BREADTALK GROUP PTE LTD
BRINGING ASIAN TASTES TO THE WORLD
BREADTALK GROUP PTE LTD
WE LEARN HOW BREADTALK’S HERITAGE, CREATIVITY AND CULTURE ARE CREATING DISTINCTLY ASIAN FLAVOURS TO SHARE WITH THE WHOLE WORLD.
BRINGING ASIAN TASTES TO THE WORLD PROJECT MANAGED BY: GARY SMITH BreadTalk started out as a boutique bakery store in the year 2000, becoming renowned for the way it revolutionised the culture of bread consumption into a lifestyle, a fashion-boutique experience that was unheard of when the business was founded.
W
e had many firsts back then. Our first store was a novel, modern and expressive store concept and broke through the clutter,” explains Cheng William, Group Chief Operating Officer for the BreadTalk Group. “It featured our 360-degree ground-toceiling glass where you can look
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TATE PROJECTS
Delivering quality services that exceed expectations.
TRANSCENDING DREAMS INTO REALITY
Tate Projects creates the ideal ambience in commercial and residential spaces, offering quality renovation services from architectural consultations, interior design to construction and furnishing.
Moving towards the Direction of being accepted as the foremost specialist in the hospitality, retail and leisure industry.
We give our assurance of service excellence and offer the best investment value for our clients where each and every project, big or small, is undertaken wholeheartedly with our total involvement.
With a combined experience of over 60 years in customized carpentry and interior fittings, Tate Interior strives to work closely with renowned designers, clients and business owners for an in-depth understanding of each and every project undertaken. This in turn, provides a surreal satisfaction to our clients through our service excellence of providing high quality workmanship, ensuring proper execution of deliveries and handovers in a timely manner. We are capable in adapting quickly to new challenges and market trends, to innovate and actualize ideas for functionality, costeffective and aesthetics balance and finally, to stay constant in our unsurpassed workmanship while remaining competitive.
“Tate Interior is a leading Interior Fit-Out & Refurbishment Specialist having built a strong reputation for its reliability and providing top-notch services for clients in the hospitality, retail and leisure industry. Our Company specializes in full carpentry works, interior fixtures and custom furniture. We are dedicated to provide the highest level of quality work-manship through competitiveness and competency.” - Richer Neo & Freddie Lai
FITTING OUT SERVICES - Tiling & Flooring - Partition & Ceiling Works - Plumbing & Gas Works - Aircon & Mechanical Ventilation - Carpentry - Mechanical & Electrical Works - Seamless Project Management Services -
TATE PROJECTS PTE LTD 23 Kim Chuan Terrace Singapore 537043
Email: service@tateprojects.com.sg Tel: +65 62588108 www.tateprojects.com.sg
TATE PROJECTS PTE LTD
BREADTALK GROUP PTE LTD
Established in 1980, Tate Projects Pte Ltd began humbly as an interior contract business managed by Mr Richer Neo. Today, Tate Projects Pte Ltd is a trusted name backed by proven records of accomplishments and expertise for having successfully completed various projects for reputed organisations. The company is a privately owned construction and interior fit out specialist with a dedicated workforce comprising highly skilled craftsmen, technical and management staff. Our works span many of the notable projects for the BreadTalk Group, Food Republic, Din Tai Fung and its subsidiaries. Tate Projects Pte Ltd has newly acquired its own office premises and factory at 23 Kim Chuan Terrace. With a floor area of 1,673 sq m, our factory is fully equipped with the hi-tech equipment and machinery. We have been able to fabricate and produce customised furniture for organisations. With experience of about 50 years, in interior and carpentry works, Tate Projects Pte Ltd strives to work closely with our clients and reputed consultants and designers for each project. This, in turn, has provided great satisfaction to our clients through our service excellence of providing quality workmanship, ensuring careful planning and proper execution and timely completion of the projects. At Tate Projects Pte Ltd, we value our clients’ expectations and our ability to continuously deliver projects on time has earned us the trust from satisfied customers throughout the past decades. We are equipped with safe, modern and well-maintained equipment, and fully committed to observing the required practices to maintain high standards. We are capable of adapting quickly to the new challenges and market trends. We has been able to incorporate our years’ of experience in providing premier interior works and services into the innovative application of information technology, progressive project planning and management, enabling us to meet even the most stringent of quality and safety standards. Tate Projects Pte Ltd is focused on creating lasting value for our clients, improving quality and safety standards on every project, and maximising opportunities for our employees to achieve their career potential. These values have fuelled the company’s growth consistently through the years and we continue to do so. In our efforts to continuously