The life and times of being scared to lose.
Everything Also I Want: with those four words, Mr. Kiasu was introduced to Singaporeans just over two decades ago. This title of his first comic book had it all. Here was a character who dreamt about sales and discounts, tried every free sample at a supermarket, and when he knocked down a motorcyclist, got out to check his car’s windscreen. In other words, Mr. Kiasu was the typical ‘90s Singaporean, someone possessed with the fear of losing out.
Mr. Kiasu’s depiction of a national trait clearly resonated with Singaporeans. They snapped up the first 4,000 copies, and then the second. In 1993, just three years after it was first published, the comic had a third reprint and became an annual series. Everything Also Must Grab was Mr. Kiasu’s motto in his second book and he was living up to it. Not only had he grabbed his own radio show, Mr. Kiasu now fronted national campaigns, and had his own magazine, mug, T-shirt, watch, bumper sticker, burger, and even ruler — most rulers are 12-inches, but Mr. Kiasu’s one was an inch longer.