Hawker culture is uniquely Singapore. Officially recognised by the Unesco Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2020, Singaporeans have much to be proud about our hawkers. However, with the median age of hawkers at 59 years old according to NEA, we cannot expect to retain our vibrant hawker culture as old hawkers retire (many times without successors).
To help retiring veteran hawkers pass down their skills, recipes and hawker stalls to the next generation, the NEA has introduced the Hawkers Succession Scheme that pairs veteran hawkers with aspiring successors. The scheme is intended to help veteran hawkers who would like to retire but face difficulties finding suitable successors to continue their legacies. Aspiring hawkers will also have the opportunity to operate a hawker business with an established customer base and time-tested recipes under this scheme.
Here’s how the Hawkers Succession Scheme (HSS) can benefit both retiring hawkers and aspiring new hawkers.
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Aspiring Hawkers Will Be Paired With Retiring Hawkers Under The Hawkers Succession Scheme (HSS)
The intention of HSS is to facilitate the continued practice of hawker trade and transmission of culinary skills from retiring veteran hawkers to aspiring successors.
To achieve this, aspiring hawkers will be paired with retiring veteran hawkers. After selection and pairing, the potential successors will undergo a 3-month apprenticeship under the veteran hawkers to learn the ropes of running a hawker business and learn their signature dishes.
Retiring Hawkers Receive A Stipend To Train Their Successors
To be eligible for the scheme, retiring hawkers should have at least 15 years of experience in operating cooked food stalls in hawker centres. They should also intend to retire and be unable to find suitable successors among their family members or relatives.
Under the HSS, veteran hawkers will receive a stipend of $1,500 per month for the 3-month apprenticeship. After the apprenticeship, there is an optional 2-month mentorship period during which they will receive a nominal stipend of $500.
The stipend is not intended as an income replacement but is meant as a recognition of the veteran hawker’s effort and time in guiding the successor during the apprenticeship and mentorship periods of the scheme.
In the same vein, NEA does not buy over the recipes of these veteran hawkers. Hawker businesses with compelling commercial value should consider commercial arrangements outside of the HSS, as they will have no shortage of suitors to buy over their recipes and brands.
Read Also: The Hawkers’ Development Programme (HDP): Helping You Cook For A Living
Retiring Hawkers Will Be Able To Assign Their Stalls To Their Successors
Currently, NEA only allows hawkers who are stallholders of non-subsidised stalls to assign their stalls to family members or relatives only. Under the HSS, these eligible non-subsidised stallholders will be able to assign their stalls to their successors. This will facilitate the continuation of their hawker trade.
For subsidised stallholders, they will still be offered the ex-gratia payment which is usually given out upon retirement when they handover the stall and exit the trade. This is a one-off ex-gratia payment of $23,000.
The successors will pay assessed market rent to NEA after they take over the stall. They will also not be allowed to transfer the stall for the first 3 years as the intention is to carry on the veteran hawkers’ business and signature dishes.
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Successors Will Have To Pass A Selection Process
To ensure the quality of hawker fare, aspiring successors must pass a culinary skills test and interview. This will be conducted with a food testing panel, comprising the veteran hawker, member(s) of an independent HSS advisory panel and NEA. Successful applicants who passed the culinary skill test and interview will be notified in two to four weeks’ time.
To be eligible, potential successors must be a Singapore Citizen or Permanent Resident aged 21 years and above.
They must not be:
- Debarred from holding a hawker licence by NEA
- A former assistant/ nominee who has been deregistered by NEA
- Banned from taking part in any business tenders by Government/Statutory Boards
- An undischarged bankrupt
- An existing stallholder or joint operator of two or more cooked food stalls in markets/ hawker centres managed by NEA
- A family member or relative of the veteran hawker
If successfully paired with a veteran hawker, the successors will go through a 3-month apprenticeship when they will learn the recipe and necessary cooking techniques from the veteran hawkers with the intention of replicating the signature dish(es) and taking over the hawker stalls. They must also pass the Food Safety Course Level 1 before going through the apprenticeship.
Once, they take over the stall, they must personally operate it as the registered stallholder. If they have a partner to jointly manage the stall, the partner will have to be registered as a hawker assistant.
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Successors Must Maintain Hawker Business For At Least 3 Years
Unlike setting up a hawker stall on their own or under the Hawker Development Programme, successors have to maintain their veteran hawker’s legacy.
They need to retain the veteran hawker’s signature dishes, stall name for the first 3 years. They are also not allowed to transfer the stall during that period. They should also maintain the food price of the signature dishes within the first 18 months. They are not allowed to terminate the stall tenancy for the first 12 months.
However, they can introduce new dishes on top of the existing signature dishes. They can also implement any new or innovative sales, marketing or operating concepts.
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