Tag: family business
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Jakarta: Making a living at home.
I was strolling through a neighbourhood in Jakarta, and observed that people’s homes were also doubling up as shops. Each family seemed to offer a service from dentistry, tailoring, fresh vegetables, and more! Commercial life weaved casually into the community, and it looked like every household had found a way to participate in the economy…
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A shophouse in the alley
Srey, determined to support her parents, made the courageous decision to leave her rural Cambodian village and move to the city. She joined her older brother, his wife, and their son, who had moved to the city much earlier. All 4 of them live in a small room that doubles as both their private home…
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Making ends meat
Nas sells meat while her husband cruises the city streets in his tuk-tuk as a driver. I asked her why she chose to sell meat in the market rather than sell clothes. She explained that selling meat is more convenient because she doesn’t need to pay for the supply upfront, unlike clothes which requires cash…
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Surviving as a specialist of books
Basheer Graphic Books is an iconic shop in Singapore that is known for its design-related books, run by Abdul Nasser whom you can often see at the store. The shop has a rich history dating back to the 1980s when Abdul Nasser’s father would personally go from office to office with travelling luggages filled with…
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Are you stationary?
The owner of Modern Book Store is Mr Tan. He has run the shop for the past 30 years. His stock has stayed the same despite the decades, reflecting a time capsule of objects that bring back tactile memories for students and office workers : highlighters, staplers, glue, and post-it notes. Mr. Tan shares how…
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Canvassing the city
I stumbled across a store stacked floor-to-ceiling with an incredible collection of paintings. The owner showed me around, introducing himself as “Art.” True enough, I noticed his unmistakeable signature on each canvas. While curious, I refrained from questioning his choice of pseudonym. “Art” has witnessed a fragile existence in his homeland. The Khmer Rouge’s brutal…
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Not too chicken
“Hi sister! What do you want?” Lai Fun was sitting on a stool reading the newspapers. It was the lull of the afternoon when most market stalls were closing for the day. The signboard above their stall says Fatty Supplier. “My father-in-law and brother-in-law were very fat, so we called them… fatty suppliers!” The husband-and-wife…
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Snack Shop
“This is my mother’s shop. I’m helping her out.” “She’s lucky to have you.” “I’m lucky to have her!” Wendy Fam regularly helps her mother at the shop after school. Working from 7.00am to 7.00pm every day (except Mondays), her mother’s long hours leave little time for household chores. Thankfully, her husband and children lend…
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Fast Lane
Shirley stood out in bright pink while working amidst motorcycles and vehicle equipment. How did she enter this trade? “My grandfather sold bicycles, my father sold motorcycles, my brother is doing repairs, and we also make license plates. My son talks to the dealers.” I asked whether she rides a motorbike and she shook her…
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Fruits of labour
Say hey to May! May and her brother work together selling fruits at the Clementi West market. “My mother is old, she stays home to rest.” In this dizzying array of fruits, her favourite is the avocado which she loves to “blend with milk to drink.” There are about 5-6 fruit stalls located in close…
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Sweet Stalker
In Singapore, you can find refreshing cold sugarcane juice at the local markets. The juice is made from extracting sap directly from sugarcane stalks, without using additives. Sugarcane is not a fruit, but it is actually a type of grass that looks like bamboo. Each mug of fresh sugarcane juice costs $1 to $1.50 (less…
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Temple of Knowledge
Little Prayer Shop August is the month of the 7th month of the lunar calendar for Buddhists and Taoists. The gates of the Afterlife open and ghosts of the dead return to Earth to linger among the living. Families make offerings to appease the souls of the dead and pray for their well-being in the Underworld, and…
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Housework
“This shop was started by my father-in-law. When I got married, I started working here with my husband. 38 years already. But now, no new customers, all from before.”
Shopkeeper Stories 