Benetton Chan once cleared a choked kitchen pipe that sprayed hardened oil over everyone nearby. When he recalled the job for Vulcan Post in December 2017, he said it used to make him feel “grossed out”. By then he had grown used to such jobs and saw them as part of the work.
That attitude is what makes the Chan brothers easy to admire. Benetton and his brother Royston chose a trade many of their peers avoided, and they turned it into a company.
The moment in 2017
When Vulcan Post profiled them in December 2017, the brothers were in their twenties and running Sparkflow Electrical and Plumbing Services. Both were Ngee Ann Polytechnic graduates. The pull of a “flexible schedule” helped persuade them to set up the business. Their parents were happy and fully supportive when they shared the plan.
The report described a hard routine. They typically handled about 10 to 15 jobs a day, starting at 8.30am. On busy days they could work as long as 20 hours, leaving only four hours of rest. Rates started at $30 a job and could climb into the thousands, depending on complexity. The report’s heading noted that each brother drew a salary of about $1,000 a month at the time.
The report also said the risks were real. There was an occasional chance of electrocution, but the brothers took such challenges in their stride.
How they got there
The skills came from home. Before SparkFlow, the brothers spent weekends helping their father, an electrician and plumber, and learnt the work hands-on. That early training is why they were comfortable with messy jobs, and it shaped how they ran the business.
They began operating Spark Flow in 2013, and SparkFlow Pte Ltd was incorporated in 2017. The company’s records give the incorporation month as July 2017, which is the same year as the Vulcan Post profile.
SparkFlow today
Thirteen years after it started in 2013, SparkFlow has grown well beyond two brothers with a toolbox. The company now coordinates several home-service trades across Singapore, with regulated work matched to the appropriate licensed person. The founders remain named contacts for the business.
Its services include:
- electrical and plumbing work
- water heater and ceiling fan installation
- aircon servicing
- handyman jobs
- painting
- renovation
- move-in and move-out cleaning
It describes itself as an HDB registered renovation contractor. It also lists a BCA ME05 Electrical Engineering registration at L1. Its contact page gives office hours of Monday to Saturday, 9am to 6pm. The company’s own site lists an address at Tampines Street 93.
The firm also sells products with optional installation. Its instant water heaters come from brands such as Champs, Rubine and Ariston, starting from around $98. As a contractor, it says it also installs them, which includes testing the safety cut-out.
Safety has become part of the brothers’ public profile. SparkFlow was interviewed about the Lakeside water-heater electrocution tragedy and the checks Singapore households should know. CNA published that reporting. The company’s site also lists a 2026 skilled-trades feature in The Straits Times in which the brothers discuss learning practical skills from their father, starting SparkFlow and building a career in the trades.
The company says its idea is still honest pricing, clear trade responsibility, and someone who actually picks up the phone.