Cafe
Fest fiasco over entry passes leaves customers
bitter
A cafe-hopping festival meant to be open to only pass holders
over the weekend has left an acrid taste in customers' mouths,
after they found that anyone could get in for free.
The pop-up Cafe Fest at the Waterfront Promenade near Marina Bay
Sands featured cafes such as Tiong Bahru Bakery, I Am and Toby's
Estate, offering live music acts and cupcakes, burgers and coffee
for sale.
About 1,000 people bought $30 VIP passes, which gave them priority
queues at stalls, and a VIP area where they could get some shade
and enjoy the music. Thrice that number bought normal passes for
$25 to buy food and drink. But to their surprise, people without
passes were served as well.
Food and drinks sold out very quickly, said Mr Shaun Lee, 23, who
was there on Saturday with a normal pass. "We were there at about
2pm, and almost all the food was already sold out," said the
National University of Singapore undergraduate.
"The website said only pass holders could purchase from the stalls,
but this was not enforced. There was no difference between a pass
holder and someone who hadn't paid anything."
VIP pass holder Ang Qianling, 29, co-founder of an online start-up,
said the stalls did not have priority queues and anyone could enter
the VIP tent. Many customers took to social media to complain and
demand refunds.
Things improved yesterday.
Organisers Gabriel Tan, 29, and Sarah Lek, 27, who run an event and
public relations start-up called TGLS - Tell Great Little Stories,
apologised on Cafe Fest's Facebook page on Saturday night,
promising to limit access to the VIP tent and create express queues
for certain stalls.
These measures seemed to work. Ms Tabitha Poh, 25, said she was
"quite pleased" with the festival when she visited yesterday. "The
crowd didn't seem that big, and the vendors were friendly," said
the customer service officer, who had a normal pass.
Mr Tan and Ms Lek said they are working on a compensation plan for
those who bought passes.
They explained that while Cafe Fest was meant to be open to only
pass holders, they were unable to put up barricades because it was
held in a public place.
"We will listen to the feedback and take care of the situation, and
try to make it right - we are not going to let it slide," said Mr
Tan.
ST
