Retrenched Fintech Consultant, 27, Opens Cafe With Mum In Chinatown
Not many Zoomers voluntarily choose to face their parents daily in the ‘office’, but 27-year-old Esmond Toon has done just that with his mum, Mary Chan, 57. The duo opened Bullock Cart Coffee in February, a compact 15-seater on the second level of Hong Lim Complex, situated just a few minutes away from Hong Lim Market & Food Centre.
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Mary and Esmond
The name Bullock Cart Coffee is derived from ‘Niu Che Shui’, the Chinese name for Chinatown which translates to ‘bullock cart water’ in English. Laid off from Fintech consultant job before setting up cafe
Mother and son decided to open the cafe together as it has always been their dream to set up a business. Neither Mary nor Esmond had any F&B experience going into this - Esmond has a Bachelor of Science degree in banking and finance at the University of Essex, before working as a consultant at two Fintech firms — the first for one and a half years, the second for two months, before he got retrenched. He shares that he “was laid off during the tech layoff season in May 2023, so [he] decided to take this opportunity to start a cafe”.
Meanwhile, Mary quit her job as a Procurement and Sourcing Manager at a shipping and logistics company to join the venture, “since her kids (she has an older daughter) are grown-ups now, and she had enough savings to do something she always wanted to do”.
Only “occasionally bicker” while working with mum
While they “have the occasional bicker”, Esmond tells 8days.sg that he’s “fairly close with [his] mum”, and working with family has its perks. “We kinda know each other well since she’s my mum, so honestly that helps. We know what each other’s thresholds with things are, how to act to prevent conflict, and what our working styles are,” he explains.
Took 70 percent pay cut to start biz; invested $100K
Mary invested $100K into the biz. Both of them also took a “very big pay cut” of around 70 percent each, but have no regrets. “Ultimately, it’s about doing what fulfils you, and now all we do is put the money that we earn back into the cafe,” he says. Mary and Esmond currently work at the cafe daily, sometimes in shifts in order to give the other a break.
Despite the lower salary, Esmond is intent on making this his long-term career. “Our plan for the cafe is to grow it and expand to multiple outlets in future”, he says, adding that they “definitely see this as their career now, not just a stepping stone or transitional period”.
Mum has no objections to Esmond’s career switch either, saying “I feel that parents should always support their child’s passions and ambitions, no matter how unconventional or different from what we have in mind”.
Salary aside, the ex-consultant admits that “both careers [as a Fintech consultant and cafe owner] are very different from each other, so there were definitely challenges”, especially since he started off with zero F&B knowledge.
His coffee-making skills are mostly self taught - Esmond says he “invested in a machine for home and started exploring different coffee types, and would take some classes here and there to improve”.
Between him and his mum, Esmond insists “no one’s the better barista, and [they] both attended coffee classes together before opening the cafe, so [they’re] both on par”.
The menu
Bullock Cart Coffee has a simple menu with classic offerings of Espresso ($3), Black Coffee ($4.50), White Coffee ($5) and Taro Latte ($6). The iced drinks cost 50 cents more, and you can opt for oat milk for $1 extra, or soy milk for an additional 50 cents. The cafe uses Arabica beans from local roastery Cowpresso.
Taro Latte
Esmond says they plan to expand their menu in April, and introduce “coffee with a local twist”, by incorporating Singaporean flavours. Currently, the most unique drink here is the Taro Latte.
For nibbles, there are pastries sourced from local bakery-cafe Bread Yard. Options include a variety of croissants, which cost $3.80 plain, $4.60 for Almond and $5 for Egg Mayo. There are also cruffins in flavours like Matcha ($5.50) and Passionfruit ($5.50).
Bullock Cart Coffee is at #02-57A, 531 Upp Cross St, S050531. Open Mon - Fri 8am - 4.30pm; Sat - Sun 9am - 3.30pm. More info via Instagram.
Photos: Bullock Cart Coffee
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