TheLivesTheyLive

The Lives They Live: Hooked for life on aquarium fish trade

While the pioneer leaders were the original architects of Singapore, everyday heroes helped build society here. This is another story about such people in the series, The Lives They Live.

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Mr Pek Leng Choon, 70, has been a fish trader for 50 years. He got into the aquarium fish trade in 1968 after his radio spare parts business failed.
Mr Pek Leng Choon, 70, with his discus fish at Sunny Aquarium in Lim Chu Kang. Mr Pek got into the aquarium fish trade in 1968 and expanded his business overseas over the years.
Mr Pek Leng Choon, 70, with his discus fish at Sunny Aquarium in Lim Chu Kang. Mr Pek got into the aquarium fish trade in 1968 and expanded his business overseas over the years. ST PHOTOS: KEVIN LIM
Mr Pek with a typewriter and "James Bond" Samsonite briefcase he bought 50 years ago. On the hurdles he has faced over the years, he said: "This is part of doing business. This is what I have learnt as a businessman - there are ups and downs."
Mr Pek with a typewriter and "James Bond" Samsonite briefcase he bought 50 years ago. On the hurdles he has faced over the years, he said: "This is part of doing business. This is what I have learnt as a businessman - there are ups and downs."
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Life is going swimmingly for Mr Pek Leng Choon, but that has not always been the case.

The 70-year-old has been a fish trader for 50 years. "Not the kind that you put in your mouth for food, but the kind that you see with your eyes," he said in Mandarin with a laugh.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on April 18, 2018, with the headline The Lives They Live: Hooked for life on aquarium fish trade. Subscribe