In selecting a name for the business, Ryan wished to honour his family legacy and create a name that could be passed down to future generations. At the same time, however, Ryan wanted a new name to convey that his new business would stand on its own, distinct from his family’s previous trades. He started with the name his grandparents used for their minimart back in kampong days, which was then later used by his father for a petroleum business. Ryan then amended this name after his best friend Ms Goh offered suggestions for meaningful or auspicious Chinese characters, and settled on “Chua Hup Eng” (蔡合榮).

Chua Hup Eng may have been founded in 2020, but preparatory work started long before that. Ryan began meeting with various incense makers as early as 2018, travelling to places like China, Australia, and Indonesia to open discussions and learn more about their craft. Although he had read extensively about incense, he believed that the only way to discern quality was to try every sample from the incense makers he visited. Armed with this groundwork, Ryan took a bold step in the midst of a pandemic, and officially established Chua Hup Eng in 2020.

Although getting Chua Hup Eng off the ground was not easy, Ryan describes it as a fun learning experience. He and his small team handle all aspects of the business in-house, from customer service to supply-chain management. They have had to learn along the way, and are grateful for the feedback given by loyal customers, as well as the guidance offered by their incense maker partners. Ryan reflects that by running Chua Hup Eng in this manner, his team imparts a personal touch to their mission of preserving traditional Chinese culture and practices with natural products.

In shortlisting incense makers to work with, Chua Hup Eng examines several key criteria. These include the raw materials harvested by the incense makers, the locations they harvest from, and the incense-making process, which must not involve any chemicals or additives beyond natural materials like bamboo sticks and incense powder.

To ensure consistency in quality and fragrance, Ryan insists that the incense makers send a sample of each batch of incense to them first. The sample must then pass rigorous quality control checks before Chua Hup Eng orders a larger volume for production, shipping, and retail. Over time, this arrangement has grown into ongoing relationships with several incense makers, who have proven themselves reliable, high-quality, consistent, and reasonable with their pricing.

Unlike most traditional “kim zua diam” (金纸店, shops selling joss paper and offerings), which are often situated in HDB estates, Chua Hup Eng focuses on selling their products in the digital space. Their “shop fronts” can be found on Facebook and Carousell, where they interact with customers and accept orders online. By going digital, Chua Hup Eng enjoys a slew of benefits. Apart from reducing overheads and removing the need to maintain a physical store, Chua Hup Eng’s online presence has made it easier for them to reach out to a wider audience, rather than having to depend on footfall alone. This approach also appeals to younger devotees, who may chance upon them while looking for alternative options. While there may always be a place for brick-and-mortar stores, Chua Hup Eng believes that joss paper shops must grow with the times, and expanding online is a natural part of that growth.