For a professional, putting together paper and paint is not an easy task.

No less than a tonne of talent is put into the design of a wedding invitation, to evoke the beauty and honour the momentous event commands.

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Thirty-two-year-old Yean Yan is the design manager at Seven Diamond, a company he founded that specialises in wedding invitations.

He’s spent over 10 years in the business; although he started without any experience, time on the job allowed him to boot up his business without the financial support of his family.

“Most people can hardly believe that my achievement today came without outside financial support, but I did start from nothing,” Yan said.

When Yan was 17, he moved from his home in Kampong Cham province to Phnom Penh and began a new life as a worker.

He had nowhere to stay, and no means to pay rent, so he often spent the night sleeping on the doorstep of someone’s house.

“At that time, I worked very hard because I needed money to support myself and I expected that my life would be better,” Yan added.

In his free time, Yan took up studying short courses at various institutions across Phnom Penh.

Although he did not receive any formal degree, Yan believes these courses offered invaluable training from both domestic and international lecturers.

“At first, I didn’t really know design. Then I had a chance to be trained from Vietnamese and Malaysian designers,” Yan recalled.

In 2007, Yan started to run his first printing house on a budget from money he had saved working prior design jobs.

Eventually, the printing house gained both success and revenue – and he moved on to open Seven Diamond.

“Designing is not an easy task. The designer has to work hard and be patient with his ideas. Sometimes when I sleep, my mind still focuses on the designs,” he reflected.

Yan said that his unique style and concepts – and the fact that he never copied others – propelled his success in opening his own company.

“A successful designer will never copy styles from others, because it can lead to bad quality work,” he said.

“Every business will face problems and obstacles, and it’s how a businessman deals with those obstacles and problems that will lead to his success,” Yan added.