Concerns Grow Over Rising Costs for Hawker Stallholders

As the recent opening of Punggol Coast unfolds, many stallholders are voicing their frustration over a significant drop in sales. One vendor reported a 10% decline in revenue, attributing this downturn partly to inadequate marketing efforts from the management at Timbre. She emphasized that if stallholders had the solutions, they would implement them independently, highlighting a lack of communication and support.

Increased Costs and Management Responses

The stallholder, who wished to remain anonymous due to restrictions on media interactions, expressed her displeasure with the heightened costs associated with renewing licenses for 2024. She pointed out that the vendors had “no choice” but to accept the new pricing, which was revealed in a letter from Timbre dated August 13, 2024, that was shared with local news outlets.

Timbre justified the price increases by referencing existing market conditions while still subsidizing overall costs at the facility level. In their communication, they acknowledged the financial strain on stallholders and stated that the increases would be rolled out in two phases to ease the impact.

The first phase, effective from August 15, 2024, to August 14, 2025, sees non-variable charges rise by a total of S$480 (approximately US$370) per month compared to the initial terms starting November 1, 2022. This includes a rent hike from S$1,620 to S$1,800, an increase in service and conservancy charges from S$150 to S$250, and a jump in table cleaning fees from S$500 to S$700. Additionally, variable charges for dishwashing have also seen a significant rise, with costs going from 12 cents to 20 cents per piece, capped at S$2,000.

To further complicate matters, a fee for using the kitchen exhaust fan was introduced at a rate of up to S$150 per month, which was previously free of charge.

In the second phase, spanning from August 15, 2025, to August 14, 2027, the service and conservancy charges will increase by another S$100, bringing them up to S$350.

Personal Experiences and Hopes for Change

Mdm Lim, another stallholder, reported spending between S$2,100 to S$2,200 monthly on cleaning and dishwashing services. In 2023, the average monthly rent for stalls in subsidized hawker centers was S$1,700, while those managed by local authorities averaged around S$1,250 from 2015 to 2023. Mdm Lim considers her monthly rent of S$2,000 a reasonable rate, provided there is adequate management support to meet her stall’s requirements.

“I hope for better management that can help us overcome the challenges we’re facing,” she said, reflecting the sentiments of many other vendors.