• NTUC FairPrice Foundation sets aside S$1 million to donate vans to VWOs; 6 retrofitted vans donated to 6 VWOs to help their beneficiaries
• Newly-renovated FairPrice supermarket at Bukit Merah re-launches to better serve customers and families in the vicinity

NTUC FairPrice Foundation announced a donation of six new vans to six Voluntary Welfare Organisations (VWOs) to support transportation services for their beneficiaries today. FairPrice Foundation has set aside S$1 million for this initiative, which includes the retrofitting of the vans to customised transport vehicles for beneficiaries with limited mobility. The announcement was made at the re-launch of the newly-renovated FairPrice supermarket at Bukit Merah this morning.

Ms Tan Hwee Bin, Board Member of NTUC FairPrice and Director of NTUC FairPrice Foundation, said, “Transportation costs add a sizeable financial burden for VWOs and we hope that by providing these vehicles, FairPrice Foundation can help free up some of the VWO’s limited funds for other purposes to meet the increasing needs of their beneficiaries. This is in line with the mission of FairPrice Foundation to provide a better life for the community and we will continue to reach out to the less fortunate. We hope that this donation of vans will relieve immediate transport needs and support them in their continuous good work for beneficiaries.”

The six VWOs who will receive the vehicles include: Club Rainbow, TP HealthCare, Singapore Red Cross, Food from the Heart, Highpoint Community Services Association, and Singapore Disability Sports Council. These VWOs represent different sectors of social service and reach out to different types of beneficiaries in need.

Club Rainbow will be receiving a van that is specifically catered for children with mobility difficulties. It will serve as a transportation vehicle to schools, hospitals for treatments and other Club Rainbow activities for its children beneficiaries. The van will also be used to deliver food rations.

TP HealthCare, will receive a van which will be retrofitted as a non-emergency ambulance to transport the elderly sick for medical treatment while Singapore Red Cross will use their retrofitted van to ferry the needy and elderly with limited mobility for medical services and rehabilitative therapies. Food from the Heart will use their new van to transport food to over 45 of their distribution centres located around Singapore.

Highpoint Community Services Association will be using their new retrofitted van to send wheelchair-bound elderly for their medical appointments while Singapore Disability Sports Council will receive a new van to replace one of their three vans and provide free transport to disabled youth athletes for their daily training.

Mr Henry Tan, Executive Director, Singapore Disability Sports Council, said, “This thoughtful donation of a van from FairPrice Foundation has made it possible for Singapore Disability Sports Council to continue providing our disabled athletes with transport services, giving them opportunities to participate in sports and lead better and more meaningful lives. It will also allow us to help athletes from the lower income groups gain equal access to recreational sports and be accepted in the local sporting community. On behalf of our beneficiaries, we are grateful for this generous donation.”

FairPrice Foundation has donated over $46 million to the community since it was launched in 2008. This year, it has donated $7 million to the community, including this initiative to donate vehicles to VWOs to help their beneficiaries.

Relaunch of newly renovated FairPrice @ Bukit Merah

FairPrice supermarket at Bukit Merah first opened in 1980 to serve customers in the vicinity. The latest renovation works took place over a period of two and a half months while the store continued to remain open to serve residents in the vicinity. The newly-renovated FairPrice supermarket at Bukit Merah has been re-designed with a brighter and contemporary look to enhance the shopping experience for customers. It has expanded its product range of food and household items such as appliances and textiles and also improved its facilities; it now has a rest area and a lift for customers with mobility difficulties.

Commenting at the relaunch of the store, Mr Seah Kian Peng, CEO of NTUC FairPrice said, “As we stay true to our social mission to moderate the cost of living by providing quality goods at fair prices to our customers for the past 40 years, we have also continuously evolved to better serve our customers and enhance their grocery shopping experiences at our stores. This newly-renovated supermarket, which has been serving the community for over 30 years, is an example of how we have continued to renew ourselves over the years while continuing to fulfill our social mission of moderating the cost of living.”

FairPrice supermarkets remains the co-operative’s main retail format in fulfilling its social mission of moderating the cost of living for Singapore by providing quality essentials that are affordably priced. FairPrice has been constantly expanding its network of FairPrice stores in the past 40 years to make it more accessible for shoppers and will continue to do so in the years to come. There are currently 97 FairPrice supermarkets nestled mostly in the heartlands of Singapore.

The co-operative’s other supermarket retail formats include FairPrice Finest, to provide a wide range of cosmopolitan products to bring the fine life closer to shoppers; and FairPrice Xtra hypermarkets, to offer families a one-stop shopping venue with a wide variety of products including groceries, electronics and household appliances.

Through multiple retail formats, FairPrice is able to serve the varied needs and interests of people from all walks of life, and to keep pace with the changing needs of customers while remaining committed to its social mission and aspiration to be Singapore’s leading retailer with a heart.