Hub City Hustler: Joy Yeh
BY TRISTA HAVNER
PHOTOS BY KRISTI WOODY
FEATURED IN VOL 6, ISSUE 2: home and garden
About a year ago, I was sitting at our original little shop at theLOCAL working my Friday shift when I got a phone call. The woman on the other end was someone I had vague familiarity with; I knew her face and her name and a little about her family’s business. But really, that’s it. The phone call started with your standard formalities as she introduced herself and I waited, guarded, for what she would say next. This woman explained to me that to celebrate her family’s restaurant being in business for thirty-five years, they wanted to feature local small businesses and give them a platform to share their craft. That’s it. No donation. No shameless Instagram plug on my account. She wanted to feature me, no strings attached.
When I started mulling over the idea of interviewing and telling the stories of women who were doing the good and hard work of community-building in our city, Joy Yeh immediately came to mind. Not just because of the positive interaction I had with her months prior or the fact that she and her family run a wildly successful and delicious restaurant in Asia Garden, and have now for thirty-six years. Those things factored into my desire to tell her story, but mostly it was because I had watched her quietly and consistently champion other local businesses, even other local restaurants.
I don’t have to tell you that this pandemic has left many small business owners wringing their hands, wracked with “what ifs” but I will tell you: It has.
Keeping a business running during strict protocols and social distancing regulations did not come without its challenges. But Joy and her husband pressed in. For their family, for their employees, for their customer base. They offered free delivery and Joy took to social media to distribute gift cards to raise spirits and bring attention to Asia Garden, and it worked. Her marketing prowess, loyal customers, and a team of employees who, according to Joy, “came into work every day and dealt with the constant change going on and worked their butts off while being professional and understanding of customer needs” led to Asia Garden not just surviving, but thriving.
As stay at home orders were lifted, rather than rushing back into normalcy, Asia Garden offered options to address all levels of customer needs. They re-opened at 50 percent capacity, with a separate delivery and pick-up area, and continued to offer free delivery. They were willing and prepared to meet every customer at their comfort level as this pandemic continues. They are leaving room for every person to have the opportunity to engage in their product at whatever capacity makes them feel safe. It may not be the easiest way forward, but they are offering real accommodation to a wearied community.
If you send a message to the restaurant’s social media outlets, it’s Joy who is answering you. It’s Joy that is posting uplifting content and mouth-watering photos of sushi. Only Joy. So when I asked her if she could share any positive effects from trudging through this crisis, much of her response centered around interactions. She was able to sit in on Zoom calls with city officials, along with other local restaurant owners, and give input as they made decisions to move Jackson forward and test the waters of reopening, and she was reassured by their authenticity and real desire to forge a path that was best for the entire community.
She worked with the Jackson Chamber on Jackson’s first Music & Chill Series, live streaming performances by local artists from local restaurants. She fostered relationships with other restaurant owners, and although competition is typically inevitable when advertising and running a restaurant, she felt a sense of camaraderie that certainly stemmed from a shared experience.
Staying positive in an uncertain time was the goal, and, according to Joy, mindset was key. According to Joy, “You have to stay positive and believe that there are other positive people that will uplift you and seek them out.”
Asia Garden has a storied history in Jackson and serves as one of the veteran restaurants, and Joy has fielded questions and given guidance to newer restaurants who are trying to survive this pandemic, because, in her own words, “the health and stability of the entire community as a whole is more important than any individual business”.
I know that when the dust has settled and things begin to look recognizable again, Joy and Asia Garden will be remembered as a beacon that valued community over competition.
Our city is full of women who see, really see, and lead others to a place of sight. Full of women who forge ahead when the path is overgrown and who clear the way. Full of women who have no reason to offer hope or peace but they do it anyway. All of that before the fears and frustrations of a global pandemic. So even though Joy was a woman I wanted to feature before COVID-19 became a reality, it seems much more important to tell her story now. It takes resolve to do the hard and good work that Joy is doing, through Asia Garden, when it would be easier to not do it. We need the reminder that there are people who are keeping our families fed and keeping their employees safe and consistently paid, and adapting to change, and then readapting — because it matters. To our local economy, to our stomachs, and to our community.
Trista Havner is a born and raised Jackson girl, a mom, wife, and small business owner. She and her husband, Charlie, have a charming local family business and are passionate about the history there. Trista can be found putting together frames in her family’s shop or lettering anything that will hold still. Her love for home grows daily, and she is passionate about being an agent of growth and positive change in her beloved Hub City.
Kristi Woody is a photographer and storyteller. She also works as the university photographer for Union University and owns her own wedding photography business, Woody & Pearl Photography. In her free time, Kristi enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter and rambunctious beagle, Rhett, Liliana and Chipper respectively. If you can't find Kristi in Jackson, you'll find her in her second favorite place: Disney World!