Persistence

On 11 Sept, Singaporeans took to the polls and enjoyed the rest of the day as a Public Holiday. Mr. Ni, age 63, hawker and proprietor of a drinks stall - Cai Long - at Block 89 Circuit Road Market and Food Centre, had to wake up early and get ready for business at 5am.

Ni manages the stall with his wife and, together, the pair plough their way through 8-10 hours of manual labour each day. Our conversation with Ni was interspersed with brief moments of pause as he had to tend to passing customers every now and then.

Initially, with the NEA overseeing the hawker centres, it was good. But with the entry of players like NTUC and others, the rents have risen. Although the location is prime, they still shouldn’t charge high rents

High rents result in a higher burden borne by hawkers and thus more pressure.

One might be led to think that his stall’s popularity is due to the proximity of the market to residential areas but Ni’s vast experience tells us otherwise.

“You see all these leftover coffee and drinks which the customers did not finish? I used to take all these cups with so much leftover fluid inside and tasted them again to see what was wrong: why did my customers not finish the drinks,” Ni shared proudly with us on the secret of his success today.

His persistence on serving quality drinks even moved one of our group members. “The Iced Milo still tastes great even despite the ice already melting halfway,” exclaimed Hui Shan.

“Yes, it’s important to let customers enjoy a good cup of coffee or a drink,” Ni added.

Hawker food actually tastes better than food in coffeeshops. Their thinking is that hawker centres are not as luxurious or clean. A third point is the issue of image or impression. A working person wearing long-sleeves and neat office attire might prefer going to the coffeeshop or restaurant where they feel befits their status rather than coming to squeeze with strangers at the tables at hawker centres.

We could easily see that Ni truly cares for his customers as he sprang to his feet to get a cup of milk tea for a handicapped Malay uncle who wheeled his way to our table upon seeing him. His generosity, though, had led him to lose a considerable amount of money when certain people come to him asking for money for various reasons. Nonetheless, he gives cheerfully and strongly believes the hawker centre is such a place where anyone can come and feel accepted.

They [young people] think that the work is tough [and hence not worth for the meagre amount of money. It is also easy for couples [who become hawkers] to be embroiled in disputes and quarrels. If you do not communicate enough, it is easy to fall into an argument

He explained, “the low-income group...can shop for a variety of food here[,] ...old people and the handicapped might be looked down upon...in other places”. Yet, the paradox of the lowly image of hawker centres in the eyes of most Singaporeans still hit him. He concurred with us on the difference in status of hawker centres to coffeeshops and other eating places, mentioning that university graduates may find it “unbefitting” to sell noodles or brew coffee at a hawker centre.

Yes, a university graduate who comes to sell coffee or noodles will definitely find it rather unbefitting of their status.

It is ideal especially for the low-income group who can shop for a variety of food here. And then there’s the image too. You rarely see old uncles going to the coffeeshops to eat because they might feel rather inferior or old-of-place. The hawker centre is an ideal place for them. And then there’s the handicapped and wheelchair-bound. You also rarely see them in foodcourts or coffeeshops because they will find it rather embarrassing to frequent those places unlike here where there is no such problem.

However, like how he believes that the people soliciting for money will eventually go away, he also has faith more Singaporeans will be less averse to frequenting hawker centres.

He is less optimistic, though, about the new initiatives by the authorities which permit third party operators - NTUC Foodfare and Fei Siong - to run some of them. These industry players have no incentive (unlike the government) to keep rent low, he explained. Hawkers already face challenges like the unpredictability of business, substantial rent and utilities costs and tough work etc.

The atmosphere at the hawker centre is generally more relaxed. Old people and the handicapped might be looked down upon in these other places: their food might not come after the order has been placed. Most coffeeshops are self-service: do you expect these people to take their own food?

It is also in this light he empathises with the young people today who do not want to work in this trade. In fact, he also discourage couples from working together as hawkers because he feels the occasional friction often lead to quarrels and disputes easily.

He suggests, though, that the National Environment Agency (NEA) should only allow people aged 45 and above to ballot for stalls at the upcoming hawker centres. Joining the hawker trade at a later age is more plausible as it helps provide a plan for retirement and also people at that age would have more experience and the market savviness which safeguard against business failure or premature closure.

Agreeing with Ni is Dr. Leslie Tay - hawker connoiseur, esteemed food blogger and a doctor by practice - who feels that Singaporeans in general take our hawkers for granted and even expect to pay very low prices for good hawker food. He spoke to us on a Saturday morning over the phone on the need to recognise the efforts of hawkers who have been whipping up dish after dish of good food generations after generations with a heritage status or symbol. Hawkers with at least 50 years of experience should be prioritised for grants and even be given priorities when balloting for stalls at new hawker centres. The heritage symbol would also uplift the image of hawker centres, reaffirm their significance in our society and encourage young people to continue and protect the development of this heritage so that our hawker food will not become a lost art one day..

#Hawker #Drinks #hawkerculture