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There are food courts elsewhere too. The main difference is government subsidized rent, and an older generation of people who are willing to work very hard for
by kccqzy 2y ago
There are food courts elsewhere too. The main difference is government subsidized rent, and an older generation of people who are willing to work very hard for low overall income. The former can be solved by politics but the latter cannot. It is simply not sustainable. Look at the people who are working in these hawker centers: they are almost always old, and they are willing to work hard so that their children can work less hard in a nice air conditioned office. When these people retire, there will be no one to occupy these hawker centers at this price of food.
- dfxm12 2y agoFWIW, Door Dash drivers aren't making much either.
- kccqzy 2y agoFood preparation is harder work than driving, especially the kind of Asian food in hawker centers.
- kylehotchkiss 2y agoAmerican mall food courts make me sad. Do you like Sbarro? What is Sbarro?
- ghaff 2y agoIt does vary a bit. There is a cut above the Sbarro's, McD's, etc. that you probably see increasingly but they can be relatively pricey.
- gregorvand 2y agoI take your point the majority are more middle aged / elderly working in these. However I personally know two sets of young guys running stalls and they love it. They’re from working class backgrounds and appreciate the freedom of running their own company. I think we’ll see a natural regeneration of hawkers, it only happens when the current want to give up or rents tip above their limits.
- kccqzy 2y agoOh I understand that these exist too. On instagram I was showed an ad about young hawkers having "innovations" to classic dishes, like Hokkien mee kosong, but of course they aren't the majority. I suppose the young hawkers competently use modern media to increase their reach.