FairPrice will be closing its outlet at Enabling Village (EV) in Lengkok Bahru for good, with the last day of operations on 1 Oct.
The Straits Times (ST) revealed the closure in a report today (12 Sep), which FairPrice Group confirmed.
Catered towards the elderly and disabled, the store is the first and only one of its kind under FairPrice Group.
ST reported that the outlet will cease to operate after its last day on 1 Oct, citing a confirmation from FairPrice Group, who apparently didn’t provide a reason behind it.
Launched back on 2 Dec 2015, the store was the first and only FairPrice outlet catered towards the elderly and people with disabilities (PWDs).
The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) and SG Enable had launched it together with EV, as part of an initiative to support these communities.
According to EV, the supermarket has assistive devices like automated basket-lifting systems to help customers place heavy items onto the conveyor belt at the check-out counter. There are also magnifying glasses and call buttons in every aisle for those who need to read product descriptions or help from staff.
Source: Google Maps
Employees additionally went through a training programme to learn to understand and anticipate the needs of elderly customers.
Through such training, they learn how to recognise seniors with afflictions like dementia and know the difficulties they face.
In a statement to MS News, a FairPrice Group spokesperson reiterated their commitment to providing PWDs with training and employment opportunities.
The group has also gained knowledge from their eight-year partnership with EV, executing what they learned across their network. FPG’s frontliners have thus earned training on how to guide and mentor PWDs.
Source: Google Maps
These individuals will now be able to have access to training at their closest store. This will shorten travelling time, connecting trainees to the social networks in their neighbourhood.
“FPG is dedicated to fostering diversity and inclusion in the workplace, and has been engaging PWDs since 1983, successfully training and employing many over the years,” the spokesperson said.
At present, they employ 26 PWDs in various functions across outlets, two of whom work at the EV store. FairPrice Group will redeploy both employees to other stores following the closure.
The spokesperson also reiterated FairPrice’s commitment to their social mission of serving various segments of society. They do so through “evolving their (our) retail formats and offerings to support our seniors and PWDs”.
Customers are encouraged to visit the two closest FairPrice stores at Bukit Merah Central and Alexandra View ARTRA.
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Featured image adapted from Google Maps.
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