11,700 firms supported by EnterpriseSG in 2025 amid tariffs and disruptions

SINGAPORE – Home-grown furniture brand Castlery makes its products in factories in Asia and sends most of its stock to the US, placing it in the crosshairs of President Donald Trump’s tariffs, which are targeted at foreign manufacturing.

Castlery’s co-founder and president Declan Ee told The Straits Times that the import taxes “naturally added cost pressure to the business”, as the US accounts for about 70 per cent of its global revenue.

The company has been building its presence in other overseas markets to widen its international footprint.

It is one of the 11,700 businesses that Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) supported in 2025 to grow their revenue and strengthen cost competitiveness.

This came during a volatile year of rising trade tensions, technological disruptions and evolving supply chains, EnterpriseSG said during its annual media briefing on Jan 28.

It added that 2,400 of the businesses embarked on transformative projects, which include efforts to deepen their market presence and improve cost efficiencies.

The projects are expected to increase the companies’ annual revenues by $12.3 billion, amounting to an average of $7.5 million in additional revenue per company, and to create 10,000 skilled jobs.

EnterpriseSG chairman Lee Chuan Teck acknowledged that its latest projections for revenue and jobs growth were lower than what it projected at its previous annual briefing in 2025 because of the gloomier global outlook.

He said many businesses had adopted a “wait-and-see mode” for a period after April 2025, when Mr Trump imposed tariffs on almost every country.

Businesses that have since fronted transformative projects have also been more risk-averse, with many starting smaller-scale, software-related projects that come with lower costs, Mr Lee added.

Textile and apparel manufacturer Ghim Li,

which joined the flagship Scale-Up programme in 2022

, has introduced an advanced production planning tool and digitally enabled manufacturing lines to automate scheduling, optimise resource allocation and maximise factory capacity.

It also implemented a new operational system and factory automation machinery, which increased factory efficiency by 20 per cent.

Mr Gan Minghao, the company’s executive vice-president of operations, told ST: “The EnterpriseSG programme has delivered tangible benefits to Ghim Li across both productivity and revenue growth.”

Besides seeing higher productivity and better utilisation of resources, he said his colleagues have also benefited from workshops with other businesses organised by EnterpriseSG, as “that interaction has broadened their perspective across various industries and helped to strengthen their learning”.

Mr Lee expects tariffs to remain a lingering concern in 2026, as businesses contend with the knock-on effect of the taxes, which could see more goods being diverted from the US to other parts of the world.

“What we will try to do is to provide them with more advisory. I do think that what we have seen with firms diversifying their markets and operations will continue, perhaps even in a bigger way in 2026,” he added.

EnterpriseSG, which has offices in more than 35 cities, plans to open another two offices in the US in 2026. These will be located in Austin, which has drawn the interest of many Singapore businesses, and Boston, a hub for start-ups, particularly in the biomedical field.

It will also collaborate more closely with trade associations and chambers and work with industry partners to help more businesses harness artificial intelligence.

Mr Ee said the results of Castlery’s internationalisation efforts, which have been in the works for several years, showed in 2025 when it entered the British market, launched its Canadian e-commerce store and opened its second Australian showroom in Brisbane.

“Enterprise Singapore supported this phase of growth by connecting us with partners, agencies and local networks on the ground, which made a big difference in helping us understand new markets quickly and enter with confidence,” he said.

“This kind of ecosystem support is especially helpful for Singapore-based companies expanding overseas.”

The company plans to continue investing in major markets in 2026, even as the international operating environment remains uncertain.

“This is where we continue working closely with EnterpriseSG and their in-market experts to enable us to mitigate risks,” Mr Ee said.

“Our focus is on being selective about where we deploy capital, prioritising initiatives that strengthen the core business and support long-term brand growth.”