When the going gets tough, some companies find ways to thrive
Adaptability, going digital help such firms grow during pandemic
Most businesses have found it tough going in the time of Covid-19, but there are a few that are not only surviving, but thriving.
Spartans Boxing Club is fighting fit and strengthening.
It has opened eight outlets at the cost of around $150,000 each in the past year.The company now has 10 outlets since it started here in 2016.
Speaking to The New Paper, Mr Russell Harrison, Spartans Boxing Club's group managing director, said it has also increased group memberships by over 500 per cent and monthly group revenue by 400 per cent through investing in scalable activities and community initiatives throughout last year.
This business model allows it to fit into any situation and mode of operation - including switching to daily Zoom workouts and personal training high-intensity outdoor sessions whenever gyms and fitness centres have to close due to Covid-19 restrictions.
Speaking to The New Paper recently, Mr Harrison said: "Going through with the expansion, which we've been working on since 2016, during the pandemic was not intimidating for Spartans... Through digitising our franchise management system and developing an app to book personal trainers and classes, operations have become much smoother, providing customers an enhanced experience."
With an average floor space of 1,500 to 2,500 sq ft per outlet and basic equipment, set-up and operating costs are reduced significantly.
Several local start-ups have also been profitable during the pandemic.
Established in 2018, Hey! Chips, which sells healthy fruit and vegetable chips without added sugar, artificial flavourings or chemicals, doubled its sales after the circuit breaker last year, with 50,000 packs sold over the past six months.
Most orders were for snack boxes purchased by mothers for their young ones at home, as well as care packages sent by schools and corporations to employees working from home.
Hey! Chips' founder Emily Chu, said: "Many people gained weight during the pandemic, but they didn't want to cut out snacks, so they switched to healthier options."
A year ago, Mr Pravesh Hathiramani and Mr Rahul Sharma were in dire straits when the events industry shut down.
Strapped with unwanted inventory, delayed projects and poor cash flow, they needed to pivot with whatever resources were available - in this case, one driver and a truck.
With one experimental post on Carousell, Mr Pravesh found there was an overwhelming demand for moving services and kick-started Weload.sg.
In five months, they completed 1,200 deliveries, generating over $120,000 in revenue. From February to May this year, Weload.sg made 3,500 deliveries.
Mr Pravesh said: "E-commerce is the future and a strong online presence is needed for businesses moving forward, in terms of keeping up to date with marketing strategies and automating as many processes as possible."
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