to forge ahead, we seek to introduce innovative new building solutions and broaden our skills through strategic joint-venture partnerships with our counterparts both local and overseas. This has seen us emerge in recent years from being a principal player for the BreadTalk Group. VISION, MISSION & VALUES Our vision determines our destination; our mission defines who we are; and our core values provide us guidance in executing our endeavours. OUR VISION Moving towards the direction being accepted as the leading specialist in the hospitality, food & beverage industry, retail and leisure industries. OUR MISSION We give our assurance of the service excellence and offer the best investment value for our valued clients with commitment to deliver excellent and quality products and works with integrity by our competent and responsible staff. OUR VALUES Safety, Integrity, Quality, Teamwork, Innovation, Growth Tate Projects Pte Ltd believes in doing well with the perfect blend of capability and sophistication and creativity. Projects are delivered on time and with no compromise on quality because the experienced staff at Tate Projects Pte Ltd share the commitment to constantly endeavour to exceed our clients’ expectation. We have achieved sustained expansion and progress and will continue to seek out new growth opportunities. We are confident that we will achieve continued growth and be ever ready to embrace the changes that the future may bring. www.tateprojects.com.sg
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Since its debut 20 years ago, the Flosss continues to be BreadTalk’s trademark, encapsulating the brand’s innovation and creative spirit. into our kitchen, with a visual performance of our chefs at work. Before, kitchens were closed-door but we opened up to demonstrate that our baked goods were made fresh onpremises. For many customers, it was their first up close view into the magic of bread making.” This combination – a reinvention of a traditional sunset trade using cuttingedge innovation and creativity, would prove to be BreadTalk’s trademark across the next 20 years. The brand quickly became synonymous with its signature pork floss buns. Pork floss buns are soft buns topped with BreadTalk’s own houserecipe of egg cream and pork floss – a popular snack in many parts of Asia made by drying and shredding pork. “We even came up with creative and fun names to our breads – each representing a personality. The floss bun was named ‘FLOSSS’ with an additional ‘s’ to indicate the voluminous floss topping on the bun. It also looks like a sleeping ‘zzz’ bun with the ‘s’ shredded dried meat. Cheng tells us “The Flosss proved to be a big hit with its unique taste and texture. At the peak of its
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BREADTALK GROUP PTE LTD
Toast Box brings the traditional Nanyang breakfast into the modern era for families of different generations to enjoy together.
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BREADTALK GROUP PTE LTD
popularity, we were selling one Flosss every 10 seconds.”
TASTES FOR EVERY PALATE
But while the Flosss can be called BreadTalk’s signature dish, it’s far from the limit of its offerings. The company boasts no fewer than 15 food and beverage concepts, spread across Singapore and into overseas markets. These concepts include Toast Box, which Cheng calls one of BreadTalk’s more creative concepts. Opened in 2003, Toast Box modernises the traditional Nanyang breakfast experience of coffee (kopi), toast and soft boiled eggs sprinkled with pepper and a splash of light soy sauce for a younger audience. The brand has since steadily grown and its popularity transcends generations – from young to old. Then there is the Food Republic, a food atrium brand that provides a modern take on the feel and culture of Singapore’s bustling street food markets operated by independent food stall owners. Last year, this hawker culture in Singapore was added to the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage, proving its significance as a treasured culture. Food Republic brings together these independent food stall owners and recreated a casual food dining space by designing a unique interior concept and ambience. One of its more prominent interior concepts mimics the famed Hakka walled village representing a large multifamily communal living structure that is designed to be easily defensible. In re-creating this cultural architect, BreadTalk’s designers found second-hand pieces that would otherwise have been thrown away,
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Through rescuing and restoring second-hand architectural pieces, Food Republic architects created a unique Hakka Village ambience for diners to enjoy a unique dining experience.
shipped them over from China and various cities to create this unique ambience. “We have also managed the famed Taiwanese restaurant chain, Din Tai Fung which is known for its award-winning Xiao Long Bao (steamed pork dumplings). Widely acclaimed by even some A-list Hollywood celebrities and government officials, the Group brought the brand into the United Kingdom in 2018 with a branch in Covent Garden,” Cheng tells us.
“WE HAVE DEVELOPED STRONG RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT TEAMS WITH AWARD-WINNING CHEFS TO STAY AHEAD OF THE CURVE.”
