School Dropout To Hawker: This S’porean Now Runs A F&B Empire That Made $150M Annual Revenue

In 1985, the then-15-year-old Tan Kim Siong dropped out of college to work full-time in a hawker stall.

Since age 13, he had been serving to his grandmother at her Teochew fishball noodles retailer, whereas additionally working as an assistant for different hawker stalls.

These stints helped him rating a full-time job cooking at a fishball noodle retailer in Bukit Batok in mid-Eighties.

In 1995, he began his personal enterprise with a rental stall within the hawker centre outdoors the previous National Library, which indicators the beginnings of Fei Siong Group.

The stall turned out to be a profitable enterprise, and he rapidly opened one other outlet in Woodlands the next 12 months.

In the following 5 years, he opened about 10 shops, roping in his brothers Tan Kim Beng and Tan Kim Leng into the enterprise.

49-year-old Kim Beng had dropped out of main college, whereas 44-year-old Kim Leng studied at Ngee Ann Polytechnic earlier than he determined to drop out to affix Fei Siong Group.

Together, the Kim brothers frequently expanded into numerous totally different manufacturers and enterprise fashions, turning Fei Siong Group into the profitable F&B empire it’s right now.

Nearly 15 Brands Under Its Helm

From meals stalls in espresso outlets and hawker centres, Fei Siong Group managed to develop to managing meals shops, specialty outlets and meals courts.

Some of the manufacturers underneath the F&B empire embrace EAT, Encik Tan and Ci Yuan Hawker Centre.

The group manages a complete of 157 shops throughout Singapore, and hires over 1,500 employees.

According to an interview with The Straits Times, the group’s “biggest breakthrough” got here in the course of the launch of the 7,000 sq ft Malaysia Boleh! in 2012.

Five years after it opened to a lot fanfare, the meals court docket expanded to occupy double the house, with a further 15 stalls.

The newest addition to Fei Siong Group’s repertoire of manufacturers is Boleh Boleh — Singapore’s largest pork-free meals court docket.

Located at Clementi Mall, the brand new meals court docket options 28 stalls which vary from Petaling Street Famous Claypot Chicken Rice to Penang Road’s Famous Chendol.

Giving Back To Society

Beyond operating Fei Siong Group, the three brothers additionally routinely give again to society.

When taxi drivers have been badly hit by the circuit breaker final 12 months, the Group introduced a tie-up with NTUC and SMRT Taxis to offer free meals supply companies.

Under the association, SMRT taxi drivers ferried Fei Siong supply assistants round, for a set price of S$20 per hour. The drivers have been co-paid by Fei Siong and SMRT Taxis.

The group additionally routinely sponsors group initiatives. Last December, they donated S$5,000 price of meals vouchers to about 140 households from PPIS (Singapore Muslim Women’s Association) Student Care Centre.

Furthermore, in 2015, Fei Siong launched an entrepreneurship programme geared toward preserving native hawker meals among the many youthful technology.

Under the programme, contributors have been educated to be hawkers with a month-to-month wage of S$3,000 for the primary three months, earlier than they began their very own stalls.

According to a report by The New Paper, the programme was so well-received that it needed to be suspended because of the overwhelming response.

Succeeding Despite Tough Competition

It’s no secret that competitors in Singapore’s F&B scene is extraordinarily robust, as customers have an enormous number of alternative wherever they go.

Throughout their journey, Fei Siong Group has additionally seen some setbacks, just like the demise of its Chinese restaurant Royal London Duck and Spanish eatery La Cala.

Despite that, Fei Siong Group has managed to efficiently carve a distinct segment for itself within the native F&B scene.

For the previous 25 years, the enterprise managed to develop from a modest fishball noodle stall to a F&B firm that owns shut to fifteen manufacturers.

Last 12 months, the group made almost S$150 million in income.

You have to be hungry and never afraid of arduous work. You should additionally deal with folks effectively. My employees is my household.

Managing Director of Fei Siong Group, Tan Kim Siong in an interview with The Straits Times

Featured Image Credit: PressReader / Capitaland