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Keeping the hawker trade alive, however, comes with challenges, even for those taking over established family businesses.<\/p>\n
Mr Xander Ng, 31, a second-generation owner of Xin Mei Congee, left his career in the army to join his wife in running her father’s porridge business.<\/p>\n
His wife had been working long hours, leaving the couple with little time together as a family.<\/p>\n
“I felt that every time during the public holidays as well as the weekends, I was always the only one with my son. Back then, we only had one kid,” he said.<\/p>\n
“One of the pull factors is also that if I (join the) business, I will be able to see her, and then we’ll also have off days together.”<\/p>\n
The couple now have three sons.<\/p>\n
Mr Ng initially struggled to gain the respect of long-serving employees, many of whom had worked under his father-in-law.<\/p>\n
To overcome this, he worked at the stall every day, taking on tasks that some employees were unwilling to do. He said it took between one and two years to gain their trust.<\/p>\n
Mr Ng now oversees operations across the business’s outlets and says he has no regrets about his career switch.<\/p>\n
“For myself as a millennial, I\u2019ve already seen a lot of first-generation owners close down their shops due to the insufficient capacity to pass down their stores to the next generation,” he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He believes sharing his experiences on social media could help change perceptions of the trade and encourage more young people to consider it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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