Today BreadTalk’s global presence amounts to over 900 outlets in 15 markets internationally across its bakery, restaurant and food atrium businesses. It employs over 5,000 staff across 15 food and beverage brands, with their bakeries alone offering close to 800 outlets. Its reputation has grown to the point where it is the only bakery brand to have ever won several global awards including the prestigious World Retailers Award. “I would say our unique selling point is the diverse and creative portfolio of food and beverage brands we offer, that appeal from the mass to the mass affluent,” Cheng explains. “Singapore is known to be a food paradise as it’s a melting pot of different cultures. Even though it has a population of only 5.8 million people, we
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LEADER IN QUALITY CLEANING
Environmental cleaning services • Commercial Properties • Residential Properties • Industrial Properties • Medical Facilities • Conservancy Cleaning • Event Cleaning • Stewarding • Façade cleaning Waste management services • Waste collection & disposal • Open Top Containers haulage & disposal • Compactor haulage & disposal • Recycling Services
Our general cleaning works are provided in a wide range of venues including retail and office premises, and private residential premises, while basic janitorial services are provided for premises including the public access areas in town councils, a sports stadium, medical centres, commercial buildings, schools and common areas of private and public residential premises. Eng Leng Contractors Pte Ltd A member of Hygiea Group Limited | 6 Tagore Drive #B1-02, Singapore 787623 | T: +65 6250 4328 |
Established in 1883, Fraser and Neave, Limited (F&N) has been quenching the thirst of generations of consumers and is today a leading player in the food and beverage arena in Singapore and Malaysia. Committed to meeting the health and wellness needs of consumers in the region and across the world, F&N is driven by its overarching philosophy of Pure Enjoyment, Pure Goodness. F&N has built a wide and exciting portfolio of beverage and food products with a strong emphasis on healthy enjoyment. Brands under the F&N umbrella include 100PLUS, F&N Ice Mountain, F&N Seasons, Coco Life, F&N Sparkling Drinks, F&N Fruit Tree Fresh, F&N Magnolia, F&N NutriSoy, F&N NutriWell, F&N aLive, F&N Canned Milk and Farmhouse. Many of the F&N brands are market leaders in their respective categories. In recognition of the high quality and safety standards of F&N products and their distinctive marketing, the company has been conferred many awards and accolades such as HACCP accreditation since 2003 for F&N Foods and Superbrands gold recognition. F&N’s established networks and strategic partnerships provide the company with the impetus to continually innovate and expand its portfolio of brands while strengthening its capabilities across the region. For enquiries: Telephone: +65 6210 8120 Email: fsorder@fnnfoods.com
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www.pilcon.com.sg
P.I.L. Consortium Pte Ltd started in 2003 by Mr Ivan Chia to provide international freight forwarding and Consolidation. After seventeen years, today it has grown into one of Singapore’s leading Logistics management service provider and a highly regarded Food & Beverages total supply chain provider, covering a wide range of local and international clienteles. P.I.L. Consortium’s services are categorised into the following segments : Cold Chain Management – Services ranges from international shipping, local distribution , cold room and ambient temperature warehousing as well as relevant authorities documentation certification. International Freight forwarding & Project Handling – Services including door to door delivery, Heavy lift and special cargo handling, cargo consolidation, Inventory management, packing and other value added services. Chemical Logistics – Supply and leasing of IBC and shipping services. Chartering – Vessel, Barges and LCT charters for dedicated and time sensitive cargo.
