Turning education into opportunity, with Sam Chia from Seriously Addictive Mathematics.
“It was an audacious idea at that time. We also had our doubters, especially when I told them that we’re not a tuition centre. But we just went through what we had to.”
Sam, founder of Seriously Addictive Mathematics, describes himself as an introverted, lay-low kind of guy who is satisfied just seeing his business grow. In that same way, he’s building his company in a quiet space — one that he sees as an untapped opportunity.
After setting up businesses ranging from food & beverage to early childhood, Sam identified a gap in the mathematics education space 7 years ago. The subject is taught in every school but only dominated by a few large players like Kumon. Coping with the ‘kiasu’ mindset of Singaporean parents, the trend to enrol their child into Mathematics learning programmes in their early years, will never fail to go upwards.
“I thought it was a great idea to get into education. No one thinks about this sort of business. That’s why I thought we could take on this space which is large, where we focused on children below 12.”
He quickly turned the opportunity into a business by roping in a friend who understands the industry, Chin Loong, to be his partner. Soon after, their partnership bloomed into what Seriously Addictive Mathematics (S.A.M) is today — an enrichment company that provides mathematics enrichment classes, meticulously designed and modelled after the way it is taught in Singaporean schools.
From the start, they knew that the company needed its own proprietary mathematics program and an IT platform that allowed partners to scale. And because entrepreneurship is never a walk in the park, what was supposed to be done in one year, took them three. Even then, they pushed on, and now find themselves in countries all over the world.
“We’re always thinking about how a child can learn best,” says Sam. To him, it’s all about keeping the teacher-student ratio minimal, and using the ‘Concrete Pictorial & Abstract’ (CPA) methodology to deliver lesson materials. That, on top of a mandatory and intensive 6-day training program for trainers, everything is planned and delivered with the child in mind — to help them learn mathematics better through a more vivid setting, compared to the traditional classrooms.
“This company has at least a 20-year growth curve, because it doesn’t fly away like a tech company. I’ll eventually get this business to a stage where all the infrastructure is in place, including the growth team, servicing team, and training team. We’re also translating our curriculum to many languages, and staying on top of everything to make sure it’s all properly managed.”
S.A.M now has presence in over 15 countries, with the most interesting of them being Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka — locations where one might not expect there to be a market for mathematics enrichment programs.
“There is definitely a wealthy class of people who are pushing hard for a better future. Underprivileged children are crying out for proper education which these countries often lack. That’s what makes this all worthwhile.”
Success is not so much ability as attitude — and in business or mathematics, we can all achieve mastery, only if we’re willing to give it a try.
