Lovely Pao Inc. is a local business located at 355 Elmira Road North. Lovely Pao manufactures fresh steam pork and chicken buns and sells them all over southern Ontario. The business has been running since 2013 in Toronto and opened their Guelph location on March 7, 2020.
Meet Shahraz Khan, owner of Lovely Pao Inc.
Shahraz Khan is from both a Filipino and Pakistan background. Shahraz is a Guelph resident and he brags about his two puppies, Mocha and Nova. He enjoys working out and studying things that are applicable to him including learning the Filipino language to be able to communicate with customers and staff more effectively. Shahraz is also a big fan of the game League of Legends.
Business background
Lovely Pao Inc. was founded by Shahraz’s mother, Connie Laoyan, as a means to pay their rent as they were about to be evicted from their apartment. Connie had a hip replacement surgery and couldn’t work and Shahraz was still in college at the time. After being laid off because she couldn’t recover quick enough, she took matters into her own hands and used her last pay to make some steam buns and sold them to friends and family. They made enough revenue to repurchase supplies and pay off the rent that month, so they did it again the following month, and again until they eventually opened up their first location in Toronto within a year. Fast forward seven years and they officially opened their Guelph location in March 2020.
Shahraz chose Guelph as the business’s second location because it is located in the centre of many neighbouring cities. This makes their deliveries to surrounding communities such as Hamilton, St. Catharines, Niagara, London, and Toronto quicker and easier.
When asked what makes the business unique, Shahraz said “No one makes fresh steam buns with an egg inside. It’s easier, cheaper and has less returns when you freeze the products. That’s exactly what everyone else does so we took a different approach and decided to reduce our profits for customer satisfaction.”
The business has been thriving due to the great local support throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Lovely Pao Inc. currently sells their buns to over 50 grocery stores across Ontario and would like to have their buns present in 100 or more grocery stores by the end of 2021. The company is also planning on franchising in the near future to continue their growth.
Residents are encouraged to visit Lovely Pao to try out their fresh steam buns and continue supporting local while abiding by local public health guidelines.
Guelph Shops was launched to help businesses like Lovely Pao Inc. thrive and encourage supporting local. If your business is interested in being included in a Guelph Shops Business Spotlight Profile, please reach out directly to [email protected].
All information within has been verified by Lovely Pao Inc.