Singapore Expats

Hi all, we are moving from Canada later in the year with a newborn baby (baby will be around 2 months when we move to Singapore). I'd appreciate any advice from parents as to what to bring from Canada which may be difficult to find in Singapore (upon initially arriving) or more expensive compared to Canada.

We have a shipment that will be paid for and do not need to bring furniture or electronics (but we will need to bring baby furniture). We will be in Singapore for 3-4 years so are interested in stocking up on some things that are easily transportable. Toys? Clothes? Diapers? Over the counter medicines?

I am Australian and familiar with Australian products but is there anything North Americans wished they had brought with them? Thanks in advance for your advice.

Hi fellow Canuck,

I've been here for over 8 years and there is really nothing lacking, at all (except maybe some good lobster cooked in Fundy water).

Odd things are more expensive here though. Gillette gel deodorant, for example (for men) is $8.99 each. A pack of Gillette razors (like the Sensor excel kind) is around $22 for 4 razor heads.

Go to a Costco and fill up on that kind of stuff, it's what I buy when I travel back or when I travel outside of Singapore/Asian area.

In all honesty you can get everything here, it's just more expensive.

They even sell Canadian pork in the grocery store. I never knew Canada exported so much pork, to be honest.

Oh, and a Fiesta BBQ (the cheap, Superstore type) is around $600 - go figure.

Oh, and here's a couple of links to the bigger grocery stores. You can shop online for home delivery. Check it out for pricing on items you'll be familiar with at home (and some you won't be familiar with).

http://www.coldstorage.com.sg/corporate ... _home.html

http://www.fairprice.com.sg/webapp/wcs/ ... homePage=Y

Deodorant/antiperspirant. The selection here is very poor. Maybe certain spices/spice mixes if you have a brand you like? Bras, especially nursing bras, if you're doing that, and you happen to be larger than a C-D cup you'll have a really tough time finding a good fit.

I have never seen a Dr. Pepper here and craved them like crazy when I was pregnant.. I could be wrong and maybe they sell them somewhere...

poodlek wrote:Deodorant/antiperspirant. The selection here is very poor. Maybe certain spices/spice mixes if you have a brand you like? Bras, especially nursing bras, if you're doing that, and you happen to be larger than a C-D cup you'll have a really tough time finding a good fit.

I have never seen a Dr. Pepper here and craved them like crazy when I was pregnant.. I could be wrong and maybe they sell them somewhere...

So far I've seen Dr Pepper only in one place here and it is in drinks menu of Billy Bombers.

the lynx wrote:

poodlek wrote:Deodorant/antiperspirant. The selection here is very poor. Maybe certain spices/spice mixes if you have a brand you like? Bras, especially nursing bras, if you're doing that, and you happen to be larger than a C-D cup you'll have a really tough time finding a good fit.

I have never seen a Dr. Pepper here and craved them like crazy when I was pregnant.. I could be wrong and maybe they sell them somewhere...

So far I've seen Dr Pepper only in one place here and it is in drinks menu of Billy Bombers.

Really? You guys aren't looking hard enough. Dr. Pepper is everywhere. I was in Paragon today and the grocery store in the basement even has a display of them on sale, right by the grocery carts and the flowers in the front.

It is most definitely NOT everywhere. The largest grocery chain in Singapore doesn't carry it.

EC wrote:

the lynx wrote:

poodlek wrote:Deodorant/antiperspirant. The selection here is very poor. Maybe certain spices/spice mixes if you have a brand you like? Bras, especially nursing bras, if you're doing that, and you happen to be larger than a C-D cup you'll have a really tough time finding a good fit.

I have never seen a Dr. Pepper here and craved them like crazy when I was pregnant.. I could be wrong and maybe they sell them somewhere...

So far I've seen Dr Pepper only in one place here and it is in drinks menu of Billy Bombers.

Really? You guys aren't looking hard enough. Dr. Pepper is everywhere. I was in Paragon today and the grocery store in the basement even has a display of them on sale, right by the grocery carts and the flowers in the front.

Maybe because that's a expat-y/peope from western countries-y type of place.

Heck, I don't even see it Holland Village.

sundaymorningstaple wrote:It is most definitely NOT everywhere. The largest grocery chain in Singapore doesn't carry it.

I've never had an issue finding it in any grocery store in the Orchard area. Are those stores not part of the 'largest' chain? What is the largest chain anyway? Cold Storage?

I'm pretty sure one can't find it at Fairprice and that's the largest chain here.

the lynx wrote:I'm pretty sure one can't find it at Fairprice and that's the largest chain here.

Fairprice! OK, got it. Thought Cold Storage.

At any rate folks, if you have a hankering for a Dr. Pepper, you now know where you can get it.

Cheers

At the time (it's now been 1.5+ years since I was pregnant) I checked Giant, CS, FP, CarreFour, and Paragon Market, to no avail. And nobody I'd asked had seen it either, so I gave up at that point.

We visited Singapore recently with a 4month old and we noticed a few things that we could'nt get there and will stock up on in London:
1 cotton pads for nappy changing ( we tried several types from watsons etc all of them were quite useless)
2 baby food for weaning- our baby has reflux so is suspected of multiple protein intolerance meaning we had to start weaning early. So far the only brands he likes and we consider suitable ( no preservatives etc) are a uk brand Ella's kitchen ( our favourite and his) and Plum which we first tried in California but is also available in UK. We didn't see either in Singapore and we were disappointed with what there was. Organic and other foods that are tailored for specific diets are hard to find.
3 Neocate formula, this has been prescribed to our little one due to his reflux but isn't available in Singapore.
4 Creams we will stock up on the brands we like here

Otherwise branded baby clothes (like Gap) are much more expensive there than in london ( or california) but I was surprised to see our buggy (stokke) was the same price

Another frustrating thing about Singapore is the lack of internet shops so even if something is available it can be difficult to find

Bring EVERYTHING for the baby
Things are so much more expensive that the West so bring all the big expensive items like cot, any other nursery furniture, pushchairs, toys for the first year, clothes for the first year (but only bring summer clothes). Good baby items (ie western brands like fischer price, mothercare etc all tend to be 2 or 3 times the price)

A high quality buggy, for one. And the PP is correct - almost everything is more expensive here. And fewer varieties of what is available. So if you are picky about flavors, brands, etc you'd do well to buy and bring. We bring back full suitcases (computer stuff, foods, shampoo, etc) whenever we travel back from North America to Singapore. You save money and you get what you want rather than just what's available.

Everyone recommends bringing your own BBQ as well. REALLY pricey here.