11 shop units on same floor put up for sale at Sim Lim Square amid slowing business

By Navene Elangovan

Published24 July, 2020
Updated 24 July, 2020

  • In January, 11 shops at Sim Lim Square were first listed for sale
  • They are being put up for sale again after failing to secure buyers
  • Employees at some of these shops said that business has fallen significantly in recent months
  • Other retailers at the iconic mall also reported a slump in earnings due to factors related to Covid-19 fallout



SINGAPORE — Amid slowing business made worse by the impact of the ongoing pandemic, 11 shops on a single floor at iconic “tech mecca” Sim Lim Square have been put on sale again. They had failed to secure buyers after the units were first listed for sale in January.

The six-storey mall has seen its fortunes dwindle in recent years, during which there were also a number of unsuccessful en-bloc sale attempts.

In a press release issued on Thursday (July 23), marketing agent Knight Frank said that the 11 shops on the fifth floor have been put up for sale via an Expression of Interest (EOI), with a 3pm, Aug 25 deadline for any offers.

The guide price for all units is S$21 million. This translates to around S$4,134 per square foot (psf).

The total strata area of the 11 units, which face the central podium of the mall, is about 5,080 sqf, with unit sizes ranging from 291 sqf to 506 sqf. There are a total of 79 units on the floor.

When they were put up for sale in January via EOI, they were going for a slightly higher guide price of S$22 million.

Speaking to TODAY, employees of some of these shops said that business had fallen significantly in recent months.

Mr Mohan Ramadoss, an IT manager at Video Pro, which sells IT equipment, said that the daily total sales on weekdays had dropped from S$10,000 in February to between S$3,000 and S$5,000 now.

His store occupies two units out of the 11 that have been put on sale.

While weekend sales could go up to S$30,000 a day in February, this has now dropped to S$20,000.

Mr Mohan said that his shop is facing a shortage of computer-related parts, as a result of disruptions to shipments from China because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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“If there is no stock, customers go off.”

The 40-year-old, who has worked at the shop for three years, said that he did not know how much it cost to rent the units, but he thinks that it will be “difficult” to cover the rent given the poor sales. Still, he is optimistic that things could get better soon, with corporate orders expected to come in once more offices resume their activities over the next few months.

BUSINESS HALVED SINCE CIRCUIT BREAKER

Other units in the mall are in the same predicament as these shops.

The retailers interviewed said that overall, their sales had dropped by as much as half in the last few months. They attributed it to several factors, including delayed shipment from overseas suppliers and greater competition from online marketplaces.

A business owner who rents three units at the mall said that sales at his store, which specialises in computer accessories, had fallen by 40 to 50 per cent this month compared with January.

Declining to be named, he attributed the drop to a lack of tourists and foreign workers who make up about 40 per cent of his clientele.

Tourists have not been able to enter Singapore since the Government barred short-term visitors from entering or transiting through the country in March. Foreign workers have also been told to remain in their dormitories since the circuit breaker from April 7 to June 1 to restrict movement and curb the spread of Covid-19.

MORE CUSTOMERS TURNING TO ONLINE SALES

Some store employees noted that the circuit breaker had accelerated the competition from online stores.

While Singapore is in the second phase of its exit from the circuit breaker, consumer habits have been irrevocably changed.

Mr Kenny Yeo, 56, a sales assistant at camera store Alan Photo Trading, said that the shop’s current sales were not enough to cover the rent, which amounts to S$15,000 a month. The store sees fewer than 10 customers a day, compared with 40 before the circuit breaker.

He said that the fall was due to customers’ increasing preference for online purchases. Buying online saves customers travel time and reduces their need to venture out during this pandemic period, he noted.

Earnings have also taken a tumble at Worldwide Computer Services, which sells IT products. Mr Dhinesh Kumar Kandhasamy, a service engineer there, said that the store’s average daily sales had dropped from S$1,000 before the circuit breaker to S$500 now.

He noted that in recent years, stores at Sim Lim Square had started to face competition from other IT-focused malls such as Funan Mall.

SHOPPERS RETURNING BUT SITUATION STILL BLEAK

While customers can return to the mall during Phase Two of the circuit breaker exit, he still has to contend with delayed shipments of the store’s products, which mostly come from China. So people are turning to buy directly from online stores.

Mr Alex Chong, a salesman at a store that repairs and sells computers and mobile phones, said that many people who are visiting Sim Lim Square now seem to be looking to “stretch their legs” without making any purchases.

The 62-year-old lamented that his total sales for the day as of Thursday evening when TODAY visited the mall was only around S$100. This was one-tenth of the minimum that he used to make each day in January.

He noted that several other stores at the malls had closed due to poor sales but his store still makes “just enough” to get by.

On what could be done to boost sales, he said: “I think the question is whether people have the money to spend. You can do whatever you want, like hold promotions, but it’s whether people have cash on hand to buy things. In this period, people are putting their household needs first before spending on other things.”

Read more at https://www.todayonline.com/singapor...owing-business