Siblings invent walking stick holder to give away to seniors

They now run firm with schoolmates to make device that has won awards here and abroad

The young entrepreneurs running Qanemate are (clockwise from left) Yuan Jing Shuo, siblings Seng Ian Hao and Seng Ing Le, Brian Tan and Coen Yap. Besides the walking stick holder, the firm is also behind the QaneBrella.
The young entrepreneurs running Qanemate are (clockwise from left) Yuan Jing Shuo, siblings Seng Ian Hao and Seng Ing Le, Brian Tan and Coen Yap. Besides the walking stick holder, the firm is also behind the QaneBrella. ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
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When Seng Ian Hao was nine years old and his sister Ing Le was seven, they witnessed a fall at a hawker centre that changed the course of their young lives.

An elderly woman was trying to pick up her walking stick, which she had leant against her table but had slid to the ground. As she bent over, she lost her balance and fell, hitting her head.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on July 29, 2019, with the headline Siblings invent walking stick holder to give away to seniors. Subscribe