Three Generations Of Pig Farmers
First Prime Supermarket In Kallang
If you get your groceries from a neighbourhood centre, you would have shopped at Prime Supermarket. The company has 20 outlets spread across the island nestled in neighbourhood areas, making it the largest family-owned supermarket chain in Singapore. You may even have heard about the Tan family who owns Prime, because they’re famously known for being the household of 80 members, spanning 5 generations under one roof. Their uncommon living arrangement has garnered the attention of the media, seeing the family and their 32-room mansion featured in the news and on television.
In this interview, the Tan family said they had always lived communally, as they were brought up to stay together and look out for one another. Their journey in Singapore goes all the way back to 1913, when Tan Yang Zhui migrated from Santou, Guangdong with three sons. He was 27 then. The small family grew vegetables for years, until they started pig farming with a pair of piglets in 1928. Eventually, it was named Tan Chye Huat Farm when one of Yang Zhui’s sons, Ah Chye, took over the business after his father’s passing.
Ah Chye and his two brothers, along with their wives and children, moved in together to live as one household. Most of their children got involved to work on the pig farm too. From time to time, the farm was plagued with issues like floods or government redevelopment plans, and they found themselves having to move from Geylang to Changi, Ang Sar Lee, and finally Punggol. However, that came to an end in 1984, when the Singapore government executed a complete phasing out of pig farming.
The Prime Story
In 2020, many people have suffered from chronic loneliness and boredom arising from social isolation because of measures such as social distancing and extended periods of lockdown. However, pandemic or not, one would be hard-pressed to imagine such psycho-social ills in the Tan family. Probably the largest household in Singapore, 85 family members spanning five generations live together under one roof. In fact, the Tans have been living under one roof for the past 100 years!
To date, they run 26 Prime Supermarket stores. Outside Singapore, Prime Group International is a family business consisting of a modern pig farm, five Sun Island golf-cum-holiday resorts, and two international schools in China. It is hard to imagine that this sprawling empire started from a humble pig farmer – the late Mr Tan Ah Chye. The late Mr Tan and his 13 children and relatives managed and ran the pig farm until pig farming was phased out in Singapore in the mid-1980s. Following that, the youngest of Mr Tan’s children – Mr Tan Hong Khoon – was nominated to lead the family into unchartered waters. Under his charge, the Prime Supermarket chain was birthed, followed by the subsequent diversification and regional expansion of the Group.
Mr Tan Hong Khoon is the current chairman of Prime Group International and the head of the household. Beyond the external success, the Tan family is an exemplar of successful inter-generational transfer of values. More than 80 of the Tan family members have roles in Prime supermarkets, be it cashiers or financial controllers. Even at home, the family is run like a well-oiled machine where all members abide by a set of family values:
- When children bicker, parents should counsel and discipline them in their own rooms.
- Adults should not quarrel.
- Disagreements should be talked through and resolved harmoniously.
- Husbands should not criticise or find fault with their wives or children in front of other family members. They should seek the advice of elders if there are problems.
- No complaining about meals.
- No littering, graffiti, or vandalism.
- No gathering in groups to gossip.
- Respect elders, address them when you see them. Take good care of the younger generation.
- Children must tell parents if they plan to return home late or stay out for the night.
- Youngsters cannot bring home friends of the opposite sex to spend the night. Accept work that is delegated.
Prime Supermarket
Prime Supermarket (Chinese:百美超级市场) is a family owned supermarket chain in Singapore. It is under the parent company Prime Group International, which has overseas ventures in the agriculture and hospitality industry. There are currently 25 outlets island-wide that are generally found within the neighbourhood housing estates, some of which are open 24 hours a day.
Prime Supermarket was established in 1984 by Mr Tan Hong Khoon, after his fathers' pig farming business which was inherited from the elder Mr Tan's father, was forced by the government to shut down due to redevelopment plans in the Punggol area. The first grocery store was thus established as an alternative business venture in King George's Avenue. In the following years, the business was then grown and expanded into the supermarket chain that is as seen today, with their own house-brand products being sold too.
Prime Group International was also subsequently established for local and overseas ventures, of which in 2016, the Mahota Commune houses were established, which is a mixed retail business that included a supermarket as well. In a nod to the healthy lifestyle that the government has been actively trying to promote, the supermarket has also ensured the overall wellness of its staff by encouraging and promoting healthy living. The original supermarket in King George's Avenue also continues to stand till this day.
Prime Supermarket: Our Story
Established in 1984, Prime Supermarket is one of the pioneer local supermarket chains. Started with 5 mini-mart outlets in its early years, Prime Supermarket now has a full range of outlets, operating compact outlets serving heartland high streets to full format outlets in malls that are larger than 10,000 sq. ft. Prime Supermarket now has a chain of 26 outlets spanning across the island state.
