Lawrence Ong (LGS 2018) was recently in touch with the Alumni Team to share some fantastic news about his startup company, Arable.
Based in Saudi Arabia, Arable is an Agritech startup co-founded by Lawrence in 2024 which focuses on hydroponic vegetable facilities to improve food security in the region. The process works by growing plants without soil and instead using nutrient-rich water solutions to deliver minerals directly to the roots. With Arable’s innovative approach, facilities can be set up quicker with reduced costs, as well as overall operational costs being less compared to existing hydroponic solutions in the area.
The firm aims to contribute to Saudi Arabia’s agricultural transformation by offering a sustainable and scalable solution for growing fruit and vegetables, aligning with the country’s Vision 2030 goals of reducing food imports and increasing local food production.
Having recently raised $2.55million in seed funding, Lawrence is the CEO of the company. He explained what his role entails, “Every day of the week looks different for me but generally involves managing the team, hiring, organising our finances and marketing.”
Lawrence’s accomplishments are truly outstanding, but where did it all start? “I remember how surreal it was joining in my first day of Year 8 at the Grammar School, it was incredible! At the time, I was blown away at the thumb scanners throughout the School as it made me feel like a secret agent, after all, I was 13 years old. My favourite area of LGS was already the Drama department. It was there I developed my communication skills and confidence in myself. Performing in many of the School productions, I was always happy acting, directing or writing,” he said.
Lawrence credits the Grammar School for developing his confidence and self-esteem, which, in turn, influenced his life and career. He said, “Had it not been for the School, I believe not only would I have become more introverted, but I also wouldn’t have had the belief in myself to take the jumps I’ve taken in life. Teachers treat you with dignity and like an adult, and the whole school’s demeanour pushes people to be excellent and competitive. The students had big goals, and that rubbed off on you.”
Upon leaving school, Lawrence went to the University of Amsterdam to study a degree in Economics but decided to leave. This didn’t stop him from achieving great things, including becoming a COO of a $100 million startup at the age of 22, giving a TEDx Talk in Amsterdam on personal finance, founding his current company, Arable, and meeting his romantic partner Serena, an OLCS alum!
On reflection, Lawrence’s advice to his younger self is, “I wish someone had told me that most grades and degrees don’t matter quite so much in the ‘real world’. Unless a lack of qualifications prohibits you from a particular field, such as becoming a practising Doctor or Lawyer, 90% of business roles can be done without one.
The other thing I’d tell myself is to try as many things as possible! (Especially before going to university). The UK school system pushes us to specialise in subjects way too young before we’ve experienced the working world and grasped whether we enjoy the job we are being prepared to do. Take your time and try as much as possible before you make long-term decisions!
Don’t rush into things if you’re not sure what you want to do. It’s better to take some time off to try things (I took two gap years before applying to university and still ended up dropping out). Try some different forms of work, do a few internships or shadow people in the roles you see yourself doing or explore your hobbies and see if it could become a viable career.”
So, what’s next for Lawrence – “To continue learning and trying new things. To live in as many different areas of the world as possible. To grow my startup, Arable, into something that makes me proud.”
We will certainly be cheering Lawrence on from the sidelines and hope he achieves great things with his startup.
To find out more about Lawrence – visit his career profile.
