Who's Alain Ong? Here are 5 facts about the Pokka CEO, & hubby of former Pokka ambassador Vivian Lai

Bonus fact: He's the first Singaporean to head Pokka's local office.

Nyi Nyi Thet | September 27, 2018, 04:05 PM

Alain Ong, Pokka's CEO, had been initially thrust into the media spotlight following news that he had been suspended pending an internal audit by Pokka.

He is now once again in the news, this time he's being sued for S$6.51 million by Pokka.

Citing court documents, Lianhe Zaobao reported that the 44-year-old Ong was behind the listing of Kimly on SGX, as well as the acquisition of Asian Story.

Ong’s actions, which have violated the Securities and Futures Act, have apparently cost Pokka a loss of at least S$6.51million, which the company is suing Ong for.

After being ordered to leave the company, Ong was also accused of erasing the “evidence” in his phone under the guise of contacting his sickly father, as well as his wife.

So in case you don't really know the man, here are five things you need to know about the 43-year-old former Pokka CEO.

1. He's been married to Vivian Lai for 18 years

The couple got hitched in 2001, and have two kids.

His proposal was also quite a Singaporean proposal.

According to Toggle, Ong had proposed to Lai while viewing apartments with her.

Lai told Toggle that he proposed while they were waiting at the lift lobby at one of the showrooms, where in response to Lai's plan to invest in a piece of property, he brought up the idea of applying for a house to get married.

Lai agreed.

2. His house is very nice

Earlier last year, Lai did an interview with Zaobao, letting them in for a tour of her family's new S$8 million "dream house".

Here's the video.

Here's their three story house where Lai, Ong, their two children, and two domestic helpers reside.

Screenshot from Zaobao

The 3,500 square feet house is located in Central Singapore, and set them back a cool S$8 million.

Lai had mentioned to Zaobao, the basement is fitted with a sound-proof Karaoke room where their family can go to de-stress.

Prior to that, according to an interview with Edgeprop, Ong and his family lived in a 6,000 square feet house located in Thomson.

3. He was in charge of way more than the Singapore market

Being Singaporean, and working in the Singapore branch of Pokka, one might be forgiven for thinking that he is just in charge of operations in Singapore.

According to a Straits Times piece in May 8, 2017, Ong was in charge of the international arm of Pokka.

Which, at that time, consisted of marketing to more than 60 countries.

According to a 2017 report by Sapporo Holdings, the parent company of Pokka, Pokka Singapore had group net sales of S$256 million in 2016.

4. He's responsible for many Pokka vending machines

If you've noticed more Pokka vending machines in Singapore over the years, you might have Ong to thank for it

One of the impacts Ong had during his tenure as CEO in Pokka was his emphasis on vending machines.

Specifically, his decision to set up a vending machine division in Singapore.

In the same ST article, Ong talked about the difficulties of pushing through new ideas in the face of a rather conservative board.

The vending machine division was established despite that idea being frowned upon by management before.

Pokka also launched the first cashless vending machine in 2012, at Zhenghua Community Centre, quickly followed by 19 other community centres.

5. He's a family man

In a 2017 interview with Edgeprop, Ong revealed that family was a priority for him.

He made it a point to eat with his family as often as possible, and catches up on the daily activities of his children.

The parents' rather busy schedule means that family holidays are quite a premium tho.

Lai reveals in an interview with 8 days magazine that they only get to travel as a family once a year.

Here's Lai's quote to 8 days:

"Once a year, we go on a family trip to Europe. I pay $30,000 for my family of four to travel Biz Class. Some people may think it’s not necessary to spend so much on plane tickets. But for me, it’s only once a year. We’ve worked hard for one whole year"

Image collated from Zaobao and Pokka