Letter to the Editor: Increasing hawker food prices for mediocre tasting food will profit hawkers even less, as customer volume may drop drastically

Dear Editor, Hawkers who raise prices, especially those whose food is mediocre tasting, have to be prepared that they will earn even less, as the volume of customers may drop drastically. For instance, if selling a bowl of noodles at $3.50 earns him $1.50 a bowl after deducting the cost of ingredients, 200 bowls a day sold will be $300 a day in revenue. After deducting daily expenses, there will still be a decent profit per day. However, if he increases the price to $5 a bowl – even if that earns him $3 a bowl – but the number of customers drops to only 50 bowls a day, his revenue a day will be just $150. After deducting his expenses per day, he may even make a loss every day. So it would be in the best interest of the hawkers not to raise prices even if ingredients' prices rise. That is my opinion. Leonard Ong

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