PHNOM PENH: It all starts with attitude — at least that’s how things work at Bong Tees, a youth-driven, Haystack-funded startup that’s generating amazing buzz in the Cambodian capital.
Bong Tees was launched in November 2020 with seed funding, strategic management and technical support from the Haystack Fund, through Phnom-Penh based Haystack LABS. One of its guiding principles was to “replace played-out images of Cambodia with exciting new designs drawn straight from the heart of the Kingdom of Wonder.”
The startup, which opened its first retail outlet in March and is now also producing podcasts, began as an edgy clothing brand with an irreverent take on famous Khmer sayings and idioms. One of the first T-shirts, for example, was emblazoned with “Mtes na min hul, srey na min prochan?,” which poses the interesting question “What chilli isn’t spicy, what woman isn’t jealous?”
The edge and irreverence are there on purpose. Bong Tees is the Cambodian branch of Just Slightly Offensive, another Haystack-funded enterprise with a range of playful, “slightly offensive” products.
“Our first designs were some of the first to ever be all written in Khmer slang,” said Angela Dizon, the Bong Tees project manager. “Those first shirts and designs were for Cambodian people to relate to and enjoy. There is a lot of national pride in the country and we wanted to express that.”
“Our designs are for Cambodian people to relate to and enjoy. There is a lot of national pride in the country and we wanted to express that.”
Angela Dizon, Project Manager
NEW COLLECTIONS
The startup’s unique artistic vision comes from Emerson De Pasion, according to Dizon. She credits De Pasion, the team’s creative lead, with bringing life and energy to all Bong Tees and Just Slightly Offensive designs.
Two more design collections have followed since the initial release: the Khmer Classic Edition, featuring old, familiar signs and images, and the Provinces Edition, which plays on the names of several popular travel destinations (as Dizon put it: everyone misses traveling right now). Bundle kits including shirts of all collections have become a hit across Phnom Penh, driven by effective social media campaigns and online promotions.
PODCAST POWER
Bong Tees is an example of Haystack’s mission to build, test and keep moving forward. The small startup of three employees has rapidly grown into a creative design and podcast production studio as well as a trendy hangout for the city’s young, cool and hip.
“We began recording podcast episodes in May 2021, and it all started with Fred,” Dizon said, referring to Frédéric Proulx, the managing partner at Haystack Fund, who is the main host.
“There are no rules, no filter. It’s a free-flow discussion, mostly on topics that you can’t talk about in a formal situation. That’s why we call it the “Just A Slightly Offensive Podcast.”
Angela Dizon, also co-hostess of the JSO Podcast
Although based in the Bong Tees shop in central Phnom Penh, the English-language podcast is international and open for any guests and listeners from around the world. You can listen to 11 episodes (at the time of this publication) of the JSO Podcast in Spotify, Anchor, Apple Podcasts, Listen Notes, and more.
The future is bright for Bong Tees, a success-story that remains true to its mission of being “passionate about bringing the real Cambodia to the world — one funny, irreverent, unforgettable idea at a time.”
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Read more about Bong Tees in our Portfolio.
For more information, please visit the Haystack website at haystack.fund.
