The Singaporean food and beverage (F&B) sector continued to show signs of recovery in the first half of this year despite the COVID-19 outbreak. New F&B openings were established to seize the opportunities turned up by the pandemic, such as diminished competition and increased demand for takeaway food.
According to data analysis firm Handshakes, between January and June, 1,132 firms joined the sector while 1,036 were deregistered, yielding a net increase of 96 active entities in F&B service activities, which include restaurants, cafes, food caterers, food kiosks and bars.
Neeraj Sundarajoo, CEO of food procurement platform Zeemart, noted that there have been new F&B openings, particularly by large and well-funded companies. On the other hand, some people could be considering to start new F&B service activities as a way to cope with the ongoing recessionary environment, said Andrew Kwan, group managing director of investment firm Commonwealth Capital.
In the same period last year, there were 1,494 newcomers to the sector while 1,135 left, translating into a net increase of 359 firms.
This finding is the first of a series by The Business Times (BT) and Handshakes, called the BT-Handshakes Data Series. It is a regular project collaboration to give insights on various business sectors of Singapore, using data from the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA).
(Source: The Business Times)