Geylang Serai Bazaar 2021 - Moving To...

GEYLANG SERAI BAZAAR 2021 - MOVING TO A SCREEN NEAR YOU

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the popular annual Geylang Ramadan bazaar has been moved online. NUR KHALIDAH and SHILPA SHADES find out how bazaar vendors and patrons feel about the shift.

Mr Norvan Tan, 25, the founder of Blackout Singapore and Beef Bros, was hoping that the annual Geylang Serai Ramadan bazaar would return this year since Singapore has moved into Phase Three. However, his hopes were crushed when he heard the news about the cancellation of the physical Ramadan bazaar this year.

Phase Three is one of Singapore’s reopening plans after lockdown where groups of eight people can gather and large-scale events, like weddings, can resume with a certain crowd limit.

People’s Association (PA) announced in a media release with Channel News Asia (CNA) on Jan 13, that this year’s bazaar will take place online from Apr 9 to May 13. This has been the second time that the said bazaar was cancelled due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, leaving both vendors and attendees crushed.

“The annual Ramadan bazaar was usually the highlight of the year for our business. More than 50 per cent of our yearly sales was affected due to its cancellation,” says Ms Ruzanna Kamal, 31, founder of Almoulke.

Together with her husband, Ms Ruzanna founded Almoulke in 2014 which focuses on selling traditional Muslim apparels such as the Abaya (loose-fitting full-length blouse worn by women in Middle Eastern countries) and Kaftan (a long-belted robe commonly worn by men in Middle Eastern countries).

For Mr Tan, the Ramadan month was also supposed to be profitable for both his businesses where he’ll usually earn an increment of 500-800 per cent in the month itself. He started Blackout SG back in 2014, catering to people looking for customisable sandals made out of waterproof and durable material. Two years later, he started Beef Bros, well-known for their variety of blow torched beef cubes.

The transition for large-scale events in Singapore, from a physical setting to an online environment, has caused customers to face difficulties adapting to the new online environment. As Blackout customers switch to their official website, there are some things that can’t be done online.

“Without the physical store presence, people wouldn’t be able to come down to customise their sandals or try on the shoes to ensure that they get the right size… There isn’t that same kind of feeling and atmosphere as compared to a physical bazaar,” Mr Tan says.

Food enthusiast, Muhammad Iskandar Ismail, 22, also felt that the delight from experiencing a physical bazaar is gone. For him, it’s been a yearly tradition to patronise the Ramadan bazaar together with his family. To not experience it again this year was truly a disappointment.

The Geylang Serai community is going to be a lot quieter this year due to the annual Geylang bazaar being converted to online for the second time.

Photo by MR ADIEL RUSYAIDI

He says: “There would be multiple stalls selling a variety of foods and snacks from many ethnic cuisines… It was exciting to try out something delicious after not being able to eat the whole day.”

Mr Iskandar further explained that having a physical bazaar allows him to see the preparation of the food he orders and personally inspects the level of hygiene based on the vendors’ practices.

The same goes for Norizah Hamzah, 37, who’s also a regular Ramadan bazaar patron.

Singaporeans have been missing their bazaar classics like Turkish Kebabs since the cancellation of the physical Ramadan bazaar.

Photo by NUR KHALIDAH

She says: “I prefer purchasing the product itself at a physical bazaar because it’s easier to take a look [and] feel the material... Photos and videos [online] could just be for illustration purposes.”

She expresses her unhappiness on how there’s a lack of excitement for her and her family looking forward to Hari Raya Aidilfitri. The essence of celebration is absent as the bazaar was one of the aspects of bonding during this festive holiday for the Muslim community.

Nonetheless, past bazaar vendors like Mr Rishikesan, 36, director of Sofnade, are adapting to the new normal and coming up with alternative ways to ensure that their customers are able to continue to buy their products.

He says: “We plan to move into production and sell our food items like our meatballs to supermarkets.”

Sofnade was founded by Special Needs Educators in 2014, focusing on bringing live food stations to events and parties. They started out with selling soft serves and lemonades, and later on expanded their menus with homemade meatballs, churros and curly fries. They’ve since moved to selling at some school canteens and continue raising money into their marketing.

On top of that, Ms Ruzanna is maintaining a positive outlook on the current situation of the online Ramadan bazaar. She ensures that she constantly learns and keeps up with technological advancements by making use of platforms like Shopify to keep track of their sales, inventory and customers data.

She says: “In turbulent times, consistency and dependability are valued… Keep an open mind and [be] receptive to constructive feedback.”