2 July 05
Mainboard-listed LifeBrandz brings big-name dance clubs to its nightspot
(SINGAPORE) Ravers rejoice! Dance club heavyweights Ministry of Sound (Mos) and Cafe del Mar will soon be pumping up the volume at The Cannery in Clarke Quay, courtesy of nightlife impresario in-the-making Clement Lee.
The Cannery: At 40,000 sq ft, it will be about twice the size of homegrown dance club Zouk
Mr Lee, 35-year-old executive director of mainboard-listed LifeBrandz, confirmed yesterday that London-based MoS - whose all-night rave parties grew to become a global phenomenon - will be the anchor brand for his new 80,000 sq ft entertainment, lifestyle and F&B concept at The Cannery.
Best-known up to now for Extrim slimming pills, LifeBrandz has acquired a 15-year licence to run MoS here. And at 40,000 sq ft it will be big - about twice the size of homegrown dance club Zouk.
The main supporting act will be Spain's Cafe del Mar, from the trendy resort island of Ibiza. Like MoS, it has attained cult status among late-night revellers for its Mediterranean brand of chill-out club music, disseminated globally by in-house DJs who make guest appearances and spin at dance clubs around the world.
Singapore's Cafe del Mar will be a pared-down version of the Ibiza original. The Singapore MoS, on the other hand, will be the world's biggest, though it won't be the first outside England.
For years it was rumoured that MoS would open here. Then in 2001 it opened in Bangkok instead. At the time it was said the only reason it opened there was because it couldn't find suitable partners here.
MoS Bangkok closed down after two-and-a-half years. But Mr Lee says this was because of a government curfew on night spots - not bad business.
Now it will be Singapore's turn to be party-central. And the time could not be better, says Mr Lee. He cites the upcoming integrated resorts and the need for 'support F&B and entertainment venues' as one factor.
But a more compelling reason would have to be that Clarke Quay's owner CapitaLand made LifeBrandz the proverbial offer it could not refuse. Besides paying for an expensive restoration of the old cannery building, CapitaLand offered an 'attractive' rental package, Mr Lee said. For its part, LifeBrandz will spend $150-$180 per square foot - or as Mr Lee puts it, 'not too much and not too little' - fitting out the building and all its new attractions.
The Cannery will include other brand names such as Fashionbar (a fashion TV bar from Paris), Dashing Divas (a nail bar from New York), Bice (a restaurant from Milan) and possibly a fitness studio. It also intends to develop its own brand of clothing and souvenirs.
The strategy depends on recognisable names. Says Mr Lee: 'We thought it would be too big a risk to have untested brands. It takes a long time to build a brand at a new location in a new market. With recognisable brands, people know what to expect.'
LifeBrandz and CapitaLand are hoping Clarke Quay won't only attract tourists but affluent professionals, managers, executives and businessmen as well. But Mr Lee knows it will be hard work getting a return on his investment, which he hopes will be 20-25 per cent. 'A lot of people think that as long as you have a famous DJ like Boy George (a former MoS DJ) you are guaranteed a crowd. But it's not like that anymore,' he says.
According to him, the continuing success of Zouk demonstrates the importance of developing a following and giving regulars a sense of belonging. And that's why, when CapitaLand first offered him only half of the cannery building, he declined. 'I wanted the whole block so I could market and rebrand it the way I want to,' he says. 'I don't want a prata stall next to me.'>
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