P.I.L. Consortium Pte Ltd, 2 Sims Close, #02-07, Gemini@Sims, Singapore 387298
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T: +65 67434424
E: info@pilcon.com.sg
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Egg Story is a brand under Eggriculture Foods Ltd, a company listed on Hong Kong GEM for pasteurised egg products. Egg Story reflects the vision of Eggriculture to become a responsible producer of high-quality egg products which prioritizes food safety. Egg Story Pasteurized Fresh Eggs and range of pasteurized egg products are produced at N&N Agriculture located at Lim Chu Kang area in Singapore. We are a high-tech, ecofriendly, bio-secured farm and home to about 170,000 chicks and more than half a million hens which produce about 350,000 fresh eggs daily. At N&N, we are focused on delivering distinctive product quality, food safety and value. Our full range of fresh eggs and pasteurized egg products are freshly produced and delivered daily. They are also healthier with lower cholesterol and 100% hormones and antibiotics free. A specially-formulated hen’s diet comprising natural corn, soya and multi-grains that are fortified with essential vitamins and minerals ensures that our eggs offer quality nutrition at great value. N&N Agriculture Pte Ltd A: 1, Lim Chu Kang Lane 9A, Singapore 718845. P: +65 67929745 E: enquiries@eggstory.com.sg www.eggstory.com.sg
have approximately 346,000 food and beverage companies including food manufacturing and food retail services stores in Singapore so you can imagine the competitiveness of the landscape we operate in.” At the same time, BreadTalk has also become a ubiquitous presence in Singaporean’s life, as Cheng tells us, “You can’t venture out anywhere without seeing one of BreadTalk Group’s food and beverage concepts. We are strategic in the locations we choose to operate our businesses, dominating in small and large shopping malls with high footfall including those in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. In the overseas franchise market we have strong partners to ensure we’re represented. For example, our franchise partner in Indonesia has been operating our brand since 2003, growing to manage nearly 200 BreadTalk stores today.” As well as being a familiar part of the lives of its customers, BreadTalk thrives because it
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BREADTALK GROUP PTE LTD
always has something new to excite them. “We have developed strong Research and Development teams and to stay ahead of the curve, we will support them in international competitions where we now have a group of internationally award-winning chefs,” Cheng says. BreadTalk doesn’t only rely on its own talent either. The Group will go where the talent is in an effort to bring the best ideas to its customers. Cheng tells us, “We cross-collaborated with several renowned and awardwinning chefs that hail from leading bakery markets such as Japan and Taiwan. We’re internationalised. Whilst cross collaborations are common now, it was not in the past but we broke the norm and went the extra mile to bring their awardwinning pieces to our customers, making it easily available and accessible to them.” “One of them is Masterchef Wu Pao-chun, best known for winning the 2010 Bakery Master competition in Paris,” Cheng recalls. “We entered into a joint venture with his bakery brand ‘Wu Pao Chun’ and opened its first flagship store out of Taiwan in both China and Singapore in 2019. It was the first time the brand expanded its foray into the overseas market. His awardwinning signature - lychee rose and red wine longan breads are a sell-out. Where one used to be able to get his breads only in Taiwan, they can now get them in both Singapore and China too.” However, what makes BreadTalk truly unique is that they combine these bold new ideas with a real respect and desire to preserve what has gone before. “In line with our portfolio we’ve embarked on joint ventures to reinforce our brand’s identity to preserve local food and
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beverage heritage and culture,” explains Cheng. “One brand that we’re proud of preserving dates back to World War 2, and we are very proud that we have allowed that to carry on.” This brand is the Chinese pastry shop, Thye Moh Chan. The pastry shop has been with the same family for three generations over 78 years, but when the family had no successor to take over the business, BreadTalk stepped in to inherit the brand and modernise it into what it is today, while still preserving its cultural heritage by having their
bakes handcrafted to a large extent. “We decided to acquire these brands to preserve their heritage, it’s part of our business,” Cheng says. “Recently, we also entered another joint venture with a renowned fish soup brand which has roots dating back to the 1980s. The brand is known for focusing on a clean and light soup that enhances the flavours of the fresh fish slices, something unique to the Teochew style of fish soup and we look forward to bringing this to a wider audience too”
“WE BELIEVE IN EDUCATION AS A SOCIAL LEVELLER. SO WE PROVIDED MONETARY REWARDS TO SUPPORT STAFF WHOSE CHILDREN ACHIEVE EXCEPTIONAL RESULTS.”
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the BreadTalk group continues to innovate, launching new brands such as Butter Bean.
