Singapore’s F&B panorama is notoriously aggressive—current months have seen a wave of closures, with many struggling to remain afloat amidst rising prices and shifting shopper habits. One former F&B proprietor even went as far as to warn, “Don’t come to F&B proper now.”
This is the reason a model like Jinjja Hen is taken into account a rarity. The Singaporean F&B model is understood for its Korean fried rooster, and continues to be standing robust 10 years later.
However that success didn’t come with out blood, sweat, and tears. We spoke to Bernard Tay, the co-founder and Managing Director of the model, who has come ahead to share his story, providing insights into the profitable recipe behind Jinjja Hen.
Persisting regardless of rejection
Jinjja Hen opened its first outlet at Bugis Village in 2015, however that didn’t come simply; it was the results of fixed persistence.
Though Bernard noticed a spot for extra accessible and inexpensive genuine Korean dishes in Singapore’s F&B scene—on the time, solely a handful of eateries supplied Korean fried rooster or genuine Korean delicacies, principally positioned in Tanjong Pagar and charging premium costs—turning that imaginative and prescient into actuality was an uphill battle.
He shared that it took him 9 months to land a unit at Bugis Village in 2015, as he confronted fixed rejections from procuring malls because of the novelty of his idea.
“I nonetheless bear in mind having to deliver our fried rooster to conferences simply to persuade landlords to offer us an opportunity,” lamented Bernard, including that he needed to pay a hefty takeover payment to safe the unit, although he didn’t present a determine.
To get the enterprise off the bottom, Bernard claimed to have poured all his life financial savings and brought a S$250,000 financial institution mortgage. On the identical time, his spouse had additionally simply given start to his second youngster, considerably elevating the stakes.
With no different supply of revenue, the whole lot hinged on the success of Jinjja Hen. “There was no security web. If the enterprise had failed, I used to be ready to promote my 3-room HDB flat to repay the debt,” he recounted.
The danger taken by Bernard seems to have paid off immediately—however even after opening, the enterprise’s early days had been removed from easy crusing.
Do your homework first
In an interview with The Straits Occasions, Bernard shared that the restaurant encountered monetary difficulties simply two months after opening, with solely S$6,000 left in his company account after paying for rental and junior crew salaries.
For the primary 9 months, he couldn’t draw a wage, and burdened by disgrace and guilt, Bernard recalled telling his restaurant supervisor and assistant managers that he didn’t have sufficient funds to pay them on time. He requested them to take cash from the until for per week to make up for his or her wages.
The monetary pressure prolonged past payroll—he additionally owed suppliers as much as S$100,000 for 3 months.
Trying again, Bernard shared that he ought to have deliberate his money circulation extra rigorously and factored in additional time for the enterprise to realize traction and construct regular visitors, provided that he didn’t have adequate funds to market and promote the restaurant.
It’s essential to perceive who your target market is, the place they go, what they like, and the way they spend. Don’t begin a enterprise pondering that everybody will be your buyer.
Beginning a restaurant in Singapore isn’t straightforward. The boundaries to entry are excessive, particularly for those who’re new and unknown. That’s additionally why it’s tremendous vital to do your homework and consider in your idea.
Bernard Tay, founder and Managing Director of Jinjja Hen
“There’s no excellent timing to develop”
Happily, the tides have since shifted for the higher, as Jinjja Hen has damaged even after two years of operations.
One may consider that the key to the enterprise’s profitable development lies in realizing when to develop, however Bernard’s reply may be stunning.
“There’s no excellent timing to develop. When a chance comes, it’s important to seize it and adapt as you develop,” he stated.
What’s extra vital, although, is constructing a robust model and workforce earlier than increasing, to which Bernard credited Stanley Lim, the co-founder and operations director of Jinjja Hen, whom he stated performed an important function in shaping the model and main day-to-day operations.
When working a couple of outlet, F&B house owners have to develop a system to make sure that meals high quality stays constant throughout the board. In addition they have to deal with conserving the model related via altering shopper behaviours and meals developments.
In line with Bernard, clients now harbour increased expectations and continuously need extra worth. As well as, he additionally famous the rise in competitors from worldwide manufacturers over the last decade, particularly from Chinese language manufacturers that usually include robust investor backing and a community of a number of retailers of their dwelling international locations.
At this time, F&B enterprise house owners should not solely juggle operational effectivity, but in addition adapt to new methods of participating and serving their viewers.
No shortcuts
Regardless of the seemingly countless variety of challenges within the F&B business, it seems that Jinjja Hen has all of it found out by tightening its operations, bettering effectivity throughout all retailers, and evolving its menu to construct a gentle and wholesome enterprise.
For Bernard, this mindset is rooted in classes he learnt early on prior whereas working in his household’s enterprise, Molly’s Nonya Kuehs. There, he spent eight years alongside his father and aunt previous to beginning Jinjja Hen, absorbing the values that proceed to information him immediately.
One of the vital vital classes he had learnt was to organize substances with care and cook dinner to order—an ordinary that he stated few fast-casual eating places nonetheless uphold immediately. He additionally understood {that a} enterprise can nonetheless thrive not by charging exorbitant costs, however via self-discipline, consistency, and arduous work.
“My dad was up at 3 AM on a regular basis to start out the manufacturing facility, and my aunt ran the store each day on simply 4 hours of sleep. No shortcuts, no off days. That spirit caught with me after I constructed Jinjja Hen,” he stated.
“In such a aggressive market, we all know we are able to’t outspend the large gamers. However we are able to win over clients one meal at a time: By being constant, trustworthy, and all the time placing high quality first. We consider that if we keep true to our values and hold delivering good meals with coronary heart, that can set us aside.”
New ideas & locations
These methods have been profitable for Jinjja Hen to this point, with the model having established six retailers in Singapore.
It has additionally expanded regionally, with one outlet every in Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei. Bernard has expressed his ambition to take the model to Thailand, Vietnam, China, and presumably Australia through franchising.
Past this, the enterprise has additionally ventured into a brand new restaurant idea: Jinjja Kitchen, which provides a wider vary of standard Korean dishes, together with Korean pizzas, pastas, and hotplate rice bowls. It at present has two retailers within the city-state.
In line with Bernard, responses have been encouraging to this point, and he plans to open extra retailers and introduce new dine-in codecs within the close to future.
Nevertheless, the difficult enterprise local weather continues to weigh closely on many F&B enterprise house owners, deterring some from coming into the business. For these decided to push via regardless of the chances, Bernard provides a easy piece of recommendation:
Don’t do it simply since you’re keen about F&B.
Do it since you’re good at F&B.
Bernard Tay, founder and Managing Director of Jinjja Hen
- Study extra about Jinjja Hen right here.
- Learn extra tales we’ve written on Singaporean companies right here.
Featured Picture Credit score: Jinjja Hen
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