'I have never given up hope on this business': The challenges of running a minimart amid rising cost of living How does a five-cent price increase impact a minimart? What happens when a supermarket nearby prices the same item at 10 cents less? And how does shoplifting affect the bottom line? CNA hears from minimart owners about what it takes to run their business.New: You can now listen to articles.SINGAPORE: About nine years ago, Mr Alvin Tan fulfilled a childhood dream.
He took over his family’s minimart where he grew up. The 32-year-old owner, a self-professed “very traditional person”, always saw Kim Eng Mini Supermarket as his career's “final destination”. After all, the minimart in Yishun also happens to be named after his grandmother. But the store has seen better days, with the rising cost of living exacerbating existing challenges like shoplifting and competition with supermarket