S'porean woman, 34, with master's degree, gives up office job to be kway chap hawker

Esther Ng, 34, holds a master's degree in international business management.

In what some might consider a rather unorthodox move, Ng moved from an office job to a hawker stall four years ago.

Ng shared her motivations with Lianhe Zaobao in a video interview.

A hawker kid

Calling herself a hawker kid, she explained that she is now selling kway chap as her father used to sell it as a hawker previously.

She also found it a shame if that heritage was lost.

Her parents were not initially supportive at all of their daughter's career shift, considering the profession hard labour.

Ng's father said he was worried about the long hours and tough work she would have to endure, as well as the criticism she might face from customers.

Tough work

Ng did not sugarcoat the facts either.

She said the stark contrast between the hawker trade and office work was great, especially in terms of days off.

Office jobs come with holidays, while a hawker basically has to work 365 days a year, Ng said.

S$4,000 a month rent

But perhaps the biggest hurdle she had to navigate was at the start of her hawker journey.

That was when she had to find a stall to operate out of.

Ng shared that a small corner stall at a coffeeshop would have cost her about S$9,000 to S$10,000 in rent.

Thankfully, she was able to secure a location at Woodleigh Village Hawker Centre, a Socially-conscious Enterprise Hawker Centre (SEHC).

Her rent is around S$4,000.

Her stall, Guan Kee Kway Chap is also at Toa Payoh Lorong 8 Market & Hawker Centre.

As for whether she would encourage young folks to go down this path, Ng was adamant.

"I always say don't go down this road. But if you can stand 13 to 14 hours a day, sacrifice time with friends, and maybe earn less than your previous salary, if you're still willing to try, then go for it."

Image from Lianhe Zaobao YouTube