'I am not giving up

Owner of iconic Thambi Magazine Store to seek new Holland Village site after closure

- Vihanya Rakshika

Mr Periathambi Senthil Murugan, better known as Sam, was a marine engineering student in the 1990s when circumstances led him to take over the family-run Thambi Magazine Store.

He has since become the backbone of the business, which will see its last day of operation at Holland Road Shopping Centre on May 5.

The 49-year-old Singaporean, who is the elder of two siblings, initially resisted the idea of joining the family trade.

"Before all that, when I was younger, I wanted to run away...

from my father's business and live a life of my own somewhere else," Sam shared with The Sunday Times.

Despite his initial reluctance, he eventually embraced the role of running the store and found himself passionate about it soon after.

"It is very sad for me that I have to close the store after all this while," he lamented.

The eight-decade-old family business began as a newspaper distribution service started by his late grandfather, Mr P. Govindasamy, in the 1940s.

Sam made significant changes to the business after taking over from his father in the 1990s.

One notable move was displaying magazines openly on shelves along the walkway outside the store, inviting passers-by to browse.