Hi, I’m Kevin! I’m the person behind the emails landing in your inbox. I work closely with Dylan, Shirl and Tim to keep you informed about industry news, what’s hitting our shelves for the first time, and what’s just around the corner. I also love competitions and giveaways - and I’m responsible for the free movie ticket promotions you regularly see on email and socials!
One of the most fun parts of the job is keeping an eye on popular culture and industry news - and drawing connections to the books, puzzles and toys that we sell. Sometimes you read news or see something on Instagram and think “yes, our customers are going to love learning about this!”
I like to ease into the day with a flat white. My DNA test insists I am lactose intolerant, but after a lifetime of ice cream and dairy I think my stomach has just given up arguing with me. Once I’m caffeinated, I jump into Asana and start working through the day’s priorities. I also spend a lot of time looking at the numbers behind our emails - things like open rates, click rates and search phrases. It helps me understand what customers are responding to so we can make sure our emails are showing readers the books and products they are most excited about.
Around the office I have become the unofficial snack distributor, which is a role I take very seriously. If you ever see someone wandering around the office offering snacks, that is almost certainly me.
Growing up I played piano, violin and flute, and even the recorder. I was lucky enough to perform with the Aotea Youth Symphony Orchestra, including at Coca-Cola Christmas in the Park and even once for QE2 (which is now been turned into a floating hotel in Dubai).
I was born in Taiwan and have lived in New Zealand for most of my life, so I grew up bilingual. One of my party tricks is speed reading Mandarin. At one point I managed to read four Harry Potter books in two days. At university I majored in Japanese before going on to complete postgraduate studies in English-Chinese translation.
Outside of work I am a lifelong vegetarian and spend a lot of time at the gym. When I am not working out, I enjoy gardening, photography and architecture. I also like experimenting in the kitchen and have a couple of favourites I keep coming back to, especially my pan fried vegetable oil noodles and homemade ice cream.
I am also a very enthusiastic gamer. My current nightly ritual is jumping straight into Marvel Rivals after work. I am a Pokemon fanatic, and like Dylan, I have a life-long love of Nintendo.
Animals have always been part of my life too. Over the years I have looked after two lovebirds, a turtle, a hamster, several dogs and even a whole pond of fish. I currently live with my cat Jiji (from Studio Ghibli’s Kiki’s Delivery Service).
Working at Book Hero means being surrounded by friends and people who love the same things I do - books, movies, pop culture and gaming. I love helping spread the word about our awesome products and working with such a fun team delivering a service we are all really proud of.