Tan Boon Hai, who took his parents' economy bee hoon business and grew it into Hup Lee Fried Bee Hoon hawker chain with 90 outlets in Singapore, died of heart failure on May 2.

He was 51.

Diagnosed with ALS in 2022

Tan was diagnosed with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) in February 2022, Shin Min Daily News reported.

This was after his left hand felt weak.

He was in his prime then having expanded his business to 90 outlets in Singapore in just 10 years.

To ascertain the diagnosis, he sought out six doctors for their opinions.

ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a degenerative disease and has no cure.

Expanded business quickly

Tan's parents had just one hawker stall in Yishun initially.

Huang Suling, 50, who was Tan's partner, told Shin Min that the entrepreneur honed his cooking skills by helping his mother at the stall while growing up.

Tan would write down his plans on what he would do with the business and how to attain those goals.

The business-oriented man with only secondary school qualifications managed to open the first Hup Lee Fried Bee Hoon stall in Woodlands.

The money he put into it was earned from working at the family business.

He then went on to open three more hawker stalls.

Success in the cutthroat F&B business made him more business-savvy.

This was followed by a factory he set up to bulk manufacture chilli sauce, condiments and bee hoon used at the various stalls.

In the early 2000s, Tan was opening three to four new stalls every month and he brought in friends and family to expand his chain, Shin Min reported.

Lost appetite before his passing

Five days before his passing, Tan lost his appetite, Huang revealed.

He had also started coughing.

His heart gave out while on the way to the hospital for a check-up, it was reported.

He was momentarily revived after doctors performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation on him.

But his blood pressure remained low and he died subsequently.

Top photos via Shin Min Daily News & Google Maps