Malaysian content creator-turned-entrepreneur "Croffle King" Adam Shamil takes his Chunk and Dunk store to the Philippines and aims to achieve "global domination" in the croffles and shaved ice market.
Find out what he has to offer with his store Chunk and Dunk.
#AdamShamil #ChunkAndDunk #PEPExclusives #PEPInterviews #PEPVideo #PEPBernie #PEPRommel
Interview: Bernie Franco
Video and Edit: Rommel R. Llanes
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Find out what he has to offer with his store Chunk and Dunk.
#AdamShamil #ChunkAndDunk #PEPExclusives #PEPInterviews #PEPVideo #PEPBernie #PEPRommel
Interview: Bernie Franco
Video and Edit: Rommel R. Llanes
Subscribe to our YouTube channel! https://www.youtube.com/@pep_tv
Read the latest in showbiz at http://www.pep.ph
Watch more videos at https://www.pep.ph/videos
Follow us!
Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/pepalerts/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pepalerts/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PEPalerts
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PeopleTranscript
00:00The dream has always been global domination.
00:08Hi, Adam.
00:09Hello. Hi, hi.
00:12Pleased to meet you and thank you for this opportunity to interview you.
00:16No, likewise. Thank you very much as well. Thank you so much for having me.
00:19It means a lot. This is my very first interview here in the Philippines.
00:22Okay, I hope you enjoy this. So let's get down to business.
00:26You are here because you are promoting your business venture in the Philippines.
00:32It's called Chunk and Dunk, right?
00:35That's correct. We are bringing Chunk and Dunk to the Philippines.
00:39Okay, this sounds exciting.
00:41Could you tell us more about your business venture, this Chunk and Dunk?
00:46So Chunk and Dunk is essentially a dessert shop, a dessert brand, which I started in April 2024
00:52out of my love for and obsession for croffles.
00:56I'm not too sure if you guys had, you know, croffles before, but you should come and try Chunk and
01:00Dunk.
01:02And we've expanded our menu to selling hot food just a couple of months ago, burgers, spaghetti.
01:08But we are yet to, you know, bring Chunk and Dunk diner in the Philippines in, you know, maybe months
01:13and years to come.
01:14But for now, we are going to be bringing the classic Chunk and Dunk, which offers the world's best croffle
01:21as well as the finest shaved eyes to Manila on April 5th.
01:25So we're going to be launching our very first international outlet here, operated by my partner, Lester, on April 5th.
01:33So I look forward to having each and every single one of you, you know, visiting the mall and experience
01:37our croffles.
01:39Okay, that sounds very exciting.
01:42Could you tell us more about croffles and the shaved eyes?
01:46Are they special desserts in your home country?
01:52It's a croffle to begin with was popularized in Korea, if I am not mistaken.
01:58And it is essentially a croissant.
02:02But if you cook it using a waffle machine, it becomes a croffle.
02:06So like personally, I'd like to ask, have you tried croffles before?
02:10No, actually, it's my first time to hear about croffles.
02:13I see.
02:14So that's actually a really good thing because not many are doing it.
02:17I mean, we've tried some of the croffles here in Manila.
02:21But the only thing that I can say is that you should really, really try the croffles at Chunk and
02:26Dunk.
02:26In fact, we have just set up our very own central kitchen.
02:29In fact, at this time of talking, I am currently at the central kitchen of Chunk and Dunk, Philippines.
02:35So it's really, really exciting.
02:37And yeah, looking forward for the future.
02:40Okay, where is your store located?
02:43We are located in, for the first outlet, which will be launched on April 5th, which is less than a
02:49month from now.
02:50It will be located in Eastwood Mall in Quezon City.
02:55Specific details, I might have to drag Lester right in.
02:58But that's all I know for now.
03:00Because yeah, it's going to be in Eastwood Mall.
03:02So could you tell us more about the other special dessert that you're selling, the shaved ice?
03:13Yes, shaved ice.
03:14So I'm not too sure if you've tried bingsu before.
03:18Do you know what a bingsu is?
03:19Yes, a Korean ice dessert.
03:21Right, right.
03:22So it's essentially of the same category.
03:25But ours is a little bit more finer.
03:29And it's also, it just melts into your mouth.
03:33I just hope that we have the shaved ice right now.
03:35I can talk to you as I, you know, indulge it.
03:38But, you know, it's arriving very, very soon.
03:40But it's unique to the Philippines.
