SINGAPORE – The Singapore Coffee Festival struck its stride on Saturday (Aug 5) early morning saw the weekend crowd streaming into getting their coffee repair.
The 2nd edition of the four-day occasion, which is arranged by The Straits Times and provided by DBS Bank, entered its 2nd public day at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore.
Not long after doors opened at 10 am, the company was bustling for the 90 exhibitors in the 11,500 sq m area.
Commoner Coffee Roasters barista Keith Yee, 28, stated: “Compared to in 2015, this year’s premises are much better. Customers have more space to take pleasure in the program and the outdoor areas are extremely occurring, we had our AeroPress competition there yesterday.”
” We chose to sign up with Singapore Coffee Festival once again this year as this is a location where there’s a lot of coffee shops showcasing different types of coffee and it draws out Singapore’s coffee culture.”
Civil servant Ludovic Francois, 35, stated he was eagerly anticipating checking out some Japanese
” I was at last year’s festival, which was extremely crowded, but this is a lot more large and hopefully it remains like that throughout the day.”
Dominic Soon, 35, who operates in finance, said: “I like coffee, and this is a fantastic opportunity to taste many different coffees in a single setting.”
Festival-goers loaded the Straits Times lounge to listen to talks moderated by ST journalists. In the morning, senior tech reporter Irene Tham talked about digital literacy for a more youthful generation with Singtel Consumer Singapore chief executive Yuen Kuan Moon, 50.
Mr Yuen, 50, floated the idea of “digital quotient”, which is implied to supplement IQ (intellectual quotient) and EQ (emotional ratio), and they have to work with parents to educate young people about issues such as cyberbullying and the safe use of social media.
Housewife Y. P. Tee, 57, said the session was extremely interesting. “It’s great for moms and dads to understand there is assist there for them and their kids when it comes to issues like game addiction or social networks dependency,” said the mother of two.
In the afternoon, housing reporter Rachel Au-Yong moderated a panel featuring young experts who likewise have flourishing services or business on the side.
These consisted of Ms Rachael Leong, 29, creator of jewellery business Lucy and Mui; Mr Declan Ee, 34, who runs online furnishings store Castlery; and Joshua Ip, 35, of non-profit literary organisation Sing Lit Station.
Said Ms Leong: “I would like more ladies to understand that the side hustle is possible. Enthusiasm, and the belief that jewellery can alter somebody’s life, is what drives me. It’s not easy to make cash in fashion and only in the past few years have (customers) become more open to purchasing local labels.”
For Friday’s launch, nearly 4,000 people turned out. Exhibitors said they hope the weekend will bring more crowds.
Saturday’s lineup guarantees a varied variety of activities, from a morning hatha yoga class to a 12.30 pm author talk and finalizing by Eisner award-winning graphic novelist Sonny Liew.
Each celebration day is split into two sessions – brunch from 10am to 3.30 pm and sundown from 4.30 to 10pm.
Festival-goers will be provided wristbands showing the session they have bought tickets for. They have to leave as soon as that session is over.
Brunch sessions are coffee- focused, with lots of workshops on house developing and coffee appreciation as well as family-friendly activities.
The sundown session is indicated to be more relaxed with an outdoor barbecue, live music, and fireworks.
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