Meet Mia Su | Business owner & pastry chef

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mia Su and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mia, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?

As soon as I graduated from earning a Bachelor’s degree from Poly U (The Hong Kong Polytechnic University) in Hotel Management, I moved to Houston with my husband, Jack, and had been a housewife since. Despite the love I have for my family, there was a voice that spoke to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and I was caught in the train of thought about self-actualization.

5 years was a long time staying in a limited social circle. Jack would invite friends over to put my culinary skills to use. At first, I’d make Hong Kong street food that reminds me of home and shared it with our friends; however, the words spread quickly, and there were more requests for desserts than savories that the unabating encouragements—as a result—fueled me the courage to have a shop of my own. Thus, it explains the origin story of Mia’s Goodies brand image— a chicken on top of a mochi. Lo Mai Gai (Sticky Rice Chicken; Cantonese) was one of the Hong Kong street food I made in the early stage and mochi has always been the popular dessert item being requested.

What should our readers know about your business?

Mia’s Goodies is more than just a dessert shop. It’s a living extension of my hometown where I keep my fondest memory of Hong Kong alive by reimaging its street food in Sugar Land.   We try to create our products with higher quality and guarantee freshness; thus, our products tend to have a much shorter shelf life. We also rotate our flavors every week with weekend specials being the highlight.

I say it was a lot of hard work, a lot of crying, and a lot of good people that pushed us to where we are today. The first several months I hardly slept. It was 80 hours of work a week on top of 3-4 hours of sleep. I would be crying with my eyes half-opened while rolling up my sleeves to make the desserts and savories in the kitchen. That was a very bleak time of my life. Nevertheless, we powered through the lows and started to have more helpers who are kind people with excellent work ethics.

If anything, the lesson of a small business owner is that nothing goes as planned. Opportunities are created for those who are well-prepared. Having a plan B in mind with every step we took is how we survived through the pandemic along with other obstacles.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Perhaps it was kismet that I ended up in Sugar Land, Texas, with a dessert shop of my own. I take a lot of pride in my business and this neighborhood. Sugar Land is amazing with its hidden food scene that I recommend everyone to explore!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would have to shout out to my husband, Jack, the bedrock of Mia’s Goodies. I owe greatly to him for any popularity and success that Mia’s Goodies has achieved. When I told him about the idea I had for having a small shop in Sugar Land, he was so supportive and picked up the responsibility to take care of our 3 children upon himself without any hesitation.

As a fresh-off-the-boat, I knew very little about being an entrepreneur in this foreign land that I called home. Jack has been my lighthouse, my legal and financial consultant, and the roof for our family.

I see myself as a very lucky woman to have him in my life.

Additionally, I want to mention a book that shaped the direction of Mia’s Goodies —鼎泰豐，有溫度的完美 (Din Tai Fung, a perfection with warmth. ) Din Tai Fung is a worldwide Taiwanese soup dumpling establishment, known for the spectacular customer service and flawless food quality. At Mia’s Goodies, we try to do everything correctly even if that means more time investment. Din Tai Fung’s business model is something I have always keep in mind, as I slowly develop my shop.

Website: https://www.miasgoodies.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/miasgoodiestx/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/miasgoodies

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/mia-s-goodies-sugar-land?osq=mias+goodies