By Peter Chiykowski
For the past 3 years, Miroki Tong has been a crucial part of The Story Engine’s biggest milestones. She originally joined as a consultant to help turn a successful Kickstarter into a growing community and sustainable creative business. As her role expanded, she became a crucial hand in every new partnership we started and every deck we delivered in the past 3 years.
I promised myself that if The Story Engine ever grew to the point that I could bring on a team-member full-time, it would be her.
Today, I’m thrilled to announce that Miroki is joining as a full-time partner in The Story Engine, serving as the company’s CEO while I focus on building new design concepts and resources as Chief Creative Officer.
Miroki is an MBA graduate and entrepreneur with a long and lauded background in the arts as an award-winning performer and producer of theatre, film, and live events. (She also hosts the Toronto 640 food and drink radio show Tasting Together and the kickass wine Instagram @9ouncesplease.) As someone who has built a creative career and a business one, she’s the perfect fit to lead The Story Engine.
I’m so excited to see where this new level of collaboration takes us, and to partner with someone whose intelligence, creativity, and drive have already made such a difference in the community. You can learn more about her background from her full bio below.
For now, please join me in welcoming Miroki in her new full-time role and celebrating the next chapter in the story of The Story Engine!
Miroki Tong
Miroki Tong, BA (Hons), MBA is an independent business consultant, with a focus on strategy, logistics and marketing, bringing her expertise coupled with healthy pragmatism to help build small businesses and enterprisers. She holds an MBA with a designated specialization in Strategic Management, and additional focuses in Marketing, Organizational Behaviour and Entrepreneurship.
In a previous life, Miroki spent a decade as an international, award-winning performer and producer in theatre, film and live events. Her festival Altekrea, which augmented counterculture art, is a twice award-nominated entity, and was accepted into the City of Kitchener’s Economic Development and Arts and Culture initiatives.
She has served on recommender juries for the Ontario Arts Council, acted as a third-party expert and mentor for university student entrepreneurship programs, and led Wilfrid Laurier’s angel investment due diligence teams. In 2020, she was nominated for WXN Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women.
Miroki is also the radio co-host of Toronto 640’s food and drink show Tasting Together, and shares wine recommendations, savvy drink tips and important conversations on diversity on her Instagram blog @9ouncesplease.
Winemakers, bar owners, and people looking to make positive change in the wine industry are all highlighted with Miroki’s characteristic humour, endearing geekiness, and easy-going nature.
By moonlight, or folding the time-space continuum, Miroki is developing her Opera Metal music album and practicing circus aerials.