After losing $140k in F&B over 14 years, man starts afresh with home-based kopitiam
Anders Kok, a 39-year-old entrepreneur, is attempting to restart his career with a home-based coffee business after losing $140,000 across nine failed food and beverage ventures. He cites issues with quality control and rising costs as primary reasons for his past struggles.
Why it matters
The story illustrates the high-risk nature of the F&B industry and the personal resilience required for serial entrepreneurship.
While most might have called it quits after failing the first time, one man decided that he'll continue trying again and again, even if it means starting from scratch.
In an interview with AsiaOne on Thursday (Oct 8), Kok Bing Hui, who goes by Anders, said that he had run nine different food concepts over the last 14 years — and they have all shuttered.
These range from crepes and salad stores, to mala xiang guo and korean fried chicken concepts, among others. Most of them were food court stalls.
His total losses over that period amounted to $140,000, the 39-year-old revealed.
The reasons for closure vary. His salad shop, which used to operate at the Singapore Management University, was "doing quite well".
But after increasing prices "due to greed", sales began to decline. It was also difficult sustaining revenue during school holiday periods.
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