From chef to motivational speaker: Eighteen Chefs founder Benny Se Teo has other projects in the pipeline despite retiring

While most people envision spending their retirement travelling the world or picking up new hobbies, 61-year-old Benny Se Teo has got other ideas up his sleeve. 

The co-founder of Western food chain Eighteen Chefs and grilled meat specialist The Meathouse announced on Tuesday (Nov 23) that he had retired and "left the company on a good note".

While Benny told AsiaOne that he "just wants to rest" and his "creativity is hampered when [he's] too engrossed with business," he also revealed that he still has some projects in the pipeline, and plans on becoming a motivational speaker. 

While this may sound like a far cry from his restaurateur career, he actually does have some prior experience in public speaking. 

The ex-convict has spoken openly about his career journey, from his initial struggle at finding employment to eventually setting up his own businesses and giving back by hiring ex-offenders. 

On May 6, 2015, he was one of the speakers at TEDxJNJSingapore.

In 2016, he was also invited to speak at In-Tune, a forum by employment institute e2i and leadership consulting firm SeraphCorp Institute. 

Additionally, apart from inspiring people with his nuggets of wisdom, Benny tells us that he wants to provide consultancy work for other F&B businesses and lend his expertise to new start-ups.  

And he's certainly wasting no time — in a Facebook post yesterday (Nov 25), he called for F&B businesses that need help in areas such kitchen planning, marketing and menu development to slide into his DMs.

melissateo@asiaone.com