By Chelsea Smith, Nurhuda Halim and Sri Sashaini
As mama shops are phasing out, there are a handful that are still holding up in the midst of our evolving society.
Muhammad Rafi, 38, has been manning As-Salam Mini Mart, a mama shop located in a bomb shelter at Blk 859 Woodlands St 83, for two years while the shop itself has been running for five years. He typically opens the shop at around 7am and operates the shop on his own until 11pm. Although Mr Rafi has only been working there for a short amount of time, he greatly enjoys his time spent at work.
“Old neighbours, families and kids, who live around here are usually the only ones who come to the shop,” he said.
“Everyone here is so friendly, the people who often visit the shop are very nice and I see a lot of familiar faces. It’s one of my favourite things about working here,” he added.
However, it’s not been easy for mama shop businesses to stay afloat when there are larger companies, such as NTUC and Giant, dominating the market. These bigger corporations are able to purchase items in bulk, allowing them to set their prices much lower than what mama shops could possibly offer without suffering from a setback.
“There’s a lot of price competition between mama shops and supermarkets, people only come here if it’s urgent or there’s an emergency. They’ll come here only if they need things like eggs or bread or if they’re spending a few dollars. If they’re buying more stuff, they will go all the way out to the supermarkets,” Mr Rafi explained solemnly.
Adding on to the rising competition is the availability of online shopping. Leading online supermarket sites, such as Redmart and Honestbee, have also made shopping for groceries and home supplies much simpler and convenient.
“Now there’s an advance in technology, people prefer online shopping so they can just go on their phones and everything is there, everything is easily delivered to their homes,” he said.
With increasing rent costs and low sales, there’s no doubt that mama shops are struggling to find their footing. Despite the odds stacked against them, these shop owners are still willing to continue the tradition.
In a tiny shop under a block in Woodlands, RKN Mart is being managed by 18-year-old, R Karthik Raj, who is learning the ropes of running a mama shop business. Karthik’s parents had recently bought over an older mama shop and gave it a new look.
Unlike unconventional mama shops, RKN Mart holds a more modern feel with an air conditioner and glass paneled doors. When we visited RKN Mart, Karthik was manning the shop on his own while his parents were out running errands.
Despite only being open for 5 months, Karthik was familiar with his customers, holding on to the strong tradition of mama shops being a communal point for many neighbours.
However, others are not that lucky. Wong Li Mini Mart has been operating for the last 10 years, co-owned by Maggie Lim and her husband.
Although she has been in charge of the shop for a very long time, Mrs Lim complained about the high rent and declining business.
When asked about who would continue her family business, Mrs Lim laughed and said, “I am not sure. My kids are still quite young.”
Sales have steadily decreased over the years for these mama shops with many people choosing to go to larger supermarket chains. In spite of that, there is a personal touch that mama shops provide that supermarket establishments may not always provide.
‘“The mama shop was there since I could remember. My parents and I were actually quite close to the owners. When following my mother back from the market, we would stop to chat with the uncle,” said Thishalini Arumoha, 24.
Back in the 20th century, mama shops started up along Serangoon Road by Indian immigrants who then worked as traders and businessmen.
The word mama shop was derived from the Tamil word ‘Mama’ which means ‘uncle’ or ‘elder. During the olden times, the person who manned the shop was usually elder.
In the 1960s, as Singapore’s population underwent resettlement, a majority of mama shops moved from villages and into the void decks of high-rise flats along with their customers.
As owners of the shops are usually the ones who work there, business was done with friendly exchanges and made room for personal connections.
“I knew the uncle that worked in the mama shop at my block very well. I almost grew up with him, I would say. When I was young, I used to come in to buy those plastic footballs to play and my friends and I would lose it in a day. The next day, uncle would have already kept a ball at the counter for us to purchase once again.” smiled Javee Goh, 31.
In the 1980s, there were over 3000 active mama shops in Singapore. With economic development and competition, it is much harder to find a mama shop nearby these days.
“I used to always visit my friend’s house when I was younger and we would go down to the mama shop to get some snacks. A few years ago, the mama shop sadly turned into a kindergarten and we had to walk quite a distance to get to a convenience store.” explains Javee Goh when asked about what she thought of the disappearance of mama shops.
This begs the question of whether mama shops still have a place in Singapore’s evolving society.
To some Singaporeans, mama shops still invoke a sense of nostalgia. Thishalini Arumoha has many fond memories of the mama shop under her block.
“My primary school was located one block away from where I stay. During the free time we had before our remedial lessons, my friends and I would share money to buy ‘air-batu’ (ice popsicles) before we headed back to school. In primary school, we received just enough money to have our meals so we always made it a point to save up for our mama shop trips, ” said Thishalini with a reminiscent smile.
When asked about the battle between mama shops and supermarket chains, “I won’t deny, supermarkets do offer a wider range of products as compared to mama shops but I feel that mama shops should still be around because they are a part of Singapore’s rich history. The nostalgic feeling of visiting one is what wins me over actually.” said Thishalini.
On the contrary, there are others who think differently. 21-year-old Patricia Ann has never found a need for mama shops. Ever since moving to Sengkang from a young age, there were hardly any mama shops available in the area.
“Finding a mama shop would probably be further as compared to just going to Rivervale Mall. I can find whatever I need at NTUC, Cheers or Giant most of the time anyway,” said Patricia.
When talking about the convenience factor, Patricia still prefers heading to the mall to buy her supplies.
“Personally, I think the mall is much more convenient, especially if it’s nearby. I can shop for groceries and if I want to, go out to eat at the kopitiam or McDonald’s. There are cute mini toy machines primary school children would love to play with too. There’s just plenty more things you can do at the mall as compared to a mama shop,” she remarked.
Patricia is unsure whether mama shops can still survive the rapidly changing community. After all, newer neighbourhoods, such as Punggol and Sengkang, are more often than not being overrun with kindergartens, old folk homes and tuition centres.
There is hardly enough space for mama shops to operate, especially since they would have to deal with expensive rents.
In the upcoming years, mama shops will stand to face the test of time as they continue to dwindle down. A new generation will begin to develop our nation and many might grow up without the familiarity mama shops provided Singaporeans while they grew up.
With the ever changing environment in Singapore, it is always important for us to hold on to our roots and preserve our national and cultural heritage. For many, mama shops remind us of a simpler time in our lives and many others hold on to fond memories associated with these shops.
If we don’t want to see our mama shops leave our street culture, the best we can do is give them a little support by buying a thing or two.
“I believe the reason why I will always support mama shops is because of all the happy moments that I have associated them with. Working in such a fast pace country, it’s little things like this that make me remember where I came from and how it all began. When I just started out my career as a chef, I recall the times that I went down to my mama shop to buy last minute ingredients so that I could try new recipes. I would like to thank uncle, for being there all these years and hopefully for many more to come” Javee sighed.
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