Yah Lah But #781 ft. Zames Chew - Gen Z Handyman Upskilled into a Million-Dollar Repair Business
Feb 20, 2026
Zames Chew, co-founder and CEO of Repair.sg — built a multi‑million dollar home‑repair business from teenage handyman beginnings. He talks about upskilling through trade courses, overcoming stigma around blue‑collar work, putting a face to the brand to earn trust, refusing to race on price, scaling revenues and using AI to cut admin. Short, practical stories about turning hands‑on skill into serious business.
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Teen Side Hustle Became A Business
- Zames and his brother started Repair.sg at 16 during the gap between O-Levels and polytechnic by listing handyman services online.
- They grew demand despite limited skills and later used it to decide whether to pursue bigger goals.
Hidden From Friends, Then Celebrated
- Zames hid Repair.sg from friends for years because he felt insecure about doing 'dirty' trade work as a young person.
- Public and peer reactions later turned overwhelmingly positive once he put a face to the brand.
Take Practical Courses Early
- Do take technical courses early to close service gaps and avoid telling customers 'I can't do this.'
- Zames recommends using SkillsFuture-style courses to upskill practically and quickly.