The Covid-19 crisis has led to local F&B stores getting up to 50% less business because of the Stay-Home practices. In Singapore, one of the most vulnerable stores are our “hawker” food centers. The government has given hawkers a rental waiver for one month to help cope during this period, however their source of livelihood is unknown if the situation persists. 

Most of these stalls are managed by the older generation who are not tech-savvy and hence have not benefited from food delivery apps like GrabFood. Based on a survey, it is projected that 88% of stalls may end their business within the next 30 days as they would be unable to keep up with rental costs. The hawker scene is often referred to as a quintessential part of Singaporean culture, how could we help stall owners alleviate their current cash-tight situation?

Kopi-19 is a platform which allows Singaporeans to help our hawkers in a socially responsible manner, by purchasing future credits to use when the situation improves. Tapping on local payment methods like PayLah!, locals simply scan a QR code to pay directly to the hawker without a transaction fee. 

In addition to purchasing future meals, we involve the community to help less tech savvy stall owners list their stalls on our platform. By filling up a simple form with a photo of their stall, the menu, and their contact details, we would be able to help them generate a QR payment code to use.