I was going to Geylang from Lavender and thought I’d stop by the Victoria Wholesale Centre on the way just to check out what the place was like. This was my first visit since the wholesale centre moved from Bugis to here 3 years ago.
Most of us would be familiar with the Victoria Wholesale Centre where we could purchase dried goods, groceries, party supplies, packaging materials & miscellaneous household items in bulk at lower (than retail) prices. Over here, the shops are mainly concentrated on Level One. I was here on a Saturday afternoon and it wasn’t that crowded with people. I noticed most of the customers were either retailers or F&B businesses as they all parked their vehicles in front of the shops and were loading up their purchases.
Most of the dried provisions traders like this one have a huge array of products in their shops ranging from the usual like mushrooms, hae bee (dried shrimps), scallops, red dates…
…as well as an amazing variety of fish maws at different prices depending on the grade and quality.
Since Chinese New Year is round the corner, there are also sales of CNY goodies, snacks & tidbits.
Many were pre-packed while others were sold by weight like cuttlefish & the like.
I spotted a big pack of plump-looking red dates at only $2.00 and I asked the shopkeeper the difference between the pack I was holding and another one that was 4 times more expensive. I was told that the cheap dates were chemically bleached hence the lower price.
Overall, this wholesale centre has a huge variety of stuffs on sale and in fact for every one product, there can be different variants (with different prices) of it so the best thing is to always ask about the origin and uses (for example some dates can be eaten on their own as a snack while some can be used in soups, etc) and also make comparisons between different shops. A cheaper price doesn’t mean the product is value for money. It really depends on the quality and what you’re paying for.
Somehow I felt some of the shops were paying more attention to their business partners (and regular customers) who were buying or ordering stuffs in bulk which was expected given that this was meant to be a trading hub so I didn’t feel the atmosphere to be that welcoming for walk-ins. Nonetheless, the Victoria Wholesale Market is still worth checking out. You never know what you may find there. A great deal. A real steal.
Currently, they have a shuttle bus service (Kallang MRT to/from Victoria Wholesale Centre) till 16 February 2015. Do check out their website for more details.
Victoria Wholesale Centre
101 Kallang Avenue
Singapore 339508
Website: http://victoriawholesalecentre.com/
How to get here
Interested in more wholesale shopping? Read my post on Albert Centre Wholesale Market which is a paradise for nuts (think pecans, walnuts, almonds, cashews and more), seeds, crisps, dried seafood, dried provisions, kiam sng tee, keropok and Chinese New Year candies, jellies, tidbits and more.
Found another gem on Hong Kong Street that sells not just frozen seafood, canned products and traditional Chinese food stuffs, there’s a good selection of dried fruits, nuts and seeds too. Check out my post on Wholesale Nuts & Seeds from Teck Sang.