Old-school CD shop in Marsiling reminds Stomper of pre-Netflix days
An old-school compact disc (CD) and digital video disc (DVD) shop in Marsiling has struck a nostalgic chord with a Stomper, reminding him of a time before streaming services took over.
Stomper Lester Thean, 29, first came across South Win Laser Pte Ltd at Block 304 Woodlands Street 31 on Feb 21 at around 4.05pm. The photos he shared with Stomp on March 15 were taken over a series of weeks.
"Every Saturday, my mum, my younger sister, my aunt and I have passed by that shop while visiting my grandmother, who is residing at Orange Valley Nursing Home," Lester said.
"Now, the shop has become a common sight whenever we are en route to the nursing home."
Lester recalled that the shop had caught his mother's attention when the family first encountered it.
"It reminded her of the various shops that sold Mandarin, Hokkien and Cantonese songs from the 1970s to the 2000s," Lester said.
His mother eventually left the store after realising it did not carry the songs she was looking for.
But for Lester, the shop brings back memories of his childhood.
"Seeing and checking out the shop for a few minutes brought back nostalgia because in the early 2000s, CD and DVD shops like these were a part of my primary school days, when physical media dominated the era," he said.
The Stomper recalls visiting stores that sold computer games in large boxes — something he finds lacking today.
"I really miss the days when video games came in big boxes. It felt like you were buying something special, not just downloading a file."
The layout of South Win Laser Pte Ltd also reminded Lester of similar stores in Chinatown in the early 2000s, particularly those at New Bridge Centre that also sold video compact discs (VCDs).
"My mum bought a few VCDs for my sister and me to watch from there, including Tom and Jerry, Hello Kitty, and Jetlag Productions' versions of Cinderella, The Little Mermaid and The Jungle Book," he said.
"They were kept in file cases like the ones shown in the photos. That was our Netflix at the time."
As a Tampines resident, Lester also fondly remembers similar shops closer to home.
"There used to be CD and DVD shops at Tampines Bus Interchange and Tampines Mall," he said, adding that one such store in the basement of Tampines Mall has since been replaced by a Chinese herbal shop.
Nostalgia in the streaming era
Even large retailers seem to have moved on from physical media, the Stomper noted, adding that he keeps a collection of old CDs and VCDs for sentimental reasons.
"Giant Hypermarket in Tampines used to have a large section dedicated to CDs and DVDs, but it has since been replaced with an electrical appliances section," he lamented.
Lester said he decided to share this with Stomp in hopes of drawing attention to a disappearing part of Singapore's retail landscape.
"I would like to spread more awareness of an old-school shop that I feel many Singaporeans would be able to connect with nostalgically, in an age when streaming services have taken root," he said.
According to an online business directory, South Win Laser Pte Ltd was incorporated on November 17, 1995. A recent report by The Smart Local also noted that the owner of the shop, Mr Ang Lay Teck, is 64 years old and has no employees.
Lester told Stomp: "I hope more people will support the shop, as there do not seem to be many customers whenever I pass by."
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