Wu Pao-chun

Wu Pao-chun was born into a large family in Pingtung County, Taiwan. He began his baking career right out of high school to acquire a professional skill. His early training involved apprenticing with traditional Taiwanese bakers, where he learned to create local specialties such as pineapple pastries and spring onion buns. His path later led him to Master Baker Chen Fu Guang of Donben Bakery in Taichung, which introduced him to European-style bread making. This mentorship was crucial in developing his unique approach, including the technique of macerating fruits, which became a foundational element for his signature longan red wine bread.

His career saw significant turning points through continuous learning and competition. In 2008, Wu Pao-chun competed in the Coupe Louis Lesaffre, often referred to as the Olympics for bread-making, where he earned second prize for his Taiwan Longan with Red Wine Bread. This achievement underscored his commitment to sharing knowledge, as his recipe, though widely available, yielded different results for each baker, emphasizing the value of craft. A trip to Paris further refined his perspective, inspiring the rose-lychee boule which secured him the world championship title at the 2010 Les Masters de la Boulangerie. This special bread incorporated Taiwanese ingredients like organic roses from Nantou Puli and millet wine.

Wu Pao-chun founded his eponymous bakery in Kaohsiung in 2010. The bakery quickly became successful, leading to additional locations in Taiwan, including Taipei and Taichung. In pursuit of global expansion, he enrolled in the Executive MBA program at the National University of Singapore, graduating in 2016. His international presence expanded with the opening of bakeries in Shanghai, China, in 2018, and Singapore in 2019 and 2022. Despite developing an allergy to flour, his passion for baking remained, driving him to continually research ingredients and techniques, elevating bread from a staple to an art form in Taiwan and beyond.