Sheng Siong Management Allegedly Told Staff Walk Around & Donate $200 to Funerals

Amidst these trying times, benevolent acts have become few and far between. In a time of duress and pandemic-induced recession, everyone’s too busy trying to wipe their own behinds to bother with such things as benevolence. As my Aunt Matilda likes to put it:

“Do you think helping others will benefit you? You’re better off taking care of your own ass before you help to wipe another’s behind.”

But I’ve learnt to disregard what she said. “She’s just a salty old piece of cracker,” said my younger brother Dexter. And I’ve no inclination to disagree.

Nevertheless, my Aunt Matilda did paint a forcibly realistic picture. When everything has gone south, it’s hard to find a single act that can, for lack of a better phrase…

Restore your faith in humanity. 

“Hold my beer,” said Sheng Siong. “And don’t tell anyone about it.”

Sheng Siong Management Allegedly Told Staff Walk Around & Donate $200 to Funerals

Local supermarket chain Sheng Siong is many things: affordable, TV-savvy and pleasantly homegrown. But what people may not know about it is that it’s a charitable organisation at heart…

From the head to the toe.

Just yesterday (1 June 2020), Facebook user Caleb Low posted a particularly interesting ‘encounter’ on social media platform Facebook: a male stranger had attempted to slip $200 into the money collection box at a wake, only to be called out by one of the mourning personnel on duty.

When the stranger was ‘confronted’, he had no other choice but to reveal his true identity.

“I’m Batman,” he presumably said.

Well alright, that didn’t happen. But before I continue let me just spin it right from the top, as the entire saga of events deserves to be told.

According to the post, Low had taken time out of work to assist at his wife’s grandmother’s wake, when he overheard some of the cousins conversing amongst themselves in a rather amused manner. Apparently, they were browsing the Funeral Accounts booklet for financial contributions and a name had stuck out like an enlarged ostrich in one of the rows:

Sheng Siong Supermarket.

“So apparently,” Low wrote. “A staff from the supermarket came over to visit the wake, and tried to quietly slip $200 into the collection box.”

The ‘guard’ on duty proved too alert, however, for the staff member to pass by unnoticed. The guard, who happens to be a cousin who was on duty, halted him and asked for his identity, saying that the collection box was only for guests and relatives.

As written by Low, the staff member did not concede from the start. It was only upon further probing that he admitted what he was there for.

“Actually, I’m working at Sheng Siong,” the staff member allegedly said. “And our management told us to walk around the estate and look out for wakes during this Circuit Breaker period. And we would give a small financial contribution. That’s why I’m here.”

Amused, the cousin on duty decided to have the member sign anyway for the sake of their records. And after a period of thought, he…

“…then wrote under the Name Column…”Sheng Siong Supermarket” 🤣” Low captioned.

Must have been a real eye-opener for the rest of the crowd, no doubt.

Low then expressed his gratitude to the organisation:

“Thanks, Sheng Siong, for this very compassionate gesture.”

You can view the original Facebook post down below:

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And It’s Far From Being The First Time

After Low’s post went viral, several Netizens proceeded to vouch for the practice, which seems to have been going on for entire years.

Other instances of Sheng Siong’s overarching kindness were also conveyed in the discussion:

With perhaps the most telling one being the following anecdote:

As I stated earlier on, Sheng Siong truly seems to be a charitable and kind organisation at heart…

Up high from the head, and right down to the toe.

Not A Publicity Stunt 

Before you denounce the entire saga as a series of carefully crafted publicity stunts, you might want the read the following statement by Low:

“In my work in Branding,” he entailed as a postscript. “I can vouch that Sheng Siong is NOT doing this as a PR stunt…I’ve tried tagging their FB Page in this post, but they untagged themselves immediately.”

Seriously, is such unconditional kindness even legal?

Lest you’re unaware, Sheng Siong made news headlines a while back when it announced that staff members, excluding directors, will be rewarded with an additional month of salary for their hard work during the recent period of increased demand.

The reward came off the back of a net profit of S$29 million for the first quarter ended 31 March 2020 – a figure reportedly 49.9 per cent higher than what was achieved in the same period of time in 2019.

Not all heroes wear capes. 

And Sheng Siong proves the notion absolutely right.

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