Tampines most 'kiasu' town in Singapore, says supermarket chain Giant

An umbrella and packets of tissue used to chope seats at the food centre in Our Tampines Hub. PHOTO: ST FILE

SINGAPORE - Supermarket chain Giant will hold a two-hour mega giveaway in Tampines on Saturday (Oct 28), after the town was found to be the most "kiasu" in Singapore in a recent inter-town competition.

"Kiasu" comes from the Hokkien word meaning "afraid to lose out".

Serangoon came in second and Jurong West third in the competition, which took the form of an online quiz that attracted more than 57,000 submissions.

The quiz ran from Sept 25 to Oct 24, with each result collated - based on its postal code - into an overall scoreboard showcasing the top five "kiasu" towns.

Giant, in a press release on Wednesday, said it will celebrate Tampines' win by hosting the giveaway at its Tampines hypermarket.

From 1pm to 3pm on Saturday, residents can queue for freebies such as Milo, canned drinks, ice cream and pocket tissue.

In Tampines, half of the respondents said they would press the traffic-light button repeatedly in hopes the lights will turn green sooner.

Fifty per cent - nearly twice the average of other towns - of Tampines respondents also said they would use tissue, an umbrella or a bag to "chope" (reserve) seats at a coffee shop.

The quiz also found that 38 per cent of respondents admitted they would go the extra mile for good deals, while 14 per cent were willing to pay the full price for everything.

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