SINGAPORE, July 11 — A viral TikTok post of a Singaporean man’s obsession with high-visibility uniforms typically worn by tradesmen in Australia has gotten an outpour of love and support from his new-found Aussie fans.
The slideshow, posted by Renae Cheng, shows her fiance Yap Heng Soon sporting a neon orange and black top everywhere he goes.
Known colloquially as “tradie uniforms”, these bright orange or yellow tops are worn by Australian workers in skilled trades — such as plumbers, construction workers, carpenters or electricians — to keep them safe on the job and are an iconic part of Aussie trade culture.
“My fiance’s beige flag is that... he unironically loves the Australian 'tradie' uniform aesthetic,” Ms Cheng said in reference to the latest TikTok trend of users sharing videos about their partners’ beige flags.
A beige flag refers to “attributes that are neither good nor bad, but still give reason for pause” in the context of modern dating, according to Time magazine.
Cheng explained how it was during their first trip to Australia in August last year when Yap “fell in love” with the “tradie” shirt after spotting it at a Kmart outlet.
“He started wearing it on the trip itself even though it was a short-sleeved shirt and it was wintertime," she said.
“He loved it so much, he wore it on the flight back to Singapore. An airport 'tradie' staff saw it and said, ‘Nice fashion!’ My fiancé giggled shyly, but deep down he was elated,” added Cheng.
His love for the uniform did not cease when he returned to Singapore. Back home, Yap continued wearing the shirt in restaurants and in the office.
“We went to Australia again this year and he was surrounded by his favourite,” she said, referring to a photo of Yap standing in front of a store that sells “tradie” uniforms.
“This is like paradise for him.”
New fans from down under
The slideshow, posted on June 30 by Cheng, has garnered at least 999,200 views and 1,996 comments as of today, and has gone viral in Australia.
The couple was featured on live Australian news, making multiple headlines in news publications there.
Australian netizens are also amused by Yap's obsession, finding it “cute” and “wholesome”.
“As an Aussie, seeing this is so cute,” said one user, whose comment attracted at least 10,900 likes.
Another user commented: “As an Aussie, this is so wholesome.”
“From an Aussie, this is the cutest thing ever! (This is) easily the best beige flag ever,” another user wrote.
“That’s a hard worker right there. Give him a pack of durrys (cigarettes) and a Blue V (energy drink),” a netizen joked, while referring to a stereotypical image of an Australian trade worker.
“I knew a full-blown Aussie guy that rocked high-visibility shirts all the time but never once had a job,” another user wrote.
Netizens from Singapore have similarly shown their appreciation for the Aussie work uniform.
“I am a Singaporean who calls Australia home now. I have had a few friends who buy our 'tradie' clothes and they simply love our variety in safety boots too and take it back to Singapore,” a Facebook user said.
Another comment went: “I’m from Singapore. How do I order one please?” — TODAY
