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

Hi Queena, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
Work life balance is probably one of the most challenging things that entrepreneurs willingly and openly embrace. I can clearly recall the turning point in my life when I first became a mom and was forced to carry out this balancing act – figuring out the right mix of mindfulness and execution, which in tandem, proved to be the most difficult. I’ve learned that it’s not about how much you’re willing to sacrifice, rather that you cannot sacrifice yourself in this process. I admit that a lot of the pressure was self-imposed because I played many different roles to different people and I always ended up prioritizing everyone else’s needs above my own. I now realize that one of the most important talents that an entrepreneur can possess isn’t self-reliance, rather, it’s self-care and dependence. At the end of the day, achieving a better balance on professional and personal life is dependent on how willing you are to depend on others. The better you take care of yourself, the better you’ll be able to take care of everything else in your life, including those that depend on you at work and home. After many years of trial and error, I now know that there isn’t a “perfect” formula for achieving that “work life balance” but it’s taken me years to get to a comfort level. As a working mom of two, now ages 7 and 5, I admittedly still struggle in getting this right daily. I find myself having to assess and reposition my goals and priorities that serve as guiding forces in helping me achieve my ideal work life balance. It’s definitely gotten easier, but is a constant work-in-progress and you have to remain fluid to accommodate the changing needs of your family, your business, and most importantly, yourself. Now with two growing kids who also have important milestones that take priority, I’m reminded that we need to celebrate small wins each day, not only as a source of fulfillment but also so we can refocus on the next day. Since becoming a parent, I’ve definitely become more conscious of being “present” at home so there is a more defined distinction between spending quality time at home and work.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Copyfree is a 2nd generation family-owned business and one of the largest single-line Canon authorized dealers in Southern California with expertise in the office technology space. Our parents founded the business 40 years ago and it was an American Dream story as our parents immigrated here to the United States in search of a better life. They started with nothing but a few hundred dollars in their pocket and were able to build a successful business that not only put food on the table, but provided us with college degrees as well as the foundation that we needed to take our business to the next level. Small business is challenging and being able to survive over the last 4 decades while continuing to grow organically is no easy feat. We are locally owned and operated and we care a lot about the details so that we can deliver the best customer experience. We don’t just talk about great service, but we actually practice and deliver it. We’ve proved time and time again with our customers over the years that we sweat the details on their behalf before and after every transaction. We don’t just use industry-standard systems and we’ve built our own innovative print management system from scratch. It’s the only way we can get the details right and be better than the competition. We are convinced that nothing great in life ever comes easy and nothing is ever built overnight. Although our business was already established for more than two decades before we each came back to the business, we were faced with multiple challenges trying to grow it from where we started due to several factors:

  • Industry: We picked up at a point in the business where there was a fundamental shift in the industry from the analog to the digital age and we really had to be able re-focus and re-establish a path to move forward with, starting with identifying who we are, redefining what we do, and honing in on what we do best.
  • Generational: Any type of change is always difficult. Technology has always been a challenge for the older generation and when two generations collide, it becomes that much more complicated to row in the same direction. When we came on board, we really had to start fresh, re-evaluate and revamp the way we approach and conduct business. We identified a new vision, rebuilt infrastructure, and redefined the skill set required to move us forward.
  • Family: Working with family is never easy. It takes work to separate personal from professional issues but so far, we’ve been able to keep work at work while still managing to like being around each other when we’re off hours.

Proudest accomplishments: Being 40 years in business.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Born and raised here in Los Angeles, food has always played an important part in my culture, which also extends into daily life and travel. Anyone who knows me, knows that I love to eat and try new food! The difference between living here in LA and other American culinary capitals like New York (where I also really enjoyed living for a few years) is all the great food available outside of the 5-star dining experience, a key reason why so many official food tour businesses thrive here in LA. There are so many iconic foods here in LA that are worth visiting, but I particularly love the casual, experiential and innovative cuisines that LA is known for. With that said, I would take my food-crazed bestie for a week-long food crawl, touring all the mom-and-pop small businesses, food truck festivals, pop-up restaurants, etc. that make eating in LA such a fun and memorable experience! We would start in the San Gabriel Valley and it would take us a few days alone just to get through the array of regional Chinese and Asian food available in the SGV, but we would then make our way to other large ethnic enclaves in DTLA, K-town, Little Tokyo, which would of course, also have to include a dessert crawl, hitting all the great tea/coffee shops and dessert bars in between! Moreover, with LA being the entertainment capital of the world, there’s almost always something going on! From food trucks to parades, there are always seasonal “pop-up” shops and exhibits as well as annual events and festivals that have now become a tradition to attend with family and friends. Some favorites include Dine LA, the Rose Bowl Parade, Golden Dragon Parade, Asian American Expo, Nissei Week Festival, LA Culture Festival, and the California Strawberry festival.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
We have a running joke with my parents that they should have thought about having more than two kids in the family so that we would have more siblings to share the business with as I’ve realized that the saying “it takes a village to raise your child(ren)” also applies to running any successful business. Even then, the family business isn’t for everyone. I’m extremely grateful that my brother, Roger, and I both decided to take this path in running the business together and even more fortunate that we’ve been able to share in our successes and challenges. We are thankful for those that have all played a part in our success:

• Our parents – without their entrepreneurial spirit, hard work and commitment over the last few decades, we wouldn’t have a legacy to continue on.

• Our families – running a business requires dedication and long hours. We’ve learned over the years that this is not something that everyone can understand or tolerate. It takes a lot of indirect sacrifice from our families to allow us the commitment that we have to the business.

• Our team – without our team, we wouldn’t be able to carry out our vision. They are at the forefront of everything we do.

• Our clients – most of our clients come to us through word of mouth and referrals, which is the biggest compliment any business can receive. Our clients understand our value proposition and we are grateful for the opportunity they provide for us to continue to support them day in and day out. You are who you choose to surround yourself with and we are especially appreciative that we have a strong network of friends, family, mentors, business partners, other like-minded entrepreneurs that inspire and motivate us to dream bigger every day.

Website: www.copyfree.com