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BREADTALK GROUP PTE LTD
A RECIPE FOR TALENT
It’s impossible to talk about the food and beverage sector in 2021 without acknowledging the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, and for BreadTalk Group, its headquarters in Singapore was one of the earliest places to feel the impact of COVID-19. “A crisis can also be an opportunity for innovation. Our global R and D teams did not stop creating new products,” Cheng says. “In fact, in August last year we decided to push ahead with a new BreadTalk concept that was planned preCOVID times and also launched 2 new brand concepts - Butter Bean and Charlie Tea, created in a time of uncertainty.” Butter Bean levels up Toast Box’s twist on the Nanyang kopi and toast breakfast with an even more modern rendition of the concept for younger audiences. “The consumer mindset across generations differ so we need to continuously evolve to remain relevant and stay ahead,” Cheng says. “BreadTalk has also introduced a new bubble tea brand in the form of Charlie Tea, which combines bubble tea with a bakery concept and a unique interior design aesthetic. The crisis taught us that adversity sharpens our strategies and offers opportunities.” While the COVID-19 pandemic has presented new challenges, Cheng acknowledges old challenges still remain. “A perpetual challenge for the local food and beverage sector is the difficulty in acquiring talent. We have seen recent reports by the Restaurant Association saying that there are thousands of positions in the restaurant sector, but no takers. Food and beverage jobs were never popular in Singapore due to the long working hours and
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shift work,” he explains. “Our solution to this is to implement and promote ourselves as a lifestyle brand reinventing the food and beverage rules. We took a leaf from the US by creating a staff lounge with nap pods. We also have trainers to help staff upgrade skills.” As well as finding talent, BreadTalk also emphasises how to get its people to bring their A-game to work. “All our employees join the company with different passions and individual competencies but what’s most important is how the company can make the best out of it, by finding people who align with our unique values,” explains Bryden Toh, Senior Vice President Human Resources and Learning & Development at BreadTalk. “Internally we have various training schemes and opportunities, and our diverse business portfolio offers crossdeployment opportunities where staff can be deployed to other brands to learn different business operations. Our geographical coverage provides cross-territorial learning where we have seconded our staff to other countries as well.” BreadTalk is host to a range of brands and concepts, each with their own unique identity, but there is a shared culture across the entire Group that makes it an appealing home for its staff. “The first thing I was introduced to when I joined the company was that it places creativity, innovation and differentiation in the highest regard,” says Joanne Wong, BreadTalk Group’s Brand Director. “And the sum of all three values is what has kept the company going on. We constantly look for creativity, innovation and how to make ourselves different in the things we do.”
In 2017, BreadTalk clinched its 3rd “Brand of the Year” award at the World Branding Awards (London). BreadTalk Founder and Group Chairman, Dr George Quek, receiving the prestige award.
Cheng William, Group Chief Operating Officer for the BreadTalk Group
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78-year-old Teochew pastry brand Thye Moh Chan is famous for its handmade Tau Sar Piah.
BREADTALK GROUP PTE LTD
That sense of “Fun!” comes not only from the creativity in BreadTalk’s work, but the close relationships between the staff. “The company feels like family,” Wong says. “We are very engaged. We have a very opendoor-open –communication policy and whilst our leaders command respect, we can also speak to them without being intimidated and this transcends across different levels and even countries. We form many friendships within the company. In difficult times, we still come together. We like to say we’re in the F&B business, but really, we are in the people business and that is reflected in the way we provide service to our customers.” This is why, even when the Group was facing hard times last year, Toh insisted on continuing the company’s bursary programme for employees. “We believe in education as a social leveller,” Wong says. “So we provided monetary rewards to support staff whose children achieve exceptional results.”
WHERE HERITAGE MEETS INNOVATIONS
BreadTalk has also offered support to local arts and culture, becoming a celebrated patron of the arts for its contributions. “BreadTalk thrives on creativity and innovation,” Wong says. “The preservation of food culture and heritage is extremely important to us so that there is continuity and longevity to these brands. It
BreadTalk staff are strongly supported in their personal and professional growth, through training schemes & opportunities.
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makes our work and mission even more meaningful.” Indeed, throughout our conversation with BreadTalk, it’s this thread connecting Singapore and Asia’s traditional food heritage to the latest and most creative innovations that seem to be the defining element of BreadTalk’s identity. “Planning for the future, all of our winning formulas need constant reinvention. We will continue to stay creative and innovative – one that we have demonstrated over the last 20 years while on a mission to preserve food heritage and bringing cross-cultural food experiences around the world, leveraging on tomorrow’s technologies to continue to push the envelope,” Cheng says. “We also continue to explore various ways we can reduce our carbon footprint and food waste by ingraining ourselves with sustainable partners to build a better environment for the generations to come.” “We believe that the strong culture and values we’ve built over the years can be taken through to the next 20, 40, even 100 years,” Cheng agrees. “Building a people-led business that is creative, innovative and differentiating ourselves from other food and beverage brands.” “It’s a new Asia we are embracing, a harmony of deeply rooted Asian cultures with global influence,” Wong adds. “It’s an appetite we want to build for the world.”
“IT’S A NEW ASIA WE ARE EMBRACING, A HARMONY OF DEEPLY ROOTED ASIAN CULTURES WITH GLOBAL INFLUENCE. IT’S AN APPETITE WE WANT TO BUILD FOR THE WORLD.” BUSINESS FOCUS MAGAZINE | 13
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