John Fearon: Entrepreneur’s Backup Failure Saved His Life

The inspiring Founder of Knightsbridge House International School shares the highs and lows of his journey as an entrepreneur in Singapore.

“In 2011, I found myself sitting in my apartment on Selegie Road, reading about Singapore’s EntrePass. This pass allows foreign entrepreneurs to start and run their own businesses in Singapore. Finally, a way for me to stay in this country and avoid needing a job. 

I’m originally from South Africa, and I came to Singapore in 2010 because of a job opportunity. I’ve lived in Singapore with my family for almost 14 years. I’m a permanent resident now, and we have no plans to leave this city. Singapore is our home.

I was a digital marketing professional, and through my previous company, I was granted an Employment Pass. But when I became jobless after I was laid off by the company, I had to find ways to be eligible for the EntrePass to stay in Singapore.

My side hustle as a budding entrepreneur suddenly became my full-time gig. Having read about all the government assistance for startups, I was sure I could raise enough money for my promising startup idea. I was so wrong.

After eight months of building my business, the servers went down, and I lost the database for my website. That was the end of my journey, right? My customers would never trust us again. No backup for the work I had been doing. No revenue. No future.

To make matters worse, my wife was also laid off from work. Money became a very distressing issue when the check I wrote for my daughter’s kindergarten fees just bounced. It was a very dark and uncertain period for my family. 

Due to the huge stress I was under, I developed shingles. I was in physical pain as well as mental anguish. But I had made the decision to never work for anyone else again. I was not cut out for that life, and I would be an even bigger failure if I returned to a regular office job.

So I focused my efforts on fixing the problem. I researched online backups, but I wasn’t able to find an elegant SaaS (or Software as a Service) solution. With that, I found a business opportunity and pivoted. I told my wife that we’re starting an online backup business.

My lightbulb moment became Dropsuite.com. A software platform I founded in 2011, it provides cloud backup and recovery services. It is now listed as a profitable business with 1.2million customers and over $25million in the bank. Its market cap is around $200million.

Things moved rapidly after the success of Dropsuite.com. I got the bug and formed the first venture builder in Singapore. We raised money to build up startups with a central team that helps incubate business ideas.

We spun up lots of companies like VoiceMap (a leader in audio tours that use GPS and play stories based on your location) and Telr (a payment gateway like PayPal or Stripe but with a focus on the Middle East). Telr has already been acquired.  

But the one business that really resonated with me was Invictus International School. I love the school business. To be really good at running a school, you need to be a nice person who has empathy and a strong business acumen. I found my niche.

It was a plus point that my three children could come to my school. I was contributing to their future and the community by offering affordable education, so it felt like I was killing many birds with one stone. But then disaster struck.

COVID-19 happened, and my new business partners had other ideas about the future. I reluctantly sold my remaining shares in Invictus. Not one to give up, I quickly got back on the horse, this time with purpose and clear direction.

Knightsbridge House International School (KBH) was born. The main difference between Invictus and KBH is that we are now in control of ownership and more focused on long-term growth. But there were still trials and tribulations that we had to endure.

We had numerous issues starting a new school, such as getting our first lease in Sentosa and acquiring our license to operate. Not to forget staff headaches and shareholder disputes! Thankfully, we managed to overcome these issues with patience and resilience.

Our school has had some huge wins, such as getting the best academic results globally for Cambridge MidYIS tests in the world, written by over 130,000 students. The school is also one of the most affordable in Singapore, charging only $12,000 a year.

We’re also profitable, which is a requirement to keep our licence. There were three other schools that started around the same time we did, but they have all closed. Just goes to show that the school business is not a walk in the park.

We have only been operating the school for three years now, but it still feels like it’s the first day of the journey. I think that’s exactly how it should be if you are going to stay with a business long-term. 

What have I learnt about myself as an entrepreneur? I’ve learnt to be humble, live frugally and surround myself with genuine people. My wife has been my base from where I’ve been able to launch my dreams. She has always been there for me, and that has been priceless.

I’ve also learnt that the best way to overcome any challenge is to humbly ask for help, but never compromise your vision. My wife says it best: ‘Sometimes it’s best if you back yourself up, as only you really know what you are capable of doing.” – John Fearon

Interview by Arman Shah

---

READ MORE ENTREPRENEUR STORIES HERE

---

SUBMIT YOUR STORIES HERE