By Nicole Ang, Hafizah Ayni Binte Hazzu Mohamed & Ameerah Sallehuddin
If you thought being a full-time student was time-consuming, these three Temasek Polytechnic (TP) students will change your minds! In addition to their studies, these budding entrepreneurs are also managing businesses that they started on their own.
During the Circuit Breaker, multiple measures were implemented to minimise the crowds in the public. Many businesses were affected, forced to close, as gatherings were banned. Therefore the movement, #SupportLocal, surfaced with the aim to help local businesses survive through this period. The trending hashtag helped many online businesses such as theirs gain even more
attention.
1. LOVELLYBEAUTY.SG
LOVELLYBEAUTY.SG (@lovellybeauty.sg), owned by Elly Khaliesyah Binte Mohamad Ali, is a cruelty-free and vegan cosmetic shop on Instagram. Khaliesyah is currently a Year 2 student in Temasek Polytechnic’s Diploma in Marketing. The shop predominantly sells lip products such as lipgloss, lip scrubs and lip cream. The business has recently expanded their product variety with the release of handmade lashes.
LOVELLYBEAUTY.SG’s target audience are generally women aged 13- 25.
“I think that this group of individuals are growing up and they are experimenting with new ways to enhance their beauty,” explains Khaliesyah.
It all began with Khaliesyah’s childhood fascination with lip products. She often found herself searching for DIY lip gloss and lip balm tutorials on YouTube when she was younger. Recently, the trend of starting a lip gloss business surfaced on Tik Tok, which inspired Khaliesyah to start her own lip gloss business. After two months of preparation, LOVELLYBEAUTY.SG was officially launched on April 1st this year. However, the journey has not always been rainbows and sunshine.
“Facing difficulties is inevitable, especially when it comes to running your business alone.” says Khaliesyah. The trend of Matte lipsticks and the reputation of lip glosses being sticky attributed to a rocky start in the initial stages of LOVELLYBEAUTY.SG.
“I almost backed out before starting anything because I was so skeptical, but I also understood that to be an entrepreneur, you need to be a risk-taker,” she says. “At the same time, I was grateful that I have very supportive friends who motivated me to do the start-up”
With regards to her future plans, Khaliesyah hopes to be able to gain a larger consumer base and meet more members of the local beauty community. Her ultimate goal is to be invited to visit major cosmetic factories owned by brands such as L’Oreal and Urban Decay and to be able to produce and collaborate with them one day.
2. VINTAGEAPES [Qahir Rosli, Diploma in Digital Film & Television, Year 3]
VINTAGEAPES (@vintageapes) is known for selling vintage-style clothing on Instagram. With over 1,700 followers on the platform, VINTAGEAPES has definitely made a name for itself in the community.
The business was started by Rosli back in late 2018.
“When it first started, the response was surprisingly overwhelming as I had a few friends with larger follower bases who helped me to promote the page,” explains Rosli.
With such a community around him, Rosli was able to learn tips and tricks in expanding his consumer base. He says: “I realised that upgrading the quality of the pictures that I take and post would help in making my Instagram page look more aesthetic as a whole.”
T-shirts, hoodies and hats are the types of clothing you can find in the shop. The target audience for VINTAGEAPES is generally youths aged 14 to 21 years old.
“I think it’s usually the younger generation who are interested in vintage clothing,” Rosli says.
Rosli’s dream is to open a bigger store overseas in the future and eventually make VINTAGEAPES a well-known brand.
3. THECOOKIELAIR [Nurul Syairah, Hospitality & Tourism Management, Year 2]
In the mood for a sweet treat? Tap on over to The Cookie Lair (@thecookielair_ ), a shop selling New York style cookies on Instagram.
The Cookie Lair was recently launched in September 2020, targeting customers aged 16 to 40 years old. Syairah feels that these groups of people tend to be more adventurous with food and desserts.
She says: “I feel that ever since the Circuit Breaker has started, this group of people often purchase from home-based bakeries to try out trendy desserts and to also support local businesses.”
It was Syairah’s childhood interest in baking that inspired her to start her business. Syairah started baking at the age of 10 when her parents bought her first mixer.
“I find joy in the process of creating something wonderful with just a few ingredients,” says Syairah. Therefore, Syairah established The Cookie Lair, as an opportunity to create a job that she loves and to enjoy the sight of people enjoying her food. However, starting a business always has its challenges.
For Syairah, her challenges range from recipe errors to space capacity.
“As a baker, dealing with disappointments from bad recipes and wasted ingredients are part and parcel of it. As a result of starting this business, I have had to resort to using a large portion of my savings,” explains Syairah. “It was also challenging for me to manage my kitchen storage capacity as it is a home based business. So, a lot of planning was needed to properly store my inventory.”
Being relatively new, Syairah has many plans for the future of her business. She hopes to be able to have a larger customer base and be able to come up with new additions to her menu and flavours.
Resilience? These three enterprising TP students have got it. If you are scrolling through Instagram, why not head over to these three accounts? You’ll not only #supportlocal, but also support the entrepreneurial dreams of our very own. Happy shopping!
