Mustafa has seen impressive growth since its inception. The first
shop was established in 1971 in Campbell Lane in Little India, selling readymade
garments.
In 1973, a 900 Square Feet. Shop space was rented along Serangoon Road.
Electronic Items were added on to its range of products.
A second shop also 900 Square Feet was rented beside the first shop to
accommodate growing customer traffic. Along with it, more products were sourced
from overseas to give customers a wider selection of goods. The choice of new
products based on what customers wanted.
In 1985, Mr. Mustaq Ahmad looked at several areas and decided to set up
shop at Serangoon Plaza. A bold decision since Serangoon Plaza was located away
from the main shopping belt in Little India, however, Mr. Mustaq Ahmad went
ahead to rent a space of 40,000 Square Feet
on the ground floor of the
building.
The store became an immediate success, and more space was rented within the
building to accommodate the growing clientele. With this in mind, and also
considering the rental projection, Mr. Mustaq Ahmad thought it would be best to
own his own premises to maintain his business strategy.
Mr. Mustaq Ahmad started to look around, and found some old shop houses along
Syed Alwi Road which were reasonably priced and not far from his store, just
around the corner from Serangoon Plaza. He bought them one by one till finally,
he bought the whole row. Putting up a large Shopping Centre in a side road out
of the traditional shopping area was a very brave decision. After 2 years of
careful planning, he decided to go ahead to put up his own building.
In April 1995, Mustafa Centre became a reality and immediately became a
Shopping
Paradise
to many people. Weekends, the store packs in over 15,000 customers
of all nationalities.
With the exposure in the T.V programs "Money Mind" and "Money Week" and
reports in the local newspapers gave Mustafa greater exposure. With this
support, the crowds continued to come to the store. A popular meeting point for
families on weekends and holidays.
Today, customers can get almost anything from over 300,000 items displayed on
four levels covering an area of 400,000 Square Feet within the six story
building along Syed Alwi Road. The business concept of offering other services
such as Money Exchange, Remittance, Air Travel and tours has helped in
contributing to the growth of the business.
This customer related services under one roof has become synonymous with
tourists from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri-Lanka, and Asia. And lately there
has been an increase in customers from the Middle-East, North Asia and also
Europe.