I’m Thierry Bourret, a French-born entrepreneur who hasn't lived in France since 1986. I left for a six-month stint in the UK to learn English… and never quite found the way back. Since then, I’ve lived and worked across the UK, Japan, Hong Kong, Aruba and now Thailand.

My career began in kitchens as a trained chef. A few twists and turns (and one job as a temp in pricing) later, I found myself leading a €240M business unit at Hitachi. In 2009, I left corporate life behind and jumped headfirst into toys — founding Asobi, a UK-based toy distribution company with no prior experience but a lot of conviction. I built it to a £2.4M turnover and launched the Slow Toy Movement, celebrating sustainable, meaningful play — years before it became a trend.

In 2015, after parting ways with Asobi thanks to a well-timed boardroom coup, I started Konomocha in Hong Kong to help toy and stationery brands develop their international sales. I now work with factories and companies from across Asia and Europe, helping them expand into markets they’d struggle to reach alone.

These days, I’m based in Bangkok with my wife and our dog Sarra. She (my wife, not the dog) runs a successful fashion jewellery brand with several shops across the city. I help out where I can — part business consultant, part teaboy, full-time box carrier.

Outside work, I read a lot, shout at the rugby on TV, and may or may not have once appeared on Blind Date on British TV in 1989. No, you can’t see the tape. It’s “lost.”