Rediscover luxury at Marina Bay Sands

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Andrea Artioli, patriach of the Artioli brand has created shoes for celebrities the world over.

EVEN from a distance, Marina Bay Sands is impressive.

As my taxi cruised along the East Coast Parkway after my arrival at Changi International Airport, I caught a glimpse of its gleaming towers and the iