Even though times are tough and New York’s Chinatown is on the verge of dying, there is one place where things appear to be mostly the same as they have always been.

Since Mei Lum started volunteering as a child, Wing on Wo & Co has been run by her family. Brilliant and creative heritage enterprises have withstood generations of economic ups and downs. Mei represents her family’s legacy and New Yorkers and future generations of Chinatown residents.

The 32-year-old fifth-generation owner has bigger plans. Mei revived Wing on Wo’s late-19th-century ambiance. The store was a meeting place, credit union, and informal post office for low-income Chinese employees during the Chinese Exclusion Act.

She wants to run things because she has always wanted to expand the store’s conceptual boundaries. “A business doesn’t have to be so economically driven. There can still be genuine connections, which sustain a community,” she told The Guardian.

Wing on Wo is still primarily run by the original family for over a century. For 30 years, Mei’s father Gary has chatted with clients at the counter. Lorraine, her mother, handles the website and order processing. Her 105-year-old grandmother, Nancy, promotes the store’s hand-painted wine cups, fish-shaped glazed vases, and elegant dinner plates on Instagram.

In 2016, her grandmother intended to sell the family-owned porcelain specialty shop, which was worth close to $10 million. Mei took over the business to preserve it and create a community hub. She was planning to study international relations at Columbia University, but she now wants to run the family business. She wanted the store to be a hub for activists and artists to fight gentrification and displacement.

As a result of the pandemic, Mei decided to focus her efforts on online sales, digital advertising, and social media. To ensure that the business is preserving tradition and shaping the future of Chinatown, she has added several new initiatives, such as youth programs, an artist residency, and a ceramicist fair.

Priscilla Cornejo, better known as Nanay Bebe to the local people (“Nanay” means mother in Filipino), has been selling her magical water to the community since 1980 in the Philippines. She is convinced that her drink’s distinctive flavor is why so many customers seek out her business.

Magic Water, or known to be its local term “Samalamig” is also recognized as a leading refreshing drink in the Philippines. Despite coming from modest means, Nanay Bebe makes it her mission each day to quench the thirst of those hungry for success.

She explained that her drink is not just ordinary cold water. It has clear agar, sugar, mineral water, and tons of ice. When the agar hits the ice, it tends to melt, creating the ‘magic water,’ that will surely quench your thirst. 

Her business may not look like much compared to big companies or restaurants, as she only sells on the street, but it has tremendous growth potential. Nanay Bebe sells her magic water for PHP5 or PHP10 ($0.08 or $0.17) in small plastic bags, cups or some customers even bring their own Aquaflask or tumblers. From what she described, weekly earnings for her business could reach PHP35,000 ($600).

An endless line of curious onlookers from the street awaits to sample Nanay Bebe’s magic water. Many online publications, including those dedicated to food and social news, have featured it. Even today, some people attempt to duplicate Nanay Bebe’s traditional drink formula.