03:43In fact, when I got my partner Lester and his team to KK, to Kota Kinabalu, to where I am
03:50from, to experience our shaved ice.
03:53According to them, they, you know, they've never experienced something like that in the Philippines.
03:57So we're very excited to be able to bring this product to Manila very soon.
04:01And I hope you guys get to try it.
04:04Yeah, we'll definitely will.
04:06My next question, Adam.
04:07How many branches do you have already?
04:09So we started in April, 2024.
04:12In Malaysia, where I come from, we are currently running on six different outlets at the same time.
04:18And within the span of 23 months.
04:21So if you were to include here, our very first international outlet is going to be our seventh outlet.
04:27But hopefully we will be hitting our 10th outlet, you know, in both Malaysia and the Philippines.
04:32And hopefully my operator, Lester, my international brand partner, is able to expand to, you know, between one to three
04:41outlets just this year.
04:42So for now, we are running on six outlets in Malaysia and soon an outlet here in the Philippines, which
04:48makes it seven.
04:50Within the span of 23 months.
04:52Okay, great.
04:53That's my next question.
04:55Why choose the Philippines over other countries?
04:58To be honest with you, Philippines has never been in my wild card this year.
05:02It's never been in my bingo card.
05:04We were supposed to first expand to West Malaysia because where I come from is from East Malaysia.
05:09And the idea is to be able to grow locally first.
05:16But circumstances have changed when we, you know, met Lester and his beautiful family.
05:22They came to Malaysia for a daughter's competition.
05:27And to cut the long story short, they fell in love with the product.
05:32I might even use the word obsessed with the crawfords, especially the kids.
05:38They, you know, they ended up coming back every single day for the crawfords.
05:42And then we exchanged contact.
05:43I happened to be there on the very same day that they were there to buy the crawfords.
05:48And the rest is history, you know.
05:49So it's really not in my wild card to have an international outlet.
05:53You know, with Chunk and Dung being so young, the idea is to first expand locally to be able to
06:02stabilize operations in Malaysia.
06:05But I guess, you know, wonderful things happen.
06:08And this is one of them.
06:10So Lester is your Filipino partner in this business venture, right?
06:15Correct, yes.
06:16So he is the international brand partner and he's also the exclusive operator of Chunk and Dung Philippines.
06:22So anything concerning Chunk and Dung Philippines, you talk to Lester, okay?
06:27Okay.
06:28All right.
06:28Got that.
06:28So you already have six branches in your home country.
06:34Correct.
06:36So that means that somehow, although your business is young, in a way, we can say that it's successful because
06:43it's growing.
06:45Yeah.
06:45I mean, successful is very subjective.
06:47But I'd say that we've, you know, significantly have accomplished so many strides in the last 23 months.
06:55It's such a blessing to be able to share the love of Chunk and Dung to my fellow Malaysians.
07:00And now that we've expanded to a new territory here in the Philippines, we look forward to have, you know,
07:08every Filipino experience of our cruffles and our shaved eyes.
07:11And I'm just really excited for the future.
07:13I'm so excited for you to come to the launch of our first outlet in Eastwood Mall.
07:19And 23 months may have been such a short period of time, but we've just been extremely blessed to have
07:29achieved such growth within such a short period of time.
07:34Did you ever think of becoming, that your business will be as successful as this?
07:43Well, I wouldn't, I mean, I cannot lie to you.
07:46When I first started Chunk and Dung, I had to make so many sacrifices.
07:49I am a content creator by profession.
07:53So when I decided to use all my life savings to start off my first outlet in my home country,
08:00and it was not just a business decision, it was a life decision.
08:05So at the back of my head, I told myself that, you know, I cannot afford to fail.
08:11So whatever that you see today, the growth that we have achieved today is a testament of, you know, the
08:20team and my hard work and the dedication and the outpouring of love and obsession towards wanting to build this
08:27brand.
08:27How old are you now, Adam?
08:30I am 32 years of age right now.
08:33Yes, 32. And you started doing content creation when you were 16, right?
08:39I started making content, no, when I was in my early 20s.
08:44Early 20s.
08:45I dabbled into content creation probably when I was 16, 17, but I officially posted my very first official video
08:52when, you know, when I was in university.
08:56All right. All right. I got that.
08:58So you mentioned a little about the challenges that you had to go through for this business.
09:05Can you tell me more about those challenges, the ones that really are memorable to you?
09:14Memorable to me?
09:16Well, to kickstart our very first outlet for me is one of the greatest challenges that I had to face.
