Bakery closure leads to inventory overflow, S’porean lease owner struggles to find new tenants

SINGAPORE: An owner recently complained about a famous bakery that had goods piled up in front of the shop after their lease had already expired. With this, the owner is worried about finding a new tenant due to the inconvenience. 

The owner’s son expressed that previously, his father ran a grocery store in the shophouse near Sembawang Road. However, he had closed the business 10 years ago and put it out on rent. After several tenants, he rented the shophouse to a bakery owner for three years. 

“They rented the property from us at the time, paying about S$5,500 a month. Later, due to some friction, they didn’t renew the contract.” 

Furthermore, he stated that the bakery’s lease was going to expire on Aug 31, but due to misunderstanding, the owner did not agree with the original date and called the police. The police officers intervened and gave the bakery store owner a week to move out. 

However, despite the bakery moving out, there were still goods displayed on the five-foot-way in front of the shop. Due to this, a real estate agent told the owners that some potential tenants who came to check and possibly rent the shop refused after seeing the situation. 

A reporter from Shin Min Daily News also visited the location and found out that many cardboard boxes were stacked up to the ceiling outside the shop, and these were blocking the shop’s front. 

According to the bakery owner, they needed to stock up on their goods before the Mid-Autumn Festival. They have decided to temporarily place their stocks there, but they will move out as soon as possible. 

“It’s Mid-Autumn Festival now, and we have a huge increase in demand for mooncakes, longevity peaches, etc., so we have a lot of goods,” they explained. 

When the reporters visited the shop once again, the cardboard boxes had been removed. 

What is the Mid-Autumn Festival?

The Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month when the full moon is the brightest. This celebration is usually a family reunion.

Families enjoy eating mooncakes—a food that is round like the full moon and represents togetherness. Bakeries offer many flavours of mooncakes, from the traditional lotus seed paste with egg yolk to new ones like snowskin with champagne truffle. 

Moreover, people hold moon-viewing parties where family and friends drink tea and eat their chosen mooncakes. Kids also have lanterns–some made from classic paper with candles, and others are modern battery-powered.