Prime Supermarket is one of the first to extend its supermarket operations to 24 hours, to provide an extra level of service to our heartland consumers. We have embarked on an upgrading plan to equip ourselves with better customer service skills under the Customer-Centric Initiative program. Prime Supermarket is actively driving the development and promotion of our house brand, Prime Choice. We are currently undergoing a phase of store upgrading and renovations.
Prime is putting a strong emphasis on serving our community, providing local farmed fresh produce to our customers. Our Mission is to provide fresh products at reasonable prices with friendly service so as to achieve “Everything Fresh, Everyday Prime!”
Sheng Siong: From pig farmer's sons to supermarket empire bosses
(From left) Managing director Lim Hock Leng, Sheng Siong Group CEO Lim Hock Chee and Chairman Lim Hock Eng. PHOTO: LIANHE WANBAO
Lim Hock Chee and his wife used to sell chilled pork at a rented stall in a grocery store. Now, after more than 35 years, his family members operate 61 supermarkets across Singapore and have joined the ranks of billionaires.
Shares of their Singapore-listed Sheng Siong Group rose to a record on Wednesday (April 15) as supermarkets have become the preferred place to shop after the Government imposed a partial lockdown to contain the coronavirus pandemic. The stock has rallied more than 30 per cent since a March 19 closing low.
The family's combined fortune, based on its 57 per cent stake in the supermarket chain held mainly by Mr Lim and his two brothers, has surged to US$1.1 billion (S$1.57 billion), according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
From pig farmers' son to owning $1m Bentley
The Gold Guarantee founder & CEO Lee Song Teck left Singapore on Jan 18, 2013, and was arrested on Feb 2, 2023, when he returned. The Straits Times
On March 6, 2013, than 180 people at Hong Lim Park signed a petition to be submitted to the Prime Minister's Office. They were investors in a gold trading company called The Gold Guarantee (TGG), the CEO and founder of which, Lee Song Teck, had gone missing. And so has the money they entrusted him, some up to $1 million. Investigations are ongoing.
The son of pig farmers, Lee took over his family's animal pharmaceutical business when he was 20. "I am an only child and I lived on a pig farm until I was eight" he told The Straits Times in 2012. "Our farm seemed huge but we were one of the few poor pig farmers at the time. My father set up the animal pharmaceutical wholesale business while running the farm and my mother helped him with the accounts. "However, we were quite poor until about 10 years ago because my father, who died when I was 17, was a gambler. My parents used to tell me I must never gamble."
At age 22, he went to Sydney for undergraduate studies. After his return to Singapore, he tried his hand at being a property agent, and running a fitness centre and a property investment seminar business. He also invested in property and gold. "I believe in only real estate and gold, which I can see and touch, and which have real value. My gold investment portfolio is now worth $30 million," Lee said in the ST interview. "I have achieved average returns of 200 per cent a year from my property investments and some of my businesses. I plan to achieve a net worth of $200 million. When that happens, I intend to pledge 90 per cent to charity." He added: "I do not smoke, drink or gamble, and I am not into fine dining. The only luxury items I spend on are spa packages for me and my friends. I also buy presents for my friends. It feels nice to be able to buy things for the people I love." Lee said his greatest extravagance was his new $1 million Bentley Supersports which was his "dream car". He also drove a white BMW 5 series model. His company The Gold Guarantee was incorporated in 2011.
From pig farmers to millionaires
First Prime Supermarket In Kallang
If you get your groceries from a neighbourhood centre, you would have shopped at Prime Supermarket. The company has 20 outlets spread across the island nestled in neighbourhood areas, making it the largest family-owned supermarket chain in Singapore. You may even have heard about the Tan family who owns Prime, because they’re famously known for being the household of 80 members, spanning 5 generations under one roof. Their uncommon living arrangement has garnered the attention of the media, seeing the family and their 32-room mansion featured in the news and on television.
In this interview, the Tan family said they had always lived communally, as they were brought up to stay together and look out for one another. Their journey in Singapore goes all the way back to 1913, when Tan Yang Zhui migrated from Santou, Guangdong with three sons. He was 27 then. The small family grew vegetables for years, until they started pig farming with a pair of piglets in 1928. Eventually, it was named Tan Chye Huat Farm when one of Yang Zhui’s sons, Ah Chye, took over the business after his father’s passing.
Ah Chye and his two brothers, along with their wives and children, moved in together to live as one household. Most of their children got involved to work on the pig farm too. From time to time, the farm was plagued with issues like floods or government redevelopment plans, and they found themselves having to move from Geylang to Changi, Ang Sar Lee, and finally Punggol. However, that came to an end in 1984, when the Singapore government executed a complete phasing out of pig farming.
