How do bak kwa companies survive outdoors of CNY?

Chinese language New Yr income can solely go up to now for bak kwa companies—year-round survival depends upon technique & innovation

Chinese language New Yr (CNY) is simply across the nook.

Because the festive season approaches, queues type outdoors meals companies throughout the island, together with bak kwa retailers, as prospects clamour for the candy, smoky slices of barbecued pork synonymous with the vacation.

However have you ever ever puzzled what occurs to bak kwa retailers as soon as the festive rush ends? How do these manufacturers survive through the different eleven months of the yr, and are CNY gross sales alone sufficient to maintain them afloat?

Right here’s how they maintain their companies year-round.

Why CNY issues

First off, there’s no denying that Chinese language New Yr gross sales do play a big position in a bak kwa store’s yearly income.

Historically loved by quite a few households through the pageant, bak kwa, like many different festive services, sees important demand main as much as CNY.

In response, manufacturing ramps up, with retailers usually working across the clock to satisfy orders, and costs are adjusted to mirror the seasonal rush. Throughout the business, it’s no secret: a considerable portion of annual income is made throughout this era.

For example, in Jan 2025, bak kwa costs rose by as a lot as S$18 per kg. Hu Zhen Lengthy, which usually sells at S$68 per kg, raised its worth to S$78 earlier than CNY.

Equally, Kim Hua Guan’s worth jumped from S$60 per kg off-peak to S$66 final yr, with this yr reaching as much as S$68. A employees member informed AsiaOne: “Each week (approaching Chinese language New Yr), there’ll be a rise in worth of two {dollars} [for bak kwa].”

Famend chain Lim Chee Guan recorded an excellent greater mark-up, with costs rising as a lot as S$18 per kg for its signature bak kwa, reaching S$80 per kg for this CNY.

Regardless of the excessive costs, prospects proceed to purchase, and the demand is so intense that some bak kwa companies start preparations lengthy earlier than the festive season. Bee Cheng Hiang, for instance, begins its manufacturing planning a yr upfront to make sure it may meet the surge in orders throughout Chinese language New Yr.

Gross sales through the rush don’t simply increase income—additionally they fund all the pieces else: employees salaries, electrical energy, manufacturing facility prices, and hire, generally even overlaying bills for the following six months.

Diversifying gross sales channels

For many Singaporeans, bak kwa may look like a seasonal deal with, however there’s one other viewers that retains the enterprise going outdoors of CNY: vacationers.

Whether or not freshly made or bought in vacuum-sealed packaging, bak kwa generally is a carry-on-friendly memento with an prolonged shelf life. It’s no shock, then, that bak kwa retailers usually arrange in high-footfall, tourist-heavy areas comparable to Orchard Street, Changi Airport, and Chinatown.

Manufacturers have additionally expanded abroad to leverage overseas markets, growing their international presence and introducing bak kwa to new audiences past Singapore. For example, Bee Cheng Hiang has 360 shops throughout 11 territories, whereas Perfume exports its merchandise to USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

To succeed in much more prospects and open further income streams, many manufacturers have embraced e-commerce by means of their very own web sites or platforms like Shopee and Lazada.

Kim Joo Guan, for example, reported that 70% of its gross sales through the 2024 festive season got here from on-line orders. Its director, Arthur Ong, famous: “After the pandemic, individuals are extra used to ordering on-line and are choosing supply service,” turning bak kwa right into a snack that may be loved year-round.

The model has even begun experimenting with extra inventive methods to increase accessibility. Since 2025, it began promoting bak kwa by means of merchandising machines in purchasing malls.

Innovating new choices

One other means manufacturers diversify is by not focusing solely on bak kwa. They use the identical uncooked supplies and manufacturing amenities to create higher-margin merchandise, increasing their choices whereas retaining prices environment friendly.

Over time, Bee Cheng Hiang’s Singapore manufacturing facility, for instance, has experimented with merchandise like pork floss cheesecake and bak kwa chiffon cake to diversify its choices past conventional slices.

Since 2018, the model has additionally run a 2,000 sq ft bak kwa-themed bistro, BCH Grillery, on Serangoon Street, the place diners can barbecue their very own meats, experiment with making pork floss, and check out wine-meat pairings.

Different manufacturers have undertaken related methods. 56-year-old Perfume has give you revolutionary choices, together with coin-shaped bak kwa for straightforward consumption, crocodile meat bak kwa, and premium bak kwa varieties like Iberico pork and Kurobuta, whereas cashing in on fashionable flavours comparable to truffle, mala, and satay.

Reasonably than simply seasonal snack sellers, these choices place bak kwa manufacturers as year-round way of life and premium meals manufacturers.

Operational effectivity with AI & automation

Past these initiatives, some manufacturers are turning to know-how to optimise operations. In 2025, Bee Cheng Hiang adopted a digital-first mannequin to unify on-line and offline experiences.

“Heritage manufacturers have distinctive necessities that off-the-shelf options can’t handle. Know-how isn’t simply an enabler; it’s the important thing to preserving our authenticity whereas delivering seamless experiences,” Normal Supervisor Ang Bee Kee defined, reframing know-how as a core enterprise technique quite than a mere means to streamline retail operations.

The model constructed a seven-person in-house workforce to combine trendy retail know-how throughout operations. Utilizing AI-driven demand forecasting and instruments that analyse gross sales patterns throughout shops and seasons, Bee Cheng Hiang can anticipate demand, keep away from losing meat, and guarantee it doesn’t miss potential gross sales, whereas additionally enhancing the shopper expertise year-round.

Prospects can now earn and redeem factors, entry presents, and luxuriate in constant service no matter location—fixing problems with geographic-specific, fragmented loyalty packages and offline-centric operations.

To Bee Cheng Hiang, the outcomes have spoken for themselves: on-line order values quadrupled, income and profitability improved by 5%, and membership expanded by 900%. The enterprise has additionally launched an automatic fulfilment system with real-time monitoring, able to dealing with excessive seasonal demand whereas processing over 100 provider paperwork every day and managing multi-currency transactions seamlessly.

This has led Bee Cheng Hiang to run the enterprise higher in quieter months, whereas preparing for the following huge rush.

Surviving past the seasonal rush

Whereas CNY nonetheless performs an enormous position in sustaining bak kwa companies, diversifying gross sales channels, increasing abroad, innovating new product choices, and harnessing know-how have allowed bak kwa makers to not rely solely on the seasonal rush.

Success on this house requires greater than custom—it calls for technique, innovation, and agility.

• Learn different articles we’ve written on Singaporean companies right here.

Featured Picture Credit score: Bee Cheng Hiang/ Lim Chee Guan