Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Chow and Cici Cao. Together, they share their story with us below:
Brandon & Cici are an ordinary working couple based in NY. But deep down inside, they’re always looking for new adventures that could take them into a new horizon. They love to travel around the world and their first thought was to become vloggers, since Cici loves to plan and is great at finding deals. They always try to do things that locals would do when they get to a place (like the time when they took local buses to find a secret entrance to the rainforest in Suva, Fiji!)! But when 2018 came around, they had a taste of their first escape room. Since then, the “addiction” never stopped. It basically took them to places that they’ve always imagined, but never would get a chance to visit – like a pirate’s ship, haunted house, Egyptian pyramid, North pole, etc. This was the new horizon they were looking for. It got to a point where all they spoke about to their friends and family was escape rooms. So they decided to document everything and take notes on the experiences that they had to spread this escape room phenomenon to others. This led to the creation of “ESCAPETHEROOMers”, the idea of providing reviews for escape room players & enthusiasts but also as a portal for game creators to have an outlet to showcase their talents and products. They are currently the ONLY review site that provides consistent content in blog and vlog formats. Their review contents have expanded to not only escape rooms but online escape games, digital games, app games, video games, tabletop games, board games, puzzles, immersive theater experiences and more! Currently, they have 15 reviewers spread out around the world in the US, Canada, Singapore, UK, Japan, Belgium, and Australia. Brandon & Cici have played over 660+ escape rooms (in person & remotely) in over 30+ countries. They have also reviewed over 500+ other types of games developed by companies from all over the world. In 2020, they added three new vlog series to their YouTube channel called “Behind The MasterMinds”, “Unboxings”, and “Escape Down Memory Lane” which have been well received by their followers.
They also do escape room tours during different times of the year. On their most recent tour, they drove from New York to Florida and played 59 escape rooms in total. In Orlando, Florida, they visited Bureau Escape Rooms, The Escape Game Orlando and The Escape Ventures. They really stood out to them in terms of creativity and innovation.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
This is a very niche market. To this day, there are still a lot of people who don’t know what an escape room is. Starting out as reviewers in this field was tough as owners would question our credibility. I guess that’s every field until you build up your resume. When we first came into the reviewer industry, we saw 2 or 3 sites that seemed to provide consistent content but they were all in written format. We wanted to try something new as it’s a fast growing digital world today and not many people have the patience to read anymore. So we started a YouTube channel in hopes to interview the creators of the escape rooms and so that the players can get a sneak peek of what to expect. We figured that will help encourage them to start booking. We decided to pave our own lane and brand ourselves differently from the rest. The good thing about this industry is that the circle is quite small and everyone talks with everyone. The owners were quick to realize that we actually provided valuable content and our followers enjoy them as well. Since we’re both in the customer service field, it really helped with the networking. Whenever we go play in an escape room, we’re always providing feedback and thoughts on how to make the games better. A lot of this relationship turned into consulting and sometimes even friends. And last but not least, this is not our main source of income (although we hope to make it there someday), so it’s still quite tricky to balance normal work and this passion project.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
BRANDON CHOW, Born and raised in New York City, Brandon aka “InvAsian” has always been involved in the entertainment business. After a successful dance audition into the “Professional Performing Arts School” (where he met fellow classmates – Alicia Keys, Claire Danes, and Sara Rue), he was immediately consumed by the world of Hip Hop. Whether it was dancing or rapping, he was an instant fan of the culture. Following high school, Brandon attended Penn State University majoring in Business Marketing and has choreographed & performed at his college numerous times.
In 2010, Brandon founded “HIP HOP DANCE JUNKIES”, an NYC-based hip hop dance school for beginners and those looking to learn and get a great work-out while having fun. Since then, HHDJ has taught over 8,000+ students publicly and over 300+ clients privately.
In 2015, “ANCHORED talent group” was created. Brandon is not only the founder of the company, but he is also the talent manager for some of the hottest, up-and-coming artists today! With over 35 different forms of talent artists on his roster (actors/ actresses, singers/ rappers, dancers, models, musicians, artists, stunt/ parkour, etc.), his level of passion and dedication to help contribute to their careers reaches far beyond just a talent manager. Himself as an artist, understands and relates to the struggle and the misguided potential that his clients have.
In February of 2018, “ESCAPETHEROOMers” was born. What first started out as an enjoyable “thing to do” for Brandon and his wife Cici, has now become an exciting business venture that’s allowing them to combine the 3 things that they enjoy the most – traveling, networking, and solving puzzles! ETR has become one of the fastest growing and trusted reliable sources for escape room enthusiasts! In addition to providing their experience for each room they’ve played worldwide, they provide exclusive interviews with the owners & developers highlighting their creativity and talents behind the “walls”!
As the parent company, UpKey Consulting, LLC is the newest venture that he’s established with his wife by combining their best resources to give the clients what they need as a “one-stop shop”.
CICI CAO, Born in Nanjing China, Cici is fluent in Chinese. She attended Columbia University where she earned her BA degree in Economics. Later on, she also studied at Fashion Institute of Technology for her textile and marketing degree. She also holds an MBA degree with concentration in CPA. She’s worked in finance with companies such as Morgan Stanley & Merrill Lynch, fashion with Calvin Klein & Escada, cosmetics with Barney’s New York, advertising with BMW Magazine & Boat US, import & export businesses through the US and China in textiles and much more!
In 2009, Cici started her career in Real Estate. She’s been in the industry ever since. As a homeowner in NYC and NJ, she understands the search and transaction processes in NY & NJ ’s unique markets so that she can empathize with the excitement and concerns this major task of finding the perfect home involves. In this competitive housing market, having a specialist on your side will definitely make the real estate process easier. Her customers usually describe her as honest, genuine, funny, organized, and highly detail oriented. She has made many great deals for her sellers, buyers and renters through her negotiation skills and knowledge of the market. Since her 12 years in the real estate industry, her sales have doubled every year and sold over 100 million plus in real estate. She believes only through learning new information and knowledge every day will she be able to pass on helpful information to her clients so that they can pick out the best investments together.
Cici is an entrepreneur at heart and always looking for new ventures. In late 2018, her and her husband started a YouTube channel and a website for Escape Room enthusiasts called “ESCAPETHEROOMers”. This is where they are able to vlog their travel journeys and to consult the growing industry.
As the parent company, UpKey Consulting, LLC is the newest venture that she’s established with her husband by combining their best resources to give the clients what they need as a “one-stop shop”. She hopes to utilize her specialties such as attention to detail, creativity, organization etc. to achieve the best result for her clients.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Much like anything else, time management is always important and given that we both have our own businesses to run, it’s difficult to juggle sometimes. I wouldn’t say that ESCAPETHEROOMers has been a risk for us, but more of an enjoyable hobby that evolved into a fully operational consulting company for the industry. We are both driven individuals and when we find something that we’re passionate about, we dedicate 100% to it. So taking a risk for us would be re-prioritizing our time away from our own businesses to devote more to a start up one.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.ESCAPETHEROOMers.com
- Instagram: ESCAPETHEROOMers
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/ESCAPETHEROOMers
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/ETROOMers
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/ESCAPETHEROOMers
- Other: www.twitch.com/ESCAPETHEROOMers
Image Credits
ESCAPETHEROOMers
