Uggli Muffins to close Toa Payoh, Jalan Besar stalls in October after failing to find successor
The Toa Payoh and Jalan Besar stalls will close, but the owner still believes in the potential of the 54-year-old business with an international customer base .
SINGAPORE — Popular hawker stall Uggli Muffins will be closing both of its outlets in October.
Current second-generation owner, 53-year-old Anton Tan, told Yahoo Southeast Asia that the two outlets in Toa Payoh and Jalan Besar will be shutting down on 10 October.
News of its impending closure first surfaced as a photo post on Facebook group Toa Payoh Makan Places on Friday (25 August).
It showed a handwritten sign, stating that the Toa Payoh branch will stop its operations until a successor is found.
Failure to find successor
Over a phone call, Tan expressed his sadness over the decision.
"My heart is bleeding. I have been doing this for 18 years and across two generations, since taking over from my parents," he said.
With a customer base that extended to countries like China and Japan, Tan believes that the business can be reproduced in Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.
Since the announcement of his hunt for a successor in early May, Tan has had people reach out to him via text and phone. Yet, none of the discussions have made progress.
He shared that he is looking for two types of successors: Industry players or those with deep pockets to handle the entire operation, or interested parties looking to test it out by taking over one stall first.
"Singaporeans are not hungry, that's the problem with us," he lamented. "We have reached a stage that either we go big by opening more outlets, or we go home and close everything."
Tan still believes that the business has much potential to grow quickly, with a central kitchen model and under the guidance of the right person.
When asked what is next for him, he said, "I don't know".
History spanning over half a century
Uggli Muffins started out as a tze char (economical food) hawker stall called Bliss Haven Restaurant in 1969. The owners' son later ventured into making baked goods in 2006, with the launch of Uggli Fortune muffins.
Since then, the stall specialises in making "perfect imperfection" crispy muffins that are ugly. It also sells pineapple tarts, mooncakes, fruit popsicles and many other bakes.
In January this year, Uggli Muffins kickstarted a “pay what you like” initiative at its Jalan Besar outlet for a limited period. The campaign was launched in appreciation of healthcare workers.
Interested parties looking to take over the franchise may contact Anton Tan at 98779020.
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