00:00This is actually a chain for a ship anchor, and we actually got it from a super yacht.
00:06One of the most expensive things in our store is this cabinet.
00:10This is actually a mural of a scene of Singapore River.
00:31Hi, I'm Brilline, I'm the Da Jie.
00:34My role here is a buyer of Hock Xiong.
00:36I'm in the procurement team.
00:38I'm Eunice, I'm the E Jie.
00:39I basically do more like the ops work.
00:41How do we sort?
00:42How do we store?
00:43Where do we place the things?
00:44I'm Blessens, I'm the sun maid.
00:47I do like the back end, the administrative stuff.
00:50I help with like the payroll and all this.
00:53We run Hock Xiong, a second-hand furniture and homeware store in Singapore.
00:58But how exactly does the company work?
01:04So I see our company as a cycle, and if any part of the cycle breaks, we cannot function as
01:11a whole.
01:12I'll work with you.
01:13Hello, Hock Xiong, good afternoon.
01:15When someone has something to sell, right, they will contact me and I'll assess them whether this thing is too
01:20bulky,
01:21is it too a lot, or no market for it anymore.
01:24Things are beautiful, and they are of good quality.
01:27In fact, high quality items.
01:29It's just that the timing is not right.
01:31Because we have quite a number of similar items in our store.
01:36If it's something of interest, I will probably go down to assess them.
01:40So after assessing, and it's something that we potentially can buy in.
01:44We will arrange for collection, and if it's something that is really bad condition, before selling, we will bring them
01:52to our carpentry for fixing.
01:55Eventually, after refurbishment works, after touch-up, they will be brought down to sell.
02:01Recently, we actually took over these chairs from New Baru.
02:05Because they were previously made for the school hall, it was actually fixed onto the ground.
02:10So to make it work standalone, we have to install these stands.
02:15And because they were so old, we have to change out the parts.
02:21These assemble all the chairs, bring the good ones together, and reassemble them again.
02:27But Hokseong did not begin as a furniture store.
02:32The business traces its roots back to the sisters' grandparents, who were in the garanguni or rag and bone business.
02:39Their father began helping out in his 70s as a teen, collecting newspapers and unwanted items from people's homes.
02:46He eventually started renting spaces to store all the things.
02:50And the reason they started buying and selling furniture?
02:53The closing of the Marco Polo Hotel in 1998.
02:56As well as the onslaught of hotels being turned into condos at the time.
03:00They started renting a unit in Kampong Ampat in the early 90s,
03:04and subsequently expanded to other units in the building.
03:08For a major business decision, we have a committee.
03:11The family is the committee.
03:18Lessons, the youngest of the trio, joined the business straight out of school.
03:22Eunice was a freelance art director who left that career during the COVID-19 pandemic.
03:28Brillant, the oldest of the three, has been unofficially helping out with the business since she was a teenager.
03:34She officially joined the company when she graduated from NUS Business.
03:46They also have a younger brother who is still in school.
03:49Their parents are now semi-retired from the business.
03:52I did see my father's struggle.
03:54Sometimes it pains you, having seen the loved one struggling.
03:59I really remembered that he had struggles with language, especially English.
04:03He was building up Hock Siong and the people who laughed at him.
04:07And sort of that became a motivation that one day I would maybe try to help.
04:12Somehow we have got to this stage that we cannot look back anymore.
04:17We just have to go further. We just have to push on.
04:21Wow, this thing you owe me how much money?
04:23I have observed that sometimes family ties get soured because of family business.
04:31So when I came across this chair, I really badly wanted to bring them back to Hock Siong.
04:37But my sister disagree.
04:39No, I don't disagree.
04:40She's just like, just take it.
04:41Then I said, yeah, but what is our plan?
04:43How are you going to take it in?
04:45I mean, it's easy to say take, but what are you going to do?
04:48Yes.
04:50So...
04:50In the end, we came up with a solution which is, okay, we take half first.
04:55Okay.
04:58Like, my mum always say like, you know, family business, if there's arguments, right?
05:03Like, you have to put the relationship first.
05:05Like, you win the argument, but you lose the relationship.
05:09It's normal.
05:10Yeah.
05:11Yeah.
05:18It came about because we had a huge argument one day.
05:21I just made a comment like, I'm out.
05:25Like, I'm out.
05:25Then my daughter felt very hurt that I said I don't want to do it.
05:28Then my mum said, okay, okay, guys, you know, you guys need to calm down and talk about it.
05:33You know, if today you are saying quit, are you really quitting, quitting?
05:36Or you just need maybe a one day break.
05:38If you are quitting, you all three have to quit together.
05:40You, today you already saying you are doing it together.
05:42You have to do it together.
05:43You have to come as a package.
05:54Yeah.
05:54You can have all these possessions in your life.
05:57It can be like, be very rich.
05:58It can be living in a GCB house.
06:00But then when you pass away, right?
06:02The next generation, they don't fancy what you have.
06:04They're going to throw it away.
06:05They're going to sell it away.
06:06And then, you know, all these things are still just things, you know?
06:10I think the biggest lesson that we learn here with the things that we see every day is about impermanence.
06:15Companies usually, they always have a vision.
06:18Oh, we're going to do it.
06:19We're going to do it.
06:19By how many years?
06:2020 years?
06:2130 years?
06:21Very big ambition, right?
06:23That's like, never this thought of facing the death of a company.
06:30Maybe by the age of 80, 90, on average age, we will die.
06:34If we do not have anyone to take over, one day, Hock Xiong may have to close.
06:39By faith, everything that we are here, and then we don't mind continuing our business.
06:43But then now, we don't have anyone to continue.
06:45Then we just...
06:46No choice of when we're old, then just...
06:48Yeah, we do.
06:50Probably...
06:51Yeah.
06:51Let's wait 30 years time.
06:53We'll see this video.
06:5430 years, yeah.
06:55I'm so sorry, because I thought the home way was at the end.
06:58Just Tate, then Eje, Sanje, then we are...
07:02Oh, okay.
07:03And Bubbles Buttercup.
07:05Then after we have a pop-up, cause you know?
07:08Okay.
07:08Okay.
07:14And you line us.
07:16We are so sorry!
07:17Oh, okay.
07:21Click the heaven, just like a paste, so whoa....
07:21Check there.
07:21The righto...
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