Press Release/ Articles

2 Jun 2020

As Singapore prepares for economic recovery post circuit breaker, it is imperative to recognise small local businesses championing a spirit of innovation to improve the lives of heartland residents.

One such business is Loon Lock, a home-based family business. After three decades of designing products for companies, the self-starting Mr Loon in 2018 brought to market his very own invention -- The Loon Lock.

Setting a new standard for HDB padlocks, the patent-pending lock (designed to fit most HDB gates) introduces several innovative features that improve safety, ease-of-use, and value-for-money.

Often, traditional HDB padlocks have to be lifted and held in order for gates to open and shut. The Loon Lock takes this hassle out of the equation, with a spring lock mechanism that allows the lock to be used with just one hand.

The Loon Lock also enhances the safety of HDB residents. The smart lock (ART. 118 BKR/BKP)retains the key whenever it is in unlock position, and releases only in lock position. With this feature, the act of forgetting keys in the padlock, which leaves homes susceptible to break-ins, will be a problem of the past. (For those who prefer to do away with this feature, Loon Lock offers a padlock model that releases the key even in unlock position.)

That’s not all. Mr Loon’s patent-pending design comes with a replaceable key cylinder. This means that when residents lose keys to their padlock, they need only to replace the cylinder -- which comes at a fraction of the price of the entire lock. 

The Loon Lock story

Against the backdrop of Singapore’s hard-hit economy, heartland entrepreneurs like Mr Loon are glowing examples of humble self-starting innovation, and reminders of the virtue of hardwork and resillience. After getting his education at a local design school, Mr Loon started his career working as a draftman. He subsequently became a product designer for a number of foreign companies, a job in which he excelled. Mr Loon faced some setbacks, having been retrenched twice, and retired at just age 55. But retirement was just another beginning for Mr Loon.

Determined to have an invention patented to the Loon name as an enduring legacy for his family, Mr Loon at age 65 started his life as an entrepreneur. 

Recounting how the idea for The Loon Lock came about, Mr Loon’s daughter, Michelle Loon, said: “As part of a Chinese New Year house-painting exercise, my dad (Mr Loon) was incharge of painting the gate. At that point, we were using a padlock that required us to lift the padlock up and down, which was not ideal as it knocked off paint works on the eyebrackets/other parts of the gate.”

For the next 2 years, the elderly Mr Loon worked tirelessly on The Loon Lock. He spent many sleepless nights finetuning the lock design and mechanism, and fretting over finding a manufacturer.

He was already in his 60s, but would take multiple trips overseas to source for manufacturing partners. This was not an easy process for a small business that could not meet the minimum volume required by some manufacturers. 

But hard work and perseverance paid off and The Loon Lock was launched in 2018.

Since hitting the market, the humble but nifty invention has improved the day-to-day lives of many customers, earning near perfect feedback and reviews on e-commerce platforms and social media. 

The Loon Lock is available at all SELFFIX DIY stores. For a list of store locations along the island, please see https://loonlock.com/stores-location. 

It is also for sale online on Shopee, Qoo10, Lazada and loonlock.com. 

Eager to make The Loon Lock more accessible to heartland residents, the Loon family is now working on getting The Loon Lock onto the shelves of neighbourhood hardware stores. 

Simply call 9790 7908 to place an order for on-demand padlock delivery. 

Contact

General enquiries: 9790 7908 / 9828 0268 / 9067 3213

Media enquiries: 9790 7908 (Michelle Loon )

Website: https://loonlock.com/