After Erich Felbabel established sporting apparel company O2 Creation in 2009, he knew sponsoring a triathlete would help promote the brand; but at a cost to the emerging business. So he decided he would sponsor himself - becoming a professional triathlete.
Not that it was a challenge for the 34-year-old Frenchman, who was hooked on triathlons after discovering the sport four years earlier while working in the automotive industry in Guangzhou.
"I was quite crazy," he says. "There were no triathlons in China so I would take the train to Hong Kong for a day just to race."
When Felbabel later moved to Zhongshan, he took his sport to the next level by training for the 2007 Ironman Australia in Port Macquarie. He would jump the fence of the local pool to swim at 5am in the peak of winter, run on the road through polluted factories and ride his bike on a wind trainer in his apartment.
Despite the challenging training environment, he finished his first full ironman triathlon (3.8-kilometre swim, 180.2-kilometre cycle and 42.2-kilometre run) in a respectable 10 hours, 22 minutes and nine seconds.
The move to Hong Kong in 2008 allowed Felbabel to finally "get a breath of fresh air" and inspired O2 Creation. But he didn't wish to sacrifice his training: "I knew when I started, I still wanted to enjoy myself and do more sports than I was doing before." Being his own brand's ambassador has allowed him to throw himself into his passion while still creating a thriving business.