Ex-footballers’ halal chee cheong fun stall sees boost in business after PM Wong’s visit

His version leans towards the sweeter, thicker-sauced Singapore-style chee cheong fun, and is positioned as fully halal.

However, there’s a twist: instead of the usual mix of soya-based sauces or sambal, it’s built around a single house-made spicy-sweet sauce finished with cili padi.

“The sauce is the main thing. I can say there is dried shrimp paste, sesame oil and sesame seeds – the rest I’d rather not mention,” he added with a laugh, noting that it’s part of his “secret” recipe.

That sparked an idea, as he told his wife – then his fiancee – that after they got married, they should try selling it. They kicked things off as a home-based business in 2020 during the COVID-19 lockdown, when football training was paused.

“The response then was quite good, even though we were only selling the original chee cheong fun,” he recalled.

When his football contract ended later that year, Muhammad Nurullah decided to take a leap of faith and opened his first stall in January 2021. “I told my wife, let’s just open a stall and take the risk. I had zero experience in other professions as my first full-time job since I was 19 was playing soccer,” he shared.

He said the transition from football wasn’t difficult, but required a mindset shift. “As a footballer, whether you perform or not, you still get a salary. But as a hawker, nothing is certain, you have to give your best every day and be grateful for whatever sales you get.”

Having spent his entire career in football, he admits he never had a backup plan. “I’m grateful I met my wife and learnt this recipe,” he shared.

“Many players don’t prepare for life after football, so the nearest path is coaching,” he says, adding that he never had the inclination to go into coaching.

The early days weren’t easy.

“For the first few months, it was quiet. Not many people knew about us and I didn’t market the product well,” he said, adding that his initial quiet Kaki Bukit location was also less than ideal.

After moving to his current stall and nearly a year of struggling, he sought help from Abdul Malik Hassan, founder of nasi lemak chain Crave, who had visited his stall as a customer.

“He taught me about business structure and detailed costing,” said Muhammad Nurullah. Within months, business picked up. “After that, things really started to boom,” he added.