SINGAPORE – Once a sleepy coffee shop with nearly half its stalls vacant, Lau Ka Kopitiam in Bedok North is now buzzing at meal times and crowded on weekends. The transformation took place within a year of second-generation fish soup stall owner Low Boon Chuan taking over the coffee shop in October 2025 with a $300,000 bank loan. At the time, three of its eight food stalls had been empty for almost a year. When Low learnt that the previous operator wanted to lease out the premises, he was worried that whoever took over might raise his rent. Another coffee-shop operator across the road, who had heard the news, offered him a stall. But Low…
