A young man buys a website for 20 euros, today he owns a company with millions in revenue. However, his current dream job was heavily criticized by family and acquaintances at the time. Because trades have a hard time in Singapore.
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Working in the office of a large tech company was a long-time dream for many young people. That was also the wish of a young man from Singapore. However, instead of sitting in an office, he is today the owner of a craft business with a profit of 1.1 million euros. Meanwhile, there is a trend among the older part of Generation Z, to turn away from studying and rather pursue practical trades.
The start of the business began with a domain name for a website, which cost the man around 20 euros at that time. The young entrepreneur tells the magazine CNBC.com, which has verified the story.
The now 26-year-old Zames Chew runs the Singapore-based service Repair.sg. His services include, among other things, repairs, plumbing, electrical work, and ventilation. In 2024, the company achieved a revenue of 1.7 million Singapore dollars, which is about 1.1 million euros.
At 16, he discovers a market gap and buys a website
How did it all begin? At the age of 16, Chew bought a domain name for a website for 30 Singapore dollars (about 20 euros), got help from his father in registering the company, and founded Repair.sg. As a reason for this idea, he mentioned in the conversation with CNBC that he could not find a handyman for his parents online at that time:
When I was younger, it was always my dream to work in a big tech company. But one day, in early 2016, I discovered a market gap.
Our parents were looking for a service provider who could fix something in the house. I just searched online, and … back then there seemed to be no service providers [online]. So I thought to myself … I’ll just create a website and see what happens.
In the first years, the company progressed only slowly, and it was repeatedly financially tight, Chew reports. It wasn’t until Chew and his brother, whom he brought in as a co-founder, turned Repair.sg from their hobby into a fully-fledged company that it began to grow and expand. The two also decided against studying in order to concentrate on the business instead. A decision for which they were long criticized.
The job as a craftsman has a bad reputation
The 26-year-old reports that there was strong resistance against his plans: his parents and also strangers told him,that he and his brother should rather study than take on a craft job. The crafts are something for losers who have achieved nothing in life:
When we started talking [to customers] … they told us directly to our faces: ‘You are still children. You should be learning in school and not doing this type of work. This is something for people who haven’t made it in life.’
Nevertheless, he and his brother stuck to their idea. At first only secretly and then eventually officially. Chew stated that he is still glad today that he never gave up his job. Moreover, he can work with his brother, which matters most to him, more than the bad reputation of his profession.
The 27-year-old Lexis Czumak-Abreeu belongs to Generation Z and represents a trend: she initially wanted to become a surgeon, but switched to the trades during the Covid pandemic. Today she is an electrician and a star on social media: A 27-year-old earns €180,000 a year by showing her craft profession to others from Gen Z
