St Games – Making Video Games A Social Activity For All

While some may find it strange to see grandpas and grandmas waving Wii joysticks around with exuberated excitement in the middle of a crowded shopping mall, this is no surprise at St Games, a video games care located at the Cathay. Read more

Music To Our Ears: Straits Records Brings Local Music to the Community

Look beyond the Kebab-serving and Shisha-smoking restaurants that crowd Bali Lane and you will find a slice of Singaporean identity that’s been misplaced for the longest time – local music.

Located at 24 Bali Lane, Straits Records is both a record label and retail space that prides itself on promoting the underground music scene in Singapore. The place reveals a different side of our sunny island, where music lovers can escape from the monotony of their daily lives, to share ideas about their passion for music and immerse themselves in an alternative lifestyle.

Promoting local music to audiences

Wan, the down-to-earth and wise soul running Straits Records, works together with a collective of music lovers to provide a platform for local bands to showcase their music and performances. On their CD racks you will find all genres of music, but Straits champions local and regional music and carries more than 60% of it in their inventory. This is a clear departure from other music stores in Singapore, which typically carry 90% of international music with bits and pieces of local artistes. Read more

Doinky Doodles: A Story of Hand Sewn Perfection

Doinky Doodles stands out against the dark folds of Bali Lane with its bright colours and imaginative murals. Stepping into the store, you find plenty of handmade items carefully crafted and made from scratch by owner Weng Pixin (aka Xin).

Set up in May 2008, Doinky Doodles showcases Handmade Art that has been creatively made from an assortment of earth friendly recycled fabrics. The result is original, nifty and fun pieces of art that visitors will find hard to resist.

Xin’s aim of setting up Doinky Doodles is to let people connect easily with art by making it more affordable and handy to use, as opposed to the classic notion of only owning pieces that are sold in galleries. Read more

The Pigeonhole – A Cafe With More Than Meets The Eye

The Pigeonhole always has a pleasant surprise in store for you.

The Pigeonhole @ Duxton Road

Looking in through its glass panels and doors, those walking along 52 & 53 Duxton Road may be a little confused about what this place does. A creative space lovingly fitted with bookshelves, eclectic furniture and painted with a scarlet floor, the Pigeonhole is a cosy cafe that attracts visitors with more than its aromatic espressos and delectable desserts. Read more

BooksActually – A Local Bookstore That Thrives In A Digital World

When Borders first arrived on Singapore shores in 1997, it exposed us in Singapore to the potential of bookstores as a social focal point, and more importantly it showed us how bookstores could appeal to the masses and still cater to those who love the printed word with highly knowledgeable staff and a massive collection of book titles.

14 years on, the company in the US has filed for bankruptcy and while Borders Singapore is owned independently by RedGroup Retail (themselves in Voluntary Administration), the reverberations of Borders US’ failure has triggered discussions about the sustainability of physical bookstores in general, and megastores in specificity, especially with digital books and hardware like the Nook, Kindle and iPad being convenient reasons for the issues faced by Borders US. Read more

Martell’s The Ultimate Start-Up Space Gives Your Business A Headstart

Last year Martell launched the first “The Ultimate Start-Up Space” to provide entrepreneurs the chance to launch their dream business in the heart of Clarke Quay, one of Singapore’s hottest nightlife area. Jamie and Cherilyn won the competition with and started “The Chupitos Bar”.

This year, Martell is offering a space in the heart of Singapore’s financial district to the winners of the second “The Ultimate Start-Up Space” competition.

The space located at 29 Boon Tat is a 1,400 square feet store located on the first floor of a beautiful shop-house and the winners will have the space rent free for one full year.

The winners of “The Ultimate Start-Up Space” will also receive S$20,000 starting capital and more importantly will get an Executive Education programme from INSEAD tailored for their business needs and the opportunity to be mentored by two very successful entrepreneurs – Low Cheong Kee, Managing Director of Home-Fix DIY and Jimmy Fong, CEO of EpiCentre.

The top ten ideas will be announced on 20 May 2011. This list will be influenced by public opinion and determined by a panel of industry experts comprised of business leaders from Martell, INSEAD, Home-Fix and EpiCentre. After the top 10 ideas are announced, the finalists will be provided a crowd-funding platform in the vein of Kickstarter and IndieGoGo to generate support from the public for their ideas. The winner of the Ultimate Start-up Space will be selected on 4 August 2011. The store will then be outfitted for the winning idea. If you win, you’ll get the keys to your store in September 2011.

Martell’s “The Ultimate Start-Up Space” is a great opportunity for entrepreneurs, so if you have always dreamed of owning your own space, submit as many ideas as you have for The Ultimate Start-Up Space. If you need inspiration, checkout the video below or read about the finalists from last year’s competition.

What do you think of Martell VSOP?

In line with their Rise Above campaign, Martell VSOP introduced The Ultimate Start-Up Space (TUSS) in January.

The campaign aimed to provide a platform for entrepreneurs to share their ideas about how best to use The 760 sq ft Ultimate Start-Up Space in Clarke Quay and ultimately reward them by providing additional support and funding to turn their ideas into reality.

The Martell VSOP Ultimate Start-up campaign was partly inspired by the exploits of its founder, Jean Martell,
who arrived from Jersey in 1715 and founded the House of Martell in France at the age of 21.

We want to hear your thoughts about the campaign and hope that you can share them by completing our survey.

As a token of appreciation, 3 readers who complete the survey will receive a bottle of Martell VSOP. Read more

The Chupitos Bar Wins Martell VSOP Ultimate Startup Space

Just earlier this evening, the winner of the Martell VSOP “The Ultimate Start-Up Space” challenge was crowned. And we are happy to announce that The Chupitos Bar won! Congrats to Jamie Koh and Cherilyn Tan, the dynamic team behind the idea.

The Chupitos Bar will be a specialised shots bar. The ladies plan to have a huge variety of shots, consisting of both traditional ones as well as more unique flavours.

Jamie and Cherilyn beat out more than 200 submissions to become the ultimate winner. Read more

Interview with Stephanie Chia of The Chocolate Museum

Yum. Next up is Stephanie Chia of The Chocolate Museum. As one of the top 10 finalists of the Martell VSOP The Ultimate Start-Up Space competition, she stands to gain a space in Clarke Quay from which she can launch her business. Let us hear her thoughts.

(For a quick overview of the prizes the ultimate winner stands to gain, read this.) Read more

In Conversation with Boon Joo of YOUnique

Next up in our feature of the top 10 finalists of the Martell VSOP The Ultimate Start-Up Space challenge is Boon Joo of YOUnique. Let’s hear what he thinks of his idea and the competition.

(For a quick overview of the prizes the ultimate winner stands to gain, read this.) Read more