Image credit: CNBC

Growing up, Zames Chew thought he wanted to work a white-collar role at a company like Google, but his career took a different turn.

Today, the 26-year-old runs the Singapore-based handyman service Repair.sg, alongside his 24-year-old brother and co-founder, Amos Chew.

In 2024, their Singapore-based company Repair.sg brought in 1.7 million Singapore dollars (about $1.3 million), according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It.

“When I was younger, my dream was always to work in big tech,” said Chew. But one day in early 2016, he discovered a gap in the market.

“Our parents were looking for a service provider to fix something around the house,” said Chew. “I was just looking online, and … there [seemed] to be nowhere to find service providers [online] back in the day.

So I was like … let me put together a website and see what happens from there.”

So, at age 16, Chew spent 30 Singapore dollars (about $23) to buy a website domain name, had his father help him register the business, and Repair.sg was born.

Almost a decade later, what started as a blue-collar side hustle by two brothers, now has over 20 employees and is on track to bring in about $2.3 million in 2025, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It.

Starting a side hustle at 16

As kids, the Chew brothers loved being hands-on.

“My brother and I would do everything together. That means building Legos, building PCs, taking things apart,” said Chew.

”[We] have always been building projects together, and it has [been] our dream to … work together when we became adults.”

The two were able to realize this dream during their teenage years after starting Repair.sg.

The company gained momentum slowly until the last few years when its growth started to soar, said Chew.

For the first three years of the company, the brothers were still in school, so they had to squeeze in work for the business in between classes, or during their evenings.

What a lot of people don’t know is that there’s a lot of education … [and] licensing behind some of the services that we do, and it goes beyond just taking a screwdriver and hammer [to] things,” he said.

So they spent years acquiring the knowledge, skills and licenses necessary to run their business.

In addition, before the business scaled, they would take on most jobs themselves such as replacing lights, and fixing furniture.

“For the first seven years, up until perhaps even early 2024, [the business] was basically at the brink of death most of the time,” said Chew. “We were young and weren’t very good business owners.”

Credit: CNBC

The Minister of Works, David Umahi, weekend, donated a speedboat to the Marine and Infrastructure Protection Unit of the Lagos State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) to protect the Third Mainland Bridge and other federal bridges in the state.

Umahi, while presenting the speedboat, said that the donation aligned with his magnanimity and unwavering commitment to supporting the Corps in its duty of safeguarding vital public infrastructure.

Umahi emphasised that the donation of the speedboat would aid in monitoring activities along the marine corridor in Lagos, as well as serving as a morale booster for the gallant men who have been combating the activities of unscrupulous elements under the bridges.

The Commandant also extended thanks to the former Federal Controller of Works, Lagos, O.I. Kesha, for her diligent efforts in ensuring that the Corps receives all necessary logistical support to guarantee the protection of the integrity of the Third Mainland Bridge, other federal bridges, and critical national infrastructure in Lagos State.

The Bauchi State Government has announced the closure of all the public and privately owned primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions in the state with immediate effect.

In a statement on Monday, Jalaludeen Usman, Information and Public Relations Officer Bauchi State Ministry of Education, said that the decision, although difficult, was taken by the government in response to overwhelming security concerns affecting the safety of students, teachers, and school communities across the state.

“The government is fully aware of the inconvenience this may cause.

However, the protection of our children remains our highest moral responsibility. Every student in Bauchi State deserves to learn in an environment that is safe, stable, and free of fear.

We therefore call on parents, guardians, school proprietors, and all concerned stakeholders not to panic, but to remain calm and cooperative.

The government is working closely with security agencies to address the concerns swiftly and comprehensively, ensuring that normal academic activities resume as soon as it is safe to do so. We also urge citizens to remain vigilant.

If you see something, say something. Timely information from the public is crucial in safeguarding our communities.

The Bauchi State Government will continue to provide updates as the situation evolves.”