“Marriage is honestly quite unglamorous most days.”
It’s not the kind of line you expect to headline a Valentine’s Day feature — especially not from two of Malaysia’s most recognisable social figures. But for Timothy Tiah and Audrey Ooi, honesty has always mattered more than optics.
makchic recently caught up with the power couple who prove that marriage, kids, business, plus a thriving social media presence, can mix – as long as you keep it real.
Married for 18 years, the couple have built parallel careers online, and are raising two children. They also co‑founded Colony Coworking Space, all while choosing to show up for each other long after the honeymoon phase faded.
As Tim puts it plainly:
“Marriage is honestly quite unglamorous most days. It’s not candlelight dinners. It’s groceries, school runs, bills, and arguing about what to eat for the 500th time.”
And yet, that’s exactly where their relationship has found its footing.
Meet the OGs of Social Influencing
Long before the days of Instagram, Facebook and TikTok, Tim was already shaping the region’s digital media landscape. As the co-founder of Nuffnang, he was part of the first wave that professionalised blogging and influencer marketing in Southeast Asia. Awards and industry recognition followed.
These days, Tim’s social posts include educational content focusing on current events, which have travelled far beyond his immediate circle to the point where Malaysia’s Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, has liked several of his posts, a small but telling marker of how widely his ideas resonate.
Audrey, (whom makchic last caught up with a decade ago!) meanwhile, was carving out her own voice. Starting out in advertising, she later built a loyal following through blogging and social media, long before “content creator” was a viable career path. Motherhood didn’t end that chapter, it reshaped it.
“Actually I’ve never stepped away from a career. I’ve blogged and made income since I was in college, and just changed careers along the way. Blogging and social media is my constant, but my careers have always been creative.”
The two met at a lunch attended by other bloggers back in the day, long before influencer culture became mainstream. Their worlds eventually converged not just in marriage, but in business when they co‑founded Colony, blending Tim’s leadership and scale with Audrey’s eye for design and community.
But fame and success doesn’t shield anyone from life’s hard seasons, and for Tim, one of the toughest came from within.
“For me, it was my depression.”
Like most long marriages, theirs hasn’t been linear. Asked about tough seasons, Tim doesn’t point to business setbacks, he points inward.
“For me, it was my depression.
Not business. Not money. My own mental health.”
In 2020, Tim was diagnosed with Mixed Anxiety Depressive Disorder, a turning point that reframed not just how he understood himself, but how the couple learned to navigate hard seasons together.
He speaks openly about how that period reshaped the way they communicate — learning to speak earlier, even when thoughts feel messy or irrational.
“But Audrey never treated me like something broken she had to fix. She just stayed. That season taught me to talk earlier instead of bottling things up. Now, if something feels heavy, I say it. Even if it sounds irrational. Marriage isn’t about being strong for each other. It’s about being honest enough to be weak in front of each other.”
Audrey, reflecting on the same years, names the moments that tested them most — including the premature birth of their first child, Jude (affectionately known as Fighter, born in 2013 at just 1.1kg) along with legal battles and rebuilding a business from scratch. Together, they are also parents to their 10 year-old daughter, Penelope.
Through it all, her conclusion remains the same: partnership isn’t optional — it’s foundational.
How do you decide what to share online and what to protect as a family?
Online, both Tim and Audrey are mindful of what visibility costs. Their children who feature in most posts, aren’t content, they’re people.
“If it benefits the content more than it benefits my kids, I don’t post it,” says Tim.
That principle, like much of their marriage, is rooted in intention rather than performance.
“I’ve always been pretty open with my sharing and I guess it continued after I started a family. But we regularly discuss what we want to share as a family and why. I don’t share anything that could be embarrassing or upsetting for them. They approve every content before I post. If they say no, I don’t post,” shares Audrey.
Make Time for Lunch Dates!
Running a business together doesn’t come with a neat rulebook, and they’re the first to admit that boundaries blur. What does anchor them, though, is the refusal to keep score at home or at work. When things get overwhelming, they return to something simple.
Lunch dates. Nothing fancy. Sometimes just (at the) kopitiam nearby. But it’s the one time we’re not founders or parents. Just two people talking nonsense, or catching up. It reminds me we were friends first before everything else”, shares Tim.
Eighteen Years In
After nearly two decades together, their relationship isn’t built on grand gestures, or perfectly curated moments. It’s built on ordinary days, shared responsibility, humour, and choosing each other — again and again — even when life feels repetitive or heavy.
Or, as Tim sums it up best:
“Love isn’t built on highlights. It’s built on very normal Tuesdays where you still choose the same person.”
All images have been taken from both Tim and Audrey’s respective social media accounts.
Check out more interesting stories from our makchic Interviews series here.
