Meet William Song | Founder & Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with William Song and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi William, how did you come up with the idea for your business?
CHINGOO started as a fun little project at the height of the pandemic. We all remember those days during lockdown when we couldn’t see our friends and family in person, and would have to resort to dropping off food and other essential items on doorsteps. I wanted to send something a little more personal to show my appreciation for everyone during an unusual time.

While working from home, I spent my days eating snack mixes and always found myself picking out the pieces I didn’t like. I decided to make my own version of a mix that would include some of my favorite snack pieces and sauces. For instance, when I was younger, my brother would smash up ramen pieces for us to eat together when we watched wrestling on TV. I also have fond memories of sharing shrimp chips with my grandma in our backyard. I drew from other childhood sources of inspiration to develop the flavors and even worked with my mom to create the gochujang that’s baked in our gochujang blend.

I gifted my first batches to friends and family members during the holidays in 2020 as care packages. Friends started requesting more to send to their friends and family, and suddenly I started receiving orders from people I didn’t know personally. After some time, I finally decided to turn my snack mix into a full business at the beginning of 2022.

I wanted the name to represent the appreciation I had for my friends and family, which was reborn during a time when we were all feeling so isolated. CHINGOO means “Friend” in Korean, so I thought it captured that perfectly. I hope with this name, others could show appreciation to their own friends and family in the same way I had learned to value mine.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Apart from CHINGOO, I also work 2 other jobs. I work full time in the tech industry as a Solutions Architect, and I’m also a concert photographer for Goldenvoice.

I started my career in the tech industry right after college. After some time, I felt like I was getting complacent with my work and needed more of a creative outlet to keep me sane. That’s when I picked up photography as a hobby. After networking with the right people, I eventually got a job shooting music photography at concerts and music festivals. Instead of quitting my full time job to pursue this passion, I decided to work these two jobs simultaneously because I’ve always enjoyed the challenge of keeping myself busy. It was this constant hunger of wanting to do more that drove me to start my own business on top of these two careers.

However, I never felt the freedom to be fully creative through these two careers due to external limitations and expectations. Full creativity didn’t come until I started my own business. CHINGOO became a means for me to become completely free with my methods and imagination. This was the first time I had absolute creative control but this also meant taking on bigger risks. However, as these risks began to pay off, I started to put more trust into myself and my work.

With no prior professional cooking experience, I do often feel imposter syndrome amongst other food businesses, but it’s the support I get from friends, family, and new customers that keeps me going. I know there’s so much more for me to learn, but I’m excited to keep growing and providing you all with my best.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?

Open Market in Koreatown would be my first go-to. They’re my favorite neighborhood corner store with the best homemade sandwiches, wine, coffee, and people. They were the first ones to help CHINGOO get into its first retail spot and I’ll always be grateful for the chance they took on me.

Yoboseyo! Superette in Little Tokyo is also a personal favorite. They’re another neighborhood corner store with amazing coffee and other drinks. They also feature some of my favorite locally produced curated goods such as 626 Hospitality Group, Boon, Ganchic, Oateu, and Rooted Fare.

Next, I would check out Maum Market, which is a monthly marketplace that showcases many other Asian-owned small businesses. Some of my favorites include Glee and Co, Little Ganshik, Loaf Language, Loupn, Out of Thin Air, and Ondo Body.

To wrap up the weekend, I would check out Smorgasburg in Downtown LA on Sunday. My favorites are Saucy Chick Rotisserie, Chimmelier, Cali Dumpling, Be Bright Coffee, Buttery Popcorn, Coyotas Sonora, Lei’d Cookies, and Lula’s Goodies.

For activities, I would suggest hiking any of the trails in the Griffith area, going to Manhattan Beach, or going to a concert at any of the LA venues like The Fonda or The Novo.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My brother, Raymond, and my sister-in-law, Cristina, who have always been by my side since day one. They have been the best taste-testers, always providing constructive feedback. They shoot all of my photos for my website and socials, even on super late notice. And they’re always providing me with great life and work advice. I don’t always express my gratitude but I hope they know how much they inspire me. I wouldn’t be where I’m at today without their constant help.

Website: https://chingoosnacks.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chingoosnackmix

Other: Photography Portfolio: https://willysong.com

Image Credits
philofos (Raymond & Cristina Song) – https://www.instagram.com/philofos