Chef Lang Sushi Case Study

There is no doubt that the pandemic has changed the way we work, even if we work for ourselves. This upheaval has even hit the restaurant industry, where ingenuity has been critical for survival. For some, like Chef Lang Sushi, the challenges of serving food during a pandemic have become opportunities.

In 2021, Chef Lang traded his usual workplace of swanky sushi bars for a ghost kitchen in Santa Clara, where he offers specialty rolls and sashimi for pickup and delivery.

Lang has dedicated his culinary talents to Japanese cuisine since 2000, founding the Japanese Culinary Association in his home country of China in 2011. After moving to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2016, Chef Lang built a strong customer base as a sushi chef at Kyosho in Menlo Park and Ichizen in Millbrae.

chef lang sushi mark zuckerberg

Chef Lang Sushi’s experience with Airmart

“I find Airmart one of the simplest platforms to use for chefs and buyers alike. I recommend it whenever I can. The team has been very responsive with all of my requests. Within 2 years, Airmart has quickly outpaced other online ordering tools.”

Chef Lang

Easily take orders

Chef Lang used Airmart to take orders from his existing community on WeChat, as well as the execs in Silicon Valley like Mark Zuckerberg.

Fast migration

With his previous platform shutting down external ordering, Chef Lang was able to easily migrate their store to Airmart.

Small learning curve

Chef Lang quickly learned to use Airmart without much of a learning curve. He recommends it to all chefs and buyers around him

Word of Mouth Marketing: The Recipe for Success

Preparing the sushi in the front of the house at restaurants allowed him to strike up conversations and exchange contact information with clientele. In Silicon Valley, those connections proved invaluable. Among Chef Lang’s loyal fans is Meta (formerly Facebook) CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

That following was one of his biggest assets when he decided to go solo in 2021 and sell sushi through WeChat.

Making the transition from a home or restaurant chef to an entrepreneur isn’t easy, even with a following like Lang’s. For home chefs that don’t have connections in the restaurant industry, having a social media or blog following that is already passionate about what you make will get your business off to a strong start.

Although he had high-profile customers ready to follow him as soon as he left the restaurants, Chef Lang’s WeChat venture didn’t take off right away. His formula for success consisted of more than just his two decades of kitchen experience. “It’s tons of marketing, and a dash of luck,” he said.

Chef Lang Sushi Results with Airmart

0 downtime

Airmart was extremely fast at responding to technical issues compared to other platforms like Saywee.

Fast growth

In the 1.5 years since switching from to Airmart, Chef Lang has noted that the platform has grown tenfold.

Quality Service: It’s All in the Software

In April 2021, Lang switched to Airmart, an online store and delivery service platform that streamlined everything for him and kept his business organized. The Airmart platform has helped Chef Lang to reach new customers outside of his bubble of former restaurant patrons.

Chef Lang’s move to takeout-only sushi was a bold one. Sushi, which must be eaten within 4 hours, is a tricky cuisine to offer through delivery. Freshness is a top priority for Lang, and the beautiful presentation of his sushi is part of the dining experience.

Airmart is made for chefs like Lang, whose delicacies are a labor of love and need not be delivered on-demand like fast food. Lang appreciates the way the Airmart team handles temperature-sensitive and delicate items with care, which is not always a guarantee with other apps.

Building Community Around Food

Chef Lang’s sushi business thrives because of the community he has cultivated. He acknowledges that breaking out on your own in the restaurant industry isn’t for everyone, but encourages independent bakers and chefs who can tap into their networks to try it out.

Although Lang is no longer chatting up tech execs over sushi and drinks, the relationships he builds through his work are still his favorite part of the job.

“When I was entering the restaurant business, it wasn’t just to make money– it would feel empty if it was just for the money. I do this to connect with people through food.”

Chef Lang