Meet Tracy, Kevin, and Tiffany Pham | Second generation of Red Boat Fish Sauce

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tracy, Kevin, and Tiffany Pham and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tracy, Kevin, and Tiffany, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Our Dad started Red Boat but we can give the second generation’s perspective on why we decided to join the family business! For the entirety of our lives we knew our Dad as the nerdy software engineer who proudly rocked Apple apparel. Then one night around the dinner table, after returning from a business trip to Southeast Asia, he shared with us that he had acquired a small fish sauce barrelhouse on the island of Phu Quoc, Vietnam. Naturally, we all thought he was having a midlife crisis. For years he would drop hints about the three of us working for him, going so far as to suggest what majors we should pursue in college that would benefit the family business. Kids being kids we did the opposite of what he wanted. We had this desire to be independent and pursue our own passions. Aside from helping pack the occasional online order and making trips to the post office, we never really took the idea of working at the family business seriously. But the universe had different plans. Kevin moved back home after college and that meant one thing: endless opportunities for our Dad to convince Kevin to work for the family business. Eventually Kevin gave in, and he was the first one to work at Red Boat full time. Kevin bore witness to all the early struggles and successes of Red Boat; from the trademark lawsuit in 2014 that threatened to end the business, to Red Boat launching nationwide at Whole Foods. And in 2016 Kevin helped Red Boat open up its first bottling production and distribution warehouse in Hayward, California. It wasn’t until 2018 that Tiffany and I made the leap to join the family business full time. We both realized that we wanted to carry on our Dad’s legacy of providing high quality fish sauce to all. So in a very dramatic fashion, we both quit our jobs at the same time to join the family business and we haven’t looked back since!

Please tell us more about your work. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
We’re feeling mostly excited and a little bit anxious going into 2024. We considered 2023 to be our “get our sh*t together” year. This meant taking the time to think about where we want to be in ten years, creating structure by clearly outlining everyone’s roles, and making key hires. Having a ten year goal in place meant that we could actually plan ahead and strategize. It’s also guided our decision-making because we’re always thinking about it from the perspective of: “will it help us get to where we want to be by 2033?” . I know what some of you might be thinking: “Didn’t the three of you start working together in 2018? Why’d it take you so long to get your sh*t together?!” Astute observation, dear readers! If I had one word to describe the first few years of all of us working together, it would be: “Pham-demonium”. Imagine for a moment, close your eyes if you must, sharing a workplace with people you grew up with. The same people you shared fart jokes with and who know all of your embarrassing childhood stories. You can bet that family dynamics will rear its ugly head in the most inopportune times. How would you feel if your Dad, also your boss, asked you to run a sales report for him? He might as well be asking me to clean my room! Okay so I digress, what was the question again? OH! 2024. Yes! Year of the Dragon! We’ve got a few things cookin’ in the Red Boat kitchen that we’re excited to share with y’all 🙂 Make sure to follow us on Instagram and Tiktok to stay up to date with the latest news and new products we’re releasing this year.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Okay so technically we don’t live in LA, but we do visit at least once a month! And for us, everything considered “fun” involves food. We have this food routine that we’ve nicknamed: The Trifecta. The first stop is always at Delicious Food Corner in Monterey Park. Some of our favorite menu items are: Hong Kong Style Pineapple Bun with butter (always with butter), Braised Crispy Tofu with Three Delights, Stir Fried Sliced Lotus Root with Black Fungus & Vegetables, AND Beef Stew with Crispy Chow Mein. The second stop is to Sunright Tea Studio on N. Atlantic Blvd. It is of utmost importance you go to this specific Sunright location because our third stop, Beard Papa’s, is right next door! Do what we do, and place your boba order, then walk next door for your cream puff. By the time your cream puffs are ready, your boba order will be ready for pick up. Trust me, we’ve done this more than a few times.

Lastly, it would be remiss if I didn’t mention Cassia in Santa Monica, a restaurant that celebrates Southeast Asian flavors in a beautiful setting (we love sitting outside in their parkette!). They’re known for their Laksa, but don’t sleep on their Koda Farms Chickpea Curry and Vietnamese Caesar Salad! Fun fact: The owners of Cassia, Chef Bryant Ng and his wife Kim Luu-Ng, met our Dad during a trip to Vietnam. Bryant and our Dad bonded over several shared bowls of crab fried rice and since then, have become dear family friends and provided us with support through all the ups and downs of running a business.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I think we would be disowned (kidding!) if we didn’t mention the man himself, our Dad. As we’ve gotten older I think we’ve all grown to appreciate how much blood, sweat, and tears he devoted into pursuing his passion of bringing traditionally made, Vietnamese fish sauce to the US market. What started out as a project to make his mother (our bà nội) happy has grown to be much more than that. We feel so much joy and pride to think about all the Vietnamese people in the US who now get to enjoy the same quality of fish sauce that they had in Vietnam. We also think the popularity of Red Boat among mainstream consumers and chefs gave rise to more conversations about not only fish sauce, but also about Vietnamese cuisine and culture in general. As the second generation we have the unique opportunity not only to expand on our Dad’s work, but also we’re fortunate to be in a career that we’re excited about. Let’s face it, without him we probably wouldn’t have jobs (kidding again!). Some words of advice to all you parents out there: if you want your kids to spend more time with you, just start a business and hire them!

Website: www.redboatfishsauce.com

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