People say Mr. Yap is crazy.
But ask him, and he’ll tell you he’s just “crazy happy.”
George Yap migrated from Jamaica to Miami in 1976 with $50 in his pocket.
With the help of family and friends, he founded Leasa Industries in 1977 inside a dilapidated warehouse in Liberty City.
Today, his company is one of the biggest exporters of health foods in the U.S., offering everything from sprouts to vegetables to Chinese food items, which you’re sure to find at your local Publix.
I know what you’re thinking: “What’s so crazy about that?”
Well, Mr. Yap currently employs 80 people. Most of them are former drug addicts or ex-convicts with criminal records.
“They’re human beings,” he said. “America gave me a second chance, and I believe we should pass it on.”
Mr. Yap could buy multiple machines to do the work of most of his employees, but he won’t.
“If I have something, I have to share it,” he said. “We all come up together.”
When we grow up, we want to be like Mr. Yap.