09:22As I mentioned to you, it wasn't just a challenge, but it was also a sacrifice that I had to
09:28make by using, you know, my life hard-earned savings to establish my very first outlet.
09:35And it was, you know, at that point of time, anything could have happened.
09:38I do not know what the future holds for me, but all I know is that I wanted to start
09:42my very own brand.
09:43I wanted to share my obsession and my love for Crawfles and Shaved Eyes.
09:48And the greatest challenge, I would say, is to be able to establish my very first outlet.
09:54I remember that I was running out of money already and that I already had to start, you know, applying
09:59for loans and whatnot.
10:02But I'm grateful to, you know, to have arrived at our current destination.
10:07And I'm just really, really excited for the future.
10:10Yeah, it's all worth it, right?
10:12It definitely is worth it.
10:14Yeah, absolutely.
10:15Yeah, but still, just thinking about it, that's really scary.
10:19Risking all of your life savings in this business.
10:22Yeah, it was.
10:23Yeah, and the life savings is essentially an accumulation from all the, you know, the contents that I've been making
10:30over the last five, six to nine years of my journey as a content creator.
10:35And channeled all of that into establishing our very first hundred square feet outlet in a local mall, which is
10:4510 minutes away from where I live.
10:48So imagine being in my position today.
10:49If you were to ask me 23 months ago that we would have an international outlet here in Manila, I'd
10:55call myself crazy.
10:56But look, we've arrived.
10:58Yeah, you definitely did.
11:01And you must really love Crawfles for you to risk all of your life savings for this business.
11:08I really, really do.
11:09I really, really do love Crawfles.
11:11And I feel like the only way to be able to prove this obsession to you is to be able
11:16to come to Chunk and Dunk Philippines and to try it out yourself.
11:20But apart from that, do you have any other experience when it comes to running a business or this is
11:26the first time?
11:27I started my very own cafe with a good friend of mine in 2017 for seven years.
11:34But we were, you know, challenged due to COVID.
11:40But we managed to pull through and weather all the turbulences over the next couple of years after COVID.
11:47So I'd say that while I may not have much of an experience running an F&B, but I definitely
11:53do have the resilience.
11:56Right.
11:57So a little bit of experience of running a coffee store or coffee shop and obsession for Crawfles pushed you
12:07to build this business.
12:10Yeah, that's right.
12:13And I've always, for the, you know, for as long as I could remember, I've always wanted to start my
12:17very own brand.
12:18I've seen many good friends of mine who started a brand of their own and I keep on asking myself
12:24if they can do it, why can't I?
12:26So that's why it has been, you know, many, many, many years in the making.
12:31And you have no idea how grateful and how blessed I am to be in this position right now.
12:37There's a lot more that I'd like to achieve in the next coming years.
12:40But for now, I would really like to count my blessing and express how grateful and blessed I am to
12:47have an international outlet to be able to meet such amazing people like Lester, Hazel, and the rest of the
12:53team here in the Philippines.
12:55And as I've mentioned to you, I'm so excited for the future of Chunk and Dunk here in Manila and
13:01beyond.
13:02So what's the long-term goal for you when it comes to Chunk and Dunk?
13:09Well, the dream has always been to be able to achieve global domination.
13:13I want to be able to have Chunk and Dunk in every, you know, every corner of the world if
13:18that's possible.
13:19But, you know, what is more important than that is to be able to run a sustainable business,
13:24is to be able to ensure that we are able to deliver the same quality of profiles now and in
13:30the future,
13:30and that it becomes a century of conversation, of, you know, dinner dates, and, you know, family gatherings of our
13:42beloved Filipino.
13:44And also, I've noticed that you are more into putting up businesses in food and beverage, right?
13:53Because it's coffee and then it's croffle.
13:56So are you a foodie type?
14:00Well, I wouldn't necessarily call myself a foodie, but I'd call myself somebody who is truly obsessed with croffles particularly.
14:12So that's why if you come to Chunk and Dunk, we don't actually diversify the type of desserts that we
14:18serve.
14:18Our main product will always be croffles.
14:22And on the side, we probably will be, especially here in the Philippines, we will be introducing coffee.
14:29Of course, our shaved ice as well.
14:30And we plan to maintain it that way to ensure that we are able to keep up to the standards
14:39and quality of our croffles.
14:41Because if we were to, you know, diversify our products, we are afraid that we may not be able to
14:47sustain them
14:48in terms of keeping the croffles, the quality of our croffles.
14:52So I think it's extremely important that instead of introducing a lot of types of product,
14:56I think it's best that we focus on one important, you know, like the hero product and just make them
15:03great.
15:04Okay.
15:05Right.
15:06And that's what my next question is.
15:09Because all of this, your business, rooted from your obsession of croffles.
15:15So when, when this, when did this obsession start, start, and then why croffles?
15:23Because I'm thinking of why not a delicacy of Malaysia?
15:28Why croffles?
15:28So I think it's a very important question.
15:32Yeah, I think it's a very good question as well.
15:34And to be very honest with you, I find it, you know, I'm trying to marshal my thoughts and getting
15:38the right answer for that.
15:40But if I'm going to be extremely honest with you, for as long as I could remember, I've always loved
15:46croffles.
15:46When I first had that first bite when I was in Korea, I told myself, this, what is this?
15:52Is this waffle?
15:53It tastes like waffle, but it's not waffle.
15:55So I think the characteristics of a croffle is what made it, you know, seem so unforgettable.
16:04It's crunchy, it's buttery, it's soft in the inside, it's crunchy in the outside.
16:11And I think that is what best describes our croffles here in Chunk and Dunk, Philippines.
16:16You may be able to experience croffles elsewhere, but there is nothing like the croffles here at Chunk and Dunk.
16:24And I know that I may sound crazy right now, but until you try it, then you will know.
16:31Well, yeah, actually, it's making me more interested about this.
16:34So when did you go to Korea?
16:36What year?
16:37Oh, I couldn't remember which year it was, but it was definitely many, many years ago when croffles was first
16:44popularized in Korea.
16:45And then I also tried, I also had an opportunity to try croffles in the US and of course in
16:51my home country, in the capital city of Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur.
16:54But I told myself that if I am going to be able to bring this product to my home country,
16:58and if I am going to be able to start my very own brand selling croffles at Chunk and Dunk,
17:02I don't just want to do it for the sake of selling one.
17:06I don't just want to do it because I love it.
17:08It must be the world's best.
17:11And I, you know, I guess slowly we are getting there.
17:16All right.
17:17Another question that I want to ask because you said that croffles may taste different for each country, but it's
17:27different for Chunk and Dunk.
17:29So can you explain to me why the croffles in Chunk and Dunk is different, is better than others?
17:36Are there special ingredients?
17:38How is it made?
17:39Is it the traditional way or did you alter the ingredients?
17:46Tell me.
17:47I think essentially croffles, it's just a matter of how you have it prepared.
17:55As for Chunk and Dunk, we meticulously take into great account on the texture of the croffle.
18:05So while I cannot speak for the rest, but the rest of the croffles that I've tasted in the previous
18:11years have been very soggy, using very cheap butter, respectfully speaking.
18:19So not only do we use very premium ingredients, our butter is from France to begin with, our chocolate is
18:25from Belgium.
18:26And the way that we have the croffles prepared at Chunk and Dunk Philippines is so special that, you know,
18:35that there's just no words to be able to describe to you verbally until you try it out yourself.
18:40But I can honestly say that it's going to be one of the crunchiest croffles that you will ever taste
18:46in your whole life.
18:48And I've traveled to the US, I've traveled to the country which popularized the product, and I would still say
18:56that ours is still one of the best, if not the best.
19:00Okay, that's nice to hear.
19:02Now, I'm more interested to try croffles at Chunk and Dunk.
19:05You should, you should.
19:06Okay, so now I think I already have all the answers that I want for your business, and now let's
19:15know more about you.
19:17So you said that you started being a content creator in your college days, right?
19:24That's right.
19:25Yeah, if you were to go on YouTube and if you were to type my name, you'd see, you know,
19:29the early days when I first started making videos in my dormitory.
19:34It was such, you know, an experience that I will never forget.
19:37But it was also the starting point of my career as a content creator, which have, you know, throttled and
19:46thrusted me into the position that I am today.
19:48So I'm very grateful for that starting point that I had.
19:52And as I've mentioned to you, I am forever blessed.
19:55And, you know, I truly am grateful for, you know, the many opportunities that have been presented to me today.
20:03Yeah, but did you ever dream of becoming successful when it comes to content creation?
20:09Because I know that you were commissioned to be, to collaborate with other brands, airlines, and other businesses.
20:24So did you ever think that you'll go this far?
20:28I think to be honest with you, it would, you know, I would lie.
