Monsoon surge hits outdoor businesses and bazaars; some face up to 50% losses

SINGAPORE: Incessant rainfall over the past two days has caught some outdoor business owners off guard, including stall owners at Kampong Gelam’s Ramadan bazaar.

They said their takings have plunged by up to 50 per cent, but some have decided to turn to online sales and innovative menus to make up for losses.

The ongoing monsoon surge is expected to last until Friday (Mar 21). The authorities first warned about potential flash floods on Monday, and issued flood risk warnings at several locations from Wednesday onwards when non-stop heavy rain hit.

According to the national water agency PUB, over the past two days, Jurong West recorded the highest total amount of rainfall at 318mm. The highest amount of rainfall in the east was 298.4mm.

These exceeded Singapore's average monthly rainfall of 209.7mm in March, PUB said in a Facebook post on Thursday. 

Flooding also occurred on a 15m stretch along the intersection of Mountbatten Road and Jalan Seaview for about two hours on Thursday.

Travellers have been advised to defer non-essential travel to Johor this weekend, with the March school holidays and heavy rainfall causing heavy traffic at the Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints.

SALES “DROPPED TREMENDOUSLY”

At Kampong Gelam Bazaar, stall owners told CNA on Thursday that they were trying to drum up as many sales as possible before the bazaar closes on Mar 25.

For sister companies Teh-Ohhh and Tebu, which have several beverage stalls at the bazaar, sales “dropped tremendously” to “maybe half of what we usually earn”, said stall owner Mai, who only gave one name.

“I hope people will come down and get the things they can from us before we actually wrap up for the season,” she added.

She said they can count on delivery orders to continue making money, and they have also been encouraging customers to order online.

“(The rain) is a blessing – actually, we’ve been working so hard even before the Ramadan period. I think it’s a rest period for some of us. But we’re also worried because it’s going to stretch out."

A Ramly burger stall owner, who gave his name as Haikal, said he was even buying umbrellas for patrons to use.

“We really try our best, like posting videos. But if people don’t want to come, if there's no shelter, there's no use,” he added.

The bazaar has put in place extra measures to protect vendors from rain, including “rain curtains” that can protect customers as they order food at the stalls. Gutters are also in place to redirect rainwater and keep stall owners’ food dry.

IMPACT ON EATERIES

Some restaurants have also been impacted, such as craft brewery and restaurant LeVel33, which has an outdoor seating area on the 33rd floor of Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 1 in Marina Boulevard.

The rooftop dining concept attracts tourists and locals alike due to its panoramic view of the Singapore skyline.

But bookings have taken a hit, with walk-ins and reservations trickling in since the rainy weather began.

Founder and managing director Martin Bem said the current food and beverage landscape is “challenging enough” without the monsoon surge affecting business.

LeVel33 also recently received a Guinness World Records certification for being the world’s highest micro-brewery in a building.

“So, we have even more people wanting to come up and have a look, and we have to tell them to try to come next week, because this week on the balcony we cannot open (the doors),” Bem added.

He said that while sales on Thursday dropped by about 15 per cent compared with regular days, the restaurant still has a good view of Marina Bay from inside, with his team working to shift some bookings from outdoors to indoors.

With frequent heavy rainfall affecting business, the restaurant changes the menu more often to keep guests coming.

Bem added that it is banking on Singapore’s upcoming 60th birthday celebrations to draw in a bigger crowd and make up for lost sales.

“The overall economic outlook is also a little bit insecure all over the world, and especially in Singapore as well, so it's definitely not the best time to have a monsoon on top of it,” he said.

“But we had it before, so we are definitely positive going forward.”