Lim is happy her regular customers patronised her cafe during the weekend.“I even opened during the second day of Chinese New Year with hopes of getting some sales, ” she said, adding that there were at least 40 customers that day.To recover from the sales drop, Lim said she had to adjust the workers’ salaries.Restaurant owner Hanisah Jan Abdul Shatar, 35, did not close shop during the long holiday as the business was already affected because of the MCO.
“During the Chinese New Year holiday, our business suffered a 70% drop in sales compared to last year. “We used to have reservations from Chinese customers for their reunion dinners, but none were made this year, ” he said.“Usually during long holidays, customers come from other states, including foreigners.
“Right now we are hoping for the best. With the Covid-19 cases slowly dropping, we hope people will go out and dine at our restaurant as usual, ” he said.