Main Topic: Service in the Singapore Underground Economy

Hosts: Clyde Warden

Talk of Asian Marketing has been producing a number of shows inSingapore. Clyde is in Singapore with the University of Stirling andsends in a short show about making a purchase in the undergroundeconomy. The whole show is ConsumerCam coverage of an attempt to rent a wheelchair at a low price.

The Singapore skyline is most impressive, making the city-state the preferred Asian location for expatriates. Down on Orchard Road, the global is present making anyone feel they are in the most dense shopping mall on Earth. Outside the downtown financial district, there is a different reality that local consumers live in. With the Chinese cultural emphasis on bargaining and obtaining low prices, we can find a much lower cost of living. This combines with the preference for being the boss (a very strong entrepreneurial behaviour) to create a thriving underground economy of goods and services at the micro level. It can be surprising just how established these small, and slightly illegal, businesses are. Clyde and his family seek out a wheel chair rental, and meet one of these bosses, who seems to be busy running two or three businesses. Not for the faint of heart, the underground economy does not have up scale locations, cool air conditioning, or pleasant atmospheric music.

Making an appointment with us for 10PM, the boss did not show for nearly an hour, and then took the receipt information so serious, and wrote it so slowly that we ended up missing the MRT train and had to catch a taxi--making the whole effort a bit less economical.

This guy had a whole list of things he was renting . . . but the prices were incredibly cheap.

Photos:

• (1) Singapore's financial district. (1) Singapore's financial district.
• (2) Downtown Singapore is stuffed with hotels. (2) Downtown Singapore is stuffed with hotels.
• (3) The convention & exhibition center at Suntec. (3) The convention & exhibition center at Suntec.
• (4) The model of a modern international city. (4) The model of a modern international city.
• (5) In this part of the city, there are more shopping malls than 7-Elevens. (5) In this part of the city, there are more shopping malls than 7-Elevens.
• (6) Singapore is a financial center in Asia. (6) Singapore is a financial center in Asia.
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Show Links:

• Comparative Analysis of the Relationship Between Poverty and Underground economy in the Highly developed, Transition and Developing Countries.
• Singapore's Experience in Curbing Corruption and the Growth of the Underground Economy; Journal article by Sam Choon-Yin; SOJOURN: Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia, Vol. 20, 2005.
• Singapore Wikipedia entry.

Bottom Line:

• Underground economies are everywhere--including Singapore.
• This kind of common marketing exchange situation is not easy to see downtown where the tourist are (unless you count the oldest profession).
• Checking the local listings, such as Yahoo.sg, brings up real consumer situations, rather than just the expat circle.