ST : Six Ion stalls close

Apr 18, 2010

Six Ion stalls close

The remaining 28 stalls cite bad business - due partly to the lack of sitting space for customers - and high rent as the reason

By Eunice Quek

When it opened to much fanfare in July last year, the Food Hall at basement 4 of Ion Orchard was packed. Several stalls there had long queues of hungry shoppers and stallholders could barely cope.

Now, six of the 34 stalls have closed, the queues are gone and stall assistants at the remaining businesses stand around looking bored. The shuttered stalls, Arinco King, Hokkaido Express, Tokyo Crepe Girl, Lastchocolate.com, Renaldo's and Freddie's Burger, closed shop about a month ago.

The remaining stallholders say that business is bad because the novelty has worn off and customers have no place to sit after buying food. Mr Clement Tan, 33, outlet manager of Japanese takoyaki chain Tsujiki Gindaco, says: 'When we first opened, the queue stretched to the neighbouring shop. Now, we barely have a queue. People came because we were new. I hope they're not sick of our food.'

For Mr Sam Wong, 27, who runs GoGo Franks, which is well known for its prata sausage roll, sales at his outlet in Ang Mo Kio Hub are 'three times better than at Ion. Even the tenants at Ion don't eat here because the snacks are a bit pricey. If we can't even feed our own, how do we feed everyone else? Those who want to spend more money on a full meal will probably go to the restaurants instead of eating at the snack outlets.'

He cut prices at his Ion Orchard outlet 'by about 10 per cent since last year' to attract more customers since competition among the food outlets is stiff. He also says that rent is high and 'even the more popular shops may earn enough only to pay their rent'. All those interviewed declined to say how much rent they are paying.

Student Lynette Sim, 19, says: 'I'm not surprised that stalls are closing down. I'm sure that the rental in Ion is very high, since it is pitched to a crowd that is more well-off.'

When LifeStyle visited the Food Hall several times last week during lunch time, it was clear that existing stall owners were trying to stay afloat.

Tori Q, a chain which sells grilled meats on skewers and which has outlets in shopping malls all over the island, had stall assistants handing out samples.

Gyoza no Tetsujin by En, which specialises in panfried Japanese dumpling, introduced set meals and that has helped business to pick up.

Four of the six stalls that closed were run by the same Japanese company, Garb. Arinco King, Hokkaido Express, Tokyo Crepe Girl and Lastchocolate.com closed on April 1.

Shop assistants from nearby stalls say it was a shock exit. Some of them received text messages on the day itself, about the closure.

Mr Dave Koh, 45, who was supervisor of the four outlets, says the decision came about because Hokkaido Express, which sells potato croquettes, and Lastchocolate.com, which sells chocolate drinks, were not doing well.

Ironically, Arinco King, which sells Swiss rolls, was a victim of its own success. Three new outlets had opened in Japan and there was a growing demand for its cakes here.

He says: 'The factory cannot fully support the need for the cakes in Singapore. We would receive urgent orders and have to end up rejecting them.

'So we decided that the best way out was to shut down and since all four outlets are under one company, we had to close all of them.'

A loyal fan of Arinco King's salted caramel swiss rolls, housewife Aileen Gan, 53, was sorely disappointed to find out that the outlet had closed down.

'I came all the way to Ion to buy the salted caramel roll for my daughter, only to find out that the stall closed,' she says.

The other two outlets, Renaldo's which sells apple strudel, and Freddie's Burger, are run by the same company. There is just one Freddie's Burger outlet and five other Renaldo's, in Raffles City Shopping Centre, Circular Road, Eastwood Centre, OUB Centre and Crown Centre. All the Renaldo's outlets have closed. The owner, Ms Jazz Lee, could not be contacted.

Still, it is not all doom and gloom at the Ion food hall. Ms Amber Chong, 23, outlet manager for Marvelous Cream, which sells Japanese ice cream, says: 'I know that the management is trying to help through advertising and opening up private seating so that more customers can sit down to eat.'

An Ion Orchard spokesman tells LifeStyle: 'One common feedback received for the Food Hall was the request for more seating for shoppers buying take-away food. Starting next month, we will be implementing the first phase of enhancements to our Food Hall, which includes enhanced ambience, changes in seating configuration and improvements in signage.'

Ms Chong says the stall is staying put for now. 'I don't see any reason to move out when we've been here barely for a year,' she says. 'It's all part of the business. If our quality remains up to standard, customers will come back.'

euniceq@sph.com.sg