Dr. Sam Yap is the Group Executive Chairman and co-founder of Cherie Hearts.

At 35 years of age, he is also one of Singapore’s youngest Deputy Registrar of Marriages (Solemniser) with the Registry of Marriages, Singapore. He holds a BSc (Hons) in Economics. Prior to starting Cherie Hearts, Dr Yap worked for over ten years in both the public as well as private sectors. During this period, he built up a great wealth of experience in areas of management and operations. His passion and love for children eventually saw him realising his dream of setting up his own business which actualised in the founding of Cherie Hearts.

With his dynamic sense of leadership and his vision, Dr Yap has managed to bring Cherie Hearts to its present status as a key player in Singapore’s childcare industry. From just a humble single centre in 2001, Dr Yap has managed to build up on Cherie Hearts’ brand name, expanding the business island wide. Today, there are nearly 35 Cherie Hearts branches island wide, with total enrolment nearing 2000 children, serving about 1500 households.

Dr. Yap was also the driving force behind building Cherie Hearts into an award winning childcare organisation. Over the years, Cherie Hearts has been the proud recipient of several quality awards – Singapore Promising Brand Award 2005, Singapore Promising Franchisor Award 2005, Work-Life Excellence Award 2006 and 2008, Singapore Prestige Brand Award 2007 for established brands, and more recently the Singapore Prestige Brand Award 2008, for Established Brand and CitiBusiness Regional Brand. As Brand Champion of the Group, he oversees the consistent branding of the Cherie Hearts Group, ensuring and maintaining a common and uniform identity and also maintaining excellent quality control in all Cherie Hearts branches. Business-wise, Dr Yap has built and designed a unique and excellent franchise model, which has played a crucial role in expanding the business so rapidly. For his acute business acumen and his able leadership in building Cherie Hearts, Dr Yap was conferred Doctorate (PhD in Entrepreneurship) by Wisconsin International University (WIU), United States of America (USA) in 2007. He is the youngest ever recipient of this honour from WIU, which has also conferred similar PhDs to well known figures like Dr Bill Gates and Dr George Quek. He was also the Champion of the Shell Livewire Young Business Start-up Award 2005, jointly organised by Shell, SPH and ITE and was one of two finalists for the prestigious Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2006 (Emergent Category). Dr Sam Yap was one of the Top Entrepreneurs for the prestigious Annual ASME (Association of Small & Medium Enterprise)-Rotary Club Entrepreneur of The Year Award 2007. Dr Yap also brought Cherie Hearts to win the top honours in last year’s inaugural Professional Enterprise Award 2007 (Regional Award) and Significance in Corporate Vision award.

Dr. Yap is a member of the Singapore Young Business Group headed by Senior Parliamentary Secretary Mr. Teo Ser Luck. He is also a member of the Singapore International Chamber of Commerce (SME Committee). In November 2008, Dr Yap received the very prestigious invitation to be a Presidential International Visiting Scholar of Wheelock College. As a strong advocate for the youth, he is also the Vice Chairman of Long Tien Pugilistic Association of Singapore, who were Champions in the 14th Ngee Ann City Lion Dance Competition in 2008. To bring the private childcare industry in Singapore to the next level, Dr Yap formed and currently chairs the Association of Private Childcare Organisations (APCO) in Singapore.

"Amidst stiff competition in today's society, branding is imperative in ensuring that we stay ahead of our competitors. Branding is really the heart of any service or product. Effective branding will successfully relate the brand to its customers. And that is what we have tried to do with Cherie Hearts. We strive to build a brand that is unique and special. Here at Cherie Hearts you feel a sense of warmth and security because it is your home away from home where parents and school work in unison for our children's childhoods."

DR. SAM YAP SOON GUAN
Group Executive Chairman / Co-founder

Ms Wenda Ng graduated with a degree in Economics and Accountancy at the City University in London and also holds a Masters in Business Administration from the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine. She worked as an accountant for four years in London, before moving to Asia where she built up her own business to conduct seminars and workshops on Accelerated Learning Systems for students and teachers in mainstream secondary schools. Ms Ng first joined Cherie Hearts as a parent in 2001 and subsequently joined the Board of Directors. She has held positions such as Branch Director of HQ-owned centres, Vice President and Senior Vice President of the Service Quality department in HQ. As President for Overseas Operations, she oversees the expansion of Cherie Hearts beyond our shores whilst ensuring that our highest operations and quality standards are consistently maintained.