, whether that’s at their home, their shop or studio, or at the student’s location. Thanks to the ubiquity of services like Airbnb and Uber, most Australians are now comfortable with the idea of letting a complete stranger they’ve never met before providing them with a personal service. With this additional income stream, we hope that teachers can improve their quality of life, and to keep doing what they do best. Through this, they’ll be preserving our culture and traditions while also taking art to new levels, helping us to question our thinking and how we view the world around us. With more creative teachers and classes available locally, we hope that everyone will reconnect with their communities, and keep themselves socially and mentally active, thus keeping problems like burnout and dementia at bay. What’s next? ClassBento will continue to grow its presence to spread the love, and will keep investing into ensuring that the ClassBento platform is the world’s best for discovering and booking fun workshops, and also for teachers to easily earn and manage their classes. It’s a long and exciting ride ahead and we can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings. If you’re a teacher, we can’t wait to see what you can do – sign up today and start doing more of what you love. For everyone else, check out our wide range of workshops, and give back to your community. ...
