A Richmond investor and financial coach is attempting to draw parallels between killing it in the kitchen and making it big in the stock market.
Inspired by his 50-something mom’s culinary skills and her financial acumen, Victor Chiu has written and published his first book, aimed specifically at women and stay-at-home moms.
Chiu’s Wall Street Kitchen - The Recipe Behind a Housewife’s 1,000% Stock Return hit Amazon’s online shelves two months ago and has already received several five-star reviews.
In the book, Chiu, 34, who has lived in West Richmond since Grade 1 after emigrating from Hong Kong, tells how his mom, Mary Chiu, basically raised her family-of-five financially on her own by dabbling in the stock market.
But it only became a serious consideration, in terms of making some real money, about eight years ago when, in her early 50s, she set herself the specific goal of generating a full-time income.
And in order to steer clear from yet another get-rich-quick book, which would likely end up in the discount bin, Victor decided to focus, as well, on the success of his mom in the kitchen.
“I’ve written this for women to help them take control of their own finances, simply by following a few principles to achieve financial success,” said Chiu, who still lives at the family home.
“Have a plan and stick to it, no matter how dire it gets. It took my mom years to perfect it, and she had her pitfalls as well. When I wrote the book, she didn’t know anything about it.
“But I also wanted to weave in family recipes; because, not only does she cook great food in the kitchen, she creates great wealth.”
In the book, Chiu said he doesn’t divulge just how much his mom has made investing, adding that “she would like to, at least, keep that part private.
“But there are some great recipes in there, not just Chinese, there are amazing pasta recipes and curries, including vindaloo.”
Looking back to when he was a child, Chiu said his mom largely stayed at home, but said, in Asia, she worked as a secretary for a bank.
“It was there that she was exposed to the numbers,” he said.
“When our family moved here, there wasn’t much need for my father’s skills — he was in the cotton trade in Asia — so the majority of our family income came from my mother. It’s been quite a feat.
“If my mom can do this, then just about anyone can; all you need is a bit of discipline and a little bit of time. The majority of women don’t take advantage of the stock market.”
Clearly having learned from his mom, Chiu — who graduated from UBC in 2005, where he studied economic geography to obtain his B.A. A contributor to business media – is a self-proclaimed “investment fanatic,” who’s “always been interested in finance and investing, whether it be stocks or real estate; I’ve always liked the number side of things.”
“It’s a simple concept of having your money work for you,” he added.
“It all started with my mom; who was, and still is, very astute with cash flow and having other people paying the mortgage.
“You could say I’m an active pursuer of personal property, but we, as a family, don’t live ostentatiously.”
Wall Street Kitchen - The Recipe Behind a Housewife’s 1,000% Stock Return is available on Amazon, from $9.99 for an e-book to $29.99 for hardback.