20:30Anyone would be lying to themselves if they were to say that, you know, the end goal is to achieve,
20:36you know, a semblance of success, isn't it?
20:40So, of course, the idea is, I think the word is probably not success, but to be able to change
20:46my family's life.
20:48I come from a, you know, a family who's, you know, I've been raised by two single mothers who have
20:55raised me single-handedly, my grandmother and my mom.
20:58So I definitely, one of the main reasons why I doubled into content creation is to be able to change
21:03my family's life, is to be able to provide them a better life and to be able to turn their
21:10life around.
21:11So, of course, being successful is no longer an option.
21:16It was really my mission and the direction that I needed to head to.
21:22So while I would say that I haven't truly achieved to that level of success that I envisioned to be,
21:29but I'd say that I've grown tremendously and that I'm so forever grateful for this.
21:35So you are really driven to succeed in anything that you do.
21:40And my main principle in life is that whatever I do in life, I must try my level best to
21:46be able to achieve for perfection because while perfection is unattainable, I will still catch excellence.
21:55Yeah, that's good to hear.
21:58Isn't that a lot of pressure?
22:00Well, I pressure myself a lot, but, you know, baggage can't be choosers.
22:05I've given myself no option but to rise above the ashes and to be able to prove that, you know,
22:12I'm able to create world-class products.
22:16And I feel like having Chunk Endang in the Philippines is a great testament and a reflection of that.
22:23Okay.
22:24So you are now an entrepreneur.
22:27I would consider myself as an entrepreneur and a digital storyteller as well.
22:35Yeah, those two are basically my main careers of my life.
22:40Right.
22:41Right.
22:41And you are also an artist.
22:44You create music and you are an MC.
22:47So what else do you want to achieve in the future?
22:52I don't know.
22:53I seem to want to do everything I possibly can in this lifetime.
22:57I've been MCing since I was 13 years of age.
23:01I love communicating.
23:02And at the same time, I love singing as well.
23:05I wouldn't necessarily call myself as a professional singer, but I love singing.
23:09I've made some music in the last couple of years.
23:12But as I've mentioned to you, when I decided to start Chunk Endang, I need to be able to channel
23:17my focus and my dedication to building this brand.
23:22And while people can say that, you know, it's important to multitask.
23:27And while I feel like it's possible, but I feel like if I were to create a brand like Chunk
23:32Endang and wanting to put Chunk Endang into the global map,
23:36I think it's important for me to have my dedication and focus channeled into this one single undertaking.
23:42And so that is what I am focusing.
23:44And that is what I'm doing right now.
23:46Okay.
23:46Last few questions.
23:49Well, doing content creation is really very popular these days.
23:54A lot of people all over the world aspire to be content creators.
23:58But for now, what separates you is that you were able to succeed in your endeavor, in your venture into
24:07content creation.
24:08So what is your recipe to success?
24:13I think there's no secret to success.
24:17I think, to be very honest with you, it may sound very cliche, but I think if you work hard
24:21and you dream big.
24:22And if anything, I just feel like it's important to be humble and to always remember where you come from
24:30and to always be relatable to your audience and to just be kind.
24:38And I feel like kindness, humility, and sincerity in telling a story to the world go a really long way.
24:48Okay.
24:49Well said, Adam.
24:50Thank you so much.
24:51Yeah, right.
24:53I think that's about it.
24:54I'm done with all my questions.
24:56Thank you so much for your time.
24:59Thank you so much.
24:59Thank you so much for having me.
25:00I really appreciate it.
25:01This is my very first interview in the Philippines.
25:04So I will never forget the both of you.
25:07I appreciate the opportunity that was given to me.
25:09And I look forward to seeing you, hopefully, during the opening of Chunkindang Philippines at Eastwood Mall.
25:14Yeah, looking forward to it.
25:16And I'm really glad that I am the one to do this interview.
25:48Yeah.
25:50On April 5th.
25:51Yeah, on April 5th.
25:53Okay.
25:53Okay.
25:54I'll see you there.
25:55Your seats have been reserved.
25:57Okay.
25:58Thanks a lot.
25:58Thanks a lot.
25:59Bye-bye.
26:00Okay, bye-bye.
26:01Thank you so much for having me.
26:01Bye-bye.
26:03Bye-bye.
26:03Bye-bye.
26:05Bye-bye.
26:05Bye-bye.
26:05Bye-bye.
26:06Bye-bye.
26:06Bye-bye.
26:06Bye-bye.
26:07Bye-bye.
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