SINGAPORE: A florist said it suffered losses of more than S$1,000 (US$780) after preparing flowers for what appeared to be a fake bulk order that was never collected – the second such incident to hit small businesses in recent days.
In a blog post on its website, Kiki Florist, located in KAP Mall along Bukit Timah Road, recounted receiving an unusually large order on Monday (Sep 8).
A man had asked for 150 small bouquets and four extra-large ones to be ready within 48 hours, claiming it was a “corporate order from the government” and that he was from Bedok Army Camp.
The blog post, titled “150 bouquets, zero downpayment, and one very expensive lesson” and dated Sep 10, said the man had initially agreed to pay S$2,200 in cash upon collection but refused to make any deposit. The florist and the buyer eventually settled on 50 bouquets, worth about S$1,100.
Ms Joselyn Lie, 21, who said she co-owns the business with her sister, told CNA on Friday that the buyer sounded “very sincere” at first and even cited past incidents where he had allegedly paid vendors who failed to deliver.
She shared screenshots of their WhatsApp exchanges, which showed a profile photo of a man in what appeared to be a Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) uniform.
On Sep 10, the supposed customer assured Kiki Florist that his “men” would collect the bouquets. When no one arrived, he called hours later to say he would only take the order if all 150 bouquets were ready. Shortly afterwards, he stopped responding.
“At that moment, it was clear: we’d been led on, strung along, and stood up,” the florist wrote in its blog.
Ms Lie added that while the incident cost the business around S$1,100 and forced them to turn away other customers, they eventually managed to sell the prepared bouquets.
Ms Lie told CNA she was unsure if the incident could be categorised as a scam and that this was the first time the business had encountered such a situation.
The case comes in the same week that a hawker stall in Tiong Bahru Market said it had been duped by someone claiming to be from the SAF. The stallholder had prepared 150 packets of chicken and mutton briyani, only to realise that the order was a hoax.
