Coronavirus Singapore

Relief for retail, F&B outlets as diners return to malls

Many see business pick up after rules are eased, allowing groups of two to dine in

People waiting in line at Hawkers' Street in Ion Orchard mall yesterday on the first weekend since dining in was allowed to resume in groups of two. Many families took the opportunity to eat out as this is the last weekend of the school holidays. ST
People waiting in line at Hawkers' Street in Ion Orchard mall yesterday on the first weekend since dining in was allowed to resume in groups of two. Many families took the opportunity to eat out as this is the last weekend of the school holidays. ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH

Retail outlets and food and beverage (F&B) outlets have benefited from the easing of dine-in rules.

The Sunday Times visited Paragon, Ion Orchard, Jem and Westgate yesterday and dropped in on 11 F&B outlets and nine retail shops across the four malls.

As expected, various F&B outlets said business had improved even though they had not reached full seating capacity.

Dining in was allowed to resume on Monday, in groups of two.

Ms Beh Phei Ling, 29, manager of Rumah Sayang at Jem, said the eatery has seen a 15 per cent increase in walk-in customers since the first day of phase three (heightened alert). The Sunday Times saw that it had at least 10 customers by noon, filling a third of the eatery's capacity.

The number of patrons at Rumah Sayang dropped by around 60 per cent during phase two (heightened alert).

Although relieved that business has picked up, Ms Beh said the increase remains modest and limited.

She said: "People may still be cautious and scared to visit the mall because of the number of Covid-19 cases."

Jem and Westgate were shut from May 23 for two weeks, after 10 cases were linked to them. Ion Orchard was also closed for four days from June 12, after three workers tested positive for Covid-19.

Some F&B establishments remain supportive of the cautious approach towards dining in.

Ms Samantha Toh, 23, branch manager at Baker's Brew Cafe in Paragon, said: "It's good that we are more cautious instead of jumping back to five people (per group dining in)."

But F&B outlets are also looking forward to further easing of the dine-in rules.

Ms Beh said: "Families might be unwilling to dine in because they do not wish to be split up."

Ms Doreen Ong, a manager at Hawkers' Street in Ion Orchard who is in her 50s, said the two-person rule and safe distancing measures mean its seating capacity has decreased from 60 to 32, and this has led to a low turnover rate for customers.

She said: "Customers can wait for 30 to 40 minutes, and some might walk away."

Some F&B outlets, such as PappaRich at Westgate, have had to contend with difficult customers.

Ms Annie Soh, 64, the supervisor of PappaRich at Westgate, recalled that she had to turn away a group of three friends who attempted to dine in. Some customers would even scold the staff if they were reminded to put on their masks when not consuming food, she said.

"My heart aches and I have a huge headache whenever customers are unhelpful. I even had to print the safe management measures to remind customers of the guidelines," she said.

The increased foot traffic of diners meant more potential customers for retail outlets too.

Mr John Tanjutco, 33, department manager at Prada in Paragon, said its number of walk-in clients increased from 35 per day to around 65 to 70 per day this week, sometimes even reaching 100. "Business has improved so much. It was a ghost town before. People are in the mood to shop again," he said.

Mr Davis Chiam, 28, shop manager at Charles & Keith in Ion Orchard, said it now had around 200 customers per day on weekdays, 50 more than before dining in was allowed.

"Customers think that without dine-in, there is no point to go to the malls," he said, adding that this is especially true for malls like Ion Orchard that are not located in the neighbourhood.

Ms Arina Ali, 28, manager of stationery and school supplies store Smiggle at Jem, said the number of walk-in customers has picked up by almost 50 per cent since Monday. She attributed this jump to not only the spillover effect of customers dining in, but also to the imminent opening of schools after the June holidays.

As this is the last weekend of the school holidays, many families took the opportunity to eat out.

Polytechnic student Yasmin Razak, 17, was with her family at Pepper Lunch in Jem.

She said: "Due to the fasting month and the heightened alert, I was sad that I could not dine out with my parents for the past two months. I am happy that I get to dine out with my mum and dad before my school reopens."

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on June 27, 2021, with the headline Relief for retail, F&B outlets as diners return to malls. Subscribe