- Alex Teo, 36, left his corporate job to take over his family’s joss paper business.
- The journey has not been easy in modern Singapore, where religious affiliations are declining.
- Teo’s career goal is to reinvent the traditional business for the younger generation.
The latest smartphone, a three-story villa, and a private jet. Alex Teo has sold it all — for the dead.
Teo, 36, is the third-generation owner of Ban Kah Hiang Trading, one of Singapore’s oldest joss paper businesses. They sell incense sticks, joss papers, and paper effigies — or paper replicas of real-life objects — which are designed to be burned as part of Chinese ancestral worship outside homes and in temples.
His grandfather opened the shop in the 1950s before his father took over in the early 1990s.
But it’s an increasingly tough business to run in Singapore, where religious affiliations are waning. Many joss paper business owners of his father’s generation have closed down because their kids did not want to take over, he said.
So, at 28, he stepped up. « I thought it would be a pity if I were not to continue it, » he told Business Insider.
Now, he’s on a mission to reinvent the traditional business for the new generation.
He had no interest at first
Erin Liam
During traditional Chinese festivals, believers in Chinese folk religion burn joss paper — also known as « hell money » — as an offering to deities or ancestors.
Some also burn paper effigies of the latest products, such as cars and cameras, for their ancestors.
« The belief is that by burning these items, they will become ‘real’ in the afterlife and can also be used by their loved ones there, » Terence Heng, a sociologist from the University of Liverpool, told BI.
Although Teo grew up helping at the shop, he was never very religious and had no interest in taking over. After graduating from college with a degree in business management, he worked for the public service and then an insurance company, assessing medical claims.
But things changed in 2016 when his dad got sick. His parents, then in their late 50s, asked him whether he could take over.
« I thought, ‘Should I give up my corporate job? But I would have to give up some social life,' » he recalled, explaining that most people in the industry are significantly older, unlike the colleagues he had formed friendships with in his previous jobs.
Teo, who now has four kids, said his wife supported the career switch. « She thought that if I were to do my own business, I would have more time for her, » he said.
He was also enticed by the thought of being his own boss.
« If I work hard in the corporate world, I can only wait for my bonus. But here, I’m the boss. If I work hard, I earn more money, » he said.
The business of religion in modern society
Erin Liam
Still, his journey has not been easy. Since taking over the business, Teo says he has seen retail sales fall as the younger generation drifts away from religious beliefs.
In Singapore, between 2010 and 2020, there was an increased proportion of residents with no religious affiliations across all age groups, data from the Singapore Department of Statistics showed. The same data showed that the percentage of Taoists and Buddhists — religious groups that use joss paper products — fell by 2.1% and 2.2%, respectively.
The decline in religious beliefs is part of a wider trend across the world. In the US, around 28% of adults described themselves as atheists, agnostics, or « nothing in particular » when asked about their religion — up from 16% in 2007, a 2024 Pew Research Center survey found.
Meanwhile, complaints about the environmental impact of burning joss paper have been simmering in Singapore.
In February, the Singapore government ran a second campaign to improve burning etiquette by encouraging people to pray in temples instead of outside their homes and to clean up after prayers, per a press release from the Alliance for Action.
PETER PARKS/AFP via Getty Images
Teo said that in the past, business at his family’s retail shop would pick up during festive periods like Lunar New Year and the Hungry Ghost Festival but lull during other times of the year.
Running the retail shop also affected his parents, who worked over 10 hours daily and wanted to retire.
So, in May last year, Teo sold the retail shop to focus on wholesale distribution to companies and temples from their warehouse.
Teo saw it as an opportunity to invest more time in innovating their products to meet the needs of a changing consumer base.
« We had to think about how we can prolong tradition and culture to fit into the current modern mindset, » he said. « If we were to continue to sell the traditional way like my dad did, I don’t think we can be sustainable. »
Keeping up with the times
Erin Liam
In 2023, Teo partnered with his close friend, Chris Huang, who works in FinTech, to establish Base Genesis, a modern joss paper startup.
The pair invested a mid-five-figure amount to set up the business. While Teo focuses on operations, Huang oversees finances. They’ve since hired seven employees who work on branding, marketing, and livestream sales.
Their new business aims to innovate traditional joss paper products to appeal to younger generations — from packaging to sustainability.
Early this year, they were approached by MullenLowe, an advertising agency, to develop an eco-friendly hell note. The « Eco Hell Note » has a denomination with 48 zeroes — the largest possible denomination of money in the Chinese language. Instead of burning a stack of notes, burning one piece would suffice. Teo added that their note is ashless and smokeless, unlike traditional notes that create smog when burned.
« Burning joss paper is deep-rooted in our Chinese culture, » he said, adding that a ban on the practice is unlikely to happen despite frequent complaints. « So we have to come out with a compromise to control the pollution and not become obsolete, » he said.
Teo, who sources the paper from China, said the team had to experiment with different types of paper to determine which material is the most eco-friendly.
Developing such products doesn’t come cheap. Although they have not decided on a price for their Eco Hell Note, their eco-friendly products are slightly more expensive. A pack of 500 « Eco-friendly Gentle Smoke Joss Sticks » costs 11.50 Singapore dollars, or $8.50. In comparison, a pack of 500 traditional sandalwood joss sticks costs SG$10.
« Everything takes time and money. You need to do a lot of research and development, » said Huang. Each phase will come with additional costs, and it will take time for the company to grow, he added.
Erin Liam
Their Eco Hell Note is not yet available for purchase, but the pair hopes that it will take off among younger Singaporeans once they launch it in time for Tomb Sweeping Day, a tradition for honoring ancestors in April next year.
Heng, who researches Chinese religions, said their eco-friendly products would be better received by the younger generation, who are more eco-conscious. While they are not as religious, they may keep up the practice out of filial piety.
« It does still align with the demands of ritualistic burning, where a physical object is transformed into a spiritual one. It’s a really good first step in finding solutions to burning joss paper, » he said.
Beyond innovation, Teo hopes to expand the business to the Western market, specifically to those who engage in these religious practices.
« We will maybe tweak the design to cater to their taste. For example, come out with a hell note in US dollars, » he said.
These are more experimental ideas, Teo said. « But we are still keeping in mind the tradition and culture. That’s what we are trying to preserve. »
2024-12-19 00:14:02