Newsmakers

Co-founder and group CEO of Catcha Group, Patrick Grove’s name is synonymous with success and as he is one of the leading entrepreneurs in the APAC region. The strong-willed mogul founded and took five companies from start-up to IPO, recently selling iProperty Group for US$534 million, making it one of the largest exits in ASEAN history. Patrick, who is also the chairman and co-founder of iflix, has received numerous international awards, including Global Leader of Tomorrow and New Asian Leader by the World Economic Forum, and Asia’s Best Young Entrepreneurs by Bloomberg Businessweek.

At school, were you a nerd, geek, jock or bad boy?
All the above? No, I lie. I was a nerd and a geek but I wanted to be a bad boy but I was terrible at it.

What is your favourite holiday destination?
Bali.

What are the best things about you?
What a tough question. I don’t give up.

What is the worst?
I don’t give up. Sometimes you should give up.

What makes you feel stingy?
Holidays.

What do you spend the most money on?
Food.

Can you cook and if so, what is your specialty?
I can’t cook at all! I have a simple rule – I believe some people are put on earth to prepare and make food, and some people are put on earth to eat the food. I think I am clearly in the latter category.

What is the biggest misconception you have heard about yourself?
That I am a bad boy.

If you were to come back in another life as a famous actress, who would it be and why?
Angelina Jolie. I would call this guy, Patrick Grove, in Malaysia and say, “get on a plane and meet me.”

Are you in touch with your feminine side?
I would like to say I am. These are not easy questions. I am so embarrassed now. You know what, I am trying to be a more emotional entrepreneur. I am trying to be more in touch with building a great environment, offering great career paths to people who work in our company, recognising that our goals and the goals of customers should be aligned.

What does ageing mean to you?
Something I do not want to know about.

Who or what philosophy has been your biggest influence?
There has been a number of them. Richard Branson, Tony Robbins, Warren Buffett, Tony Fernandes. It’s never one particular person. It’s always like a combination of all those great entrepreneurs that I imagine as one person who is giving me feedback on what I should be doing in a particular moment.

Are you Team Yanny or Team Laurel?
Laurel! It’s so clearly Laurel!

WORD ASSOCIATION GAME
To find out how Patrick’s mind works, we prepared a list of random words and asked him to give us the first word that came to his mind.

Money The Edge

Happiness Everyday

Anger Never again

Red Light Los Angeles

Addiction Work

Babies Lots

Love More

Obsession Yes

Trust UNRESERVED

This feature, except for the question about Yanny or Laurel, first appeared in the May 2018 issue of UNRESERVED.

Related: The Strange War for Eyeballs: Battle of the Streaming Services