Sungei Road vendors find a new home to hawk their wares, Sungei Road Green Hub at Kelantan Road

When it comes to flea markets, they are usually places where you can find secondhand clothes, accessories and other knick-knacks for a bargain.

And while most "flea markets" these days tend to be well-curated, there used to be a place that you would have to "dig" through piles of things to discover treasures like old cameras, vintage watches and typewriters — Sungei Road Thieves' Market.

Located at the junction of Jalan Besar and Rochor Canal Road, the market would be filled with vendors hawking their all manners of goods. That is until they were shut by the government in 2017, to make way for redevelopment plans in the area.

Some found shops at Chinatown Market and Golden Mile Food Centre, while others went on to other jobs like driving taxis and doing deliveries. And there were some who remained unemployed and unable to find a place to do their business.

But they have found a new lease of life and a place — Sungei Road Green Hub — to once again sell the items that they have accumulated over the years of doing their trade, thanks to restaurateur Raymond Khoo.

He has rented two shop lots at Block 28 Kelantan Road, where these former Sungei Road vendors have set up shop again, under his company, The Saturday Movement. The shop lots currently house 20 store units with 21 vendors, and each one pays him $10 a day for rental. There are also 40 people on the vendor waitlist at Sungei Road Green Hub.

Khoo decided to rent the shop lots after a vendor, David Sein, approached him for help as his livelihood had been badly affected by the pandemic.

Seeing how downcast and demoralised the vendors were, Raymond decided to rent two shop lots under his company's name, The Saturday Movement, to provide these people with a place where they could resume their trade.

Speaking to AsiaOne, Khoo said: "It's during times like that where it's even more crucial to help these people. Their mental wellbeing is very important."

Other than, renting the shop lots, he has also provided other forms of support to these former vendors such as providing food during and after circuit breaker, including sending them dinner five times a week, a loaf of bread on Saturdays and a Chinese dessert on Sundays.

While Sungei Road Green Hub is a far cry from what Sungei Road Thieves' Market used to be like back in its heyday, the vendors are glad to have a fixed place to store and sell their items with the community that they are familiar with and make a living like how they used to.

melissateo@asiaone.com