[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/groceries-delivered-a-century-old-affair\/#NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/groceries-delivered-a-century-old-affair\/","headline":"Groceries delivered: A century-old affair","name":"Groceries delivered: A century-old affair","description":"Thumbing through old sepia photographs of Sin Nam Huat, a traditional provision shop nestled in the old estate of Toa Payoh North, 60-year-old Ong Kok Chee recalls some of the best times of his childhood and young adult life with the same fervour one might see in a twenty-first century \u2018Bitcoin bro\u2019.\u00a0 Pointing to a […]","datePublished":"2021-11-11","dateModified":"2022-04-15","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/chester-tan\/#Person","name":"Chester Tan","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/chester-tan\/","identifier":325,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c0dbcddee20fd5fe45477ebee46c048512a4d730227c828def18726d4651688b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c0dbcddee20fd5fe45477ebee46c048512a4d730227c828def18726d4651688b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"TheHomeGround Asia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","width":640,"height":640}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1636622604347_S3_Featured_Image_281280x626px29.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1636622604347_S3_Featured_Image_281280x626px29.jpeg","height":626,"width":1280},"url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/groceries-delivered-a-century-old-affair\/","commentCount":"1","comment":[{"@type":"Comment","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/groceries-delivered-a-century-old-affair\/#Comment1","dateCreated":"2026-04-24 09:05:47","description":"Thank you for your sharing. I am worried that I lack creative ideas. It is your article that makes me full of hope. Thank you. But, I have a question, can you help me? https:\/\/www.binance.com\/register?ref=IHJUI7TF","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"\u6ce8\u518c\u4ee5\u83b7\u53d6100 USDT","url":"https:\/\/accounts.binance.info\/register-person?ref=JW3W4Y3A"}}],"about":["Community","Local","Singapore"],"wordCount":1005,"keywords":["generation","grocery","retail industry"],"articleBody":"Thumbing through old sepia photographs of Sin Nam Huat, a traditional provision shop nestled in the old estate of Toa Payoh North, 60-year-old Ong Kok Chee recalls some of the best times of his childhood and young adult life with the same fervour one might see in a twenty-first century \u2018Bitcoin bro\u2019.\u00a0Pointing to a photograph of a massive crowd in front of his shop in the late eighties, the elderly shop owner says, \u201cThis was when we did a live radio giveaway. Shoppers would gather in front of the shop for the \u2018two thousand\u2019 lucky draw. Everyone\u2019s eyes were on the dozen or so prizes.\u201dAn old blurry snapshot of a crowd outside Sin Nam Huat after a live radio show promised a “two thousand lucky draw.” (Photo courtesy of Ong Kok Chee)Established in 1962, Sin Nam Huat has provided essential provisions and myriad services to residents of Toa Payoh and beyond for two generations. Among these services \u2014 long before the dawn of supermarkets and digital technology \u2014 was the promise of groceries at one\u2019s doorstep on the same day.\u00a0This might come as a surprise to young Singaporeans today. Before the advent of online supermarkets like Redmart and economies of scale that enable the low-cost delivery models we currently enjoy, many shoppers used to carry out bi-weekly grocery run at crowded supermarkets as an inescapable part of their routine. Even few were aware of the hundreds of neighbourhood provision shops, like Sin Nam Huat, that provided delivery in the days of yore.A young Mr Ong Kok Chee manning the shop and packing orders from clients. (Photo courtesy of Ong Kok Chee)Over the decades, as the old regulars of the likes of Sin Nam Huat moved away or died and new residents rarely shop at the old grocer\u2019s, the awareness of their existence dwindled. Mr Ong had intended to advertise his delivery service, but costs and reach are tricky to square.In the past, a young Mr Ong would strap orders onto his blue steel bicycle and deliver them to nearby homes, and returning to the shop for more runs after. \u201cWe used to deliver on bicycles until late into the night,\u201d Mr Ong recalls.\u00a0These days, he takes turns with his brother, driving the van to deliver groceries \u201cas far as Bishan where loyal customers now live\u201d.Mr Ong Kok Chee and his old trusty steed: His blue steel bicycle which was used to deliver foodstuff to nearby residentsMost supermarkets, online grocers and food delivery services saw a spike of about 15 per cent in orders whenever tightened restrictions kicked in after a surge of Covid-19 cases. Some supermarkets and delivery companies even opened up more slots and ramped up manpower to cope with the increased demand.But while requests for grocery delivery in Singapore climb from the onset of pandemic restrictions, some of the older traditional provision shops have gone against the tide and chosen to cease delivery operations.\u00a0While Mr Ong and his brother are able to run deliveries for Sin Nam Huat in their van, which doubles as their personal vehicle, the same operation cannot be replicated by a larger provision shop like Teo Chuan Kee.Mr Teo Koon Hwee, the 73-year-old successor to his late grandfather\u2019s provision shop, has cut out delivery services entirely \u2014 something he claims the shop has provided since the 1920s, when his grandfather first registered the business. Mr Teo says his late grandfather first put up the Teo Chuan Kee signboard and started his little shop in 1891 near the Pierce Secondary School.\u201cThere\u2019s no profit to be made in grocery deliveries today,\u201d Mr Teo\u2019s son, who co-manages Teo Chuan Kee today, tells TheHomeGround Asia.Mr Teo Koon Hwee took over his late grandfather\u2019s provision shop Teo Chuan Kee but has since stopped delivery services which was provided then.According to him, the costs associated with operating a delivery fleet makes little economic sense today. Running the team through a back-of-envelope calculation, he maintains that it would cost about $5,000 every month just to operate a single delivery van in a given region, citing the exorbitant oil price and labour costs.\u201cPlayers like Grab and Shopee don\u2019t make money on deliveries. It\u2019s all marketing at this stage,\u201d he says, alluding to the startup model of delivery providers today that rely on venture capital to achieve critical mass with little concern for profit margins.Admittedly, Mr Ong is under no illusion that going online and delivering the goods will bring in the big bucks. As labour costs are prohibitive in their line of work, the brothers keep their operation manageable between the both of them. Whenever Sin Nam Huat\u2019s delivery volume spiked after an announcement of Covid-19 curbs, they had to cap orders to manage.\u00a0Mr Ong reveals that Sin Nam Huat’s plan to go online in early 2020 had been thwarted by the pandemic, which redirected every supermarket’s resources to its online offering.\u00a0“It’s hard to compete with them now that everyone’s focusing on \u2018online\u2019. They already had everything in place. All they needed this time is to focus their efforts and go all-out,” he says.Pointing to growth figures he has seen online, Mr Teo believes there is little doubt that supermarkets and online grocers \u201chave eaten into their share of the market over the years\u201d. He says he does not believe that going online is the answer for shops like his.\u201cGoing online is rather meaningless to us because the expenses are too high. Your business will grow but your profits won\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0Even in the presence of recent state initiatives that help traditional retailers go online, both Mr Teo and Mr Ong say the manpower crunch remains a fundamental obstacle for which there appears to be no solution.\u00a0Asked about the future of their shops, both owners maintain that only time will tell.Join the conversations on TheHomeGround Asia’s Facebook and Instagram, and get the latest updates via Telegram."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Destinations","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Singapore","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/\/singapore\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Groceries delivered: A century-old affair","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/destinations\/singapore\/groceries-delivered-a-century-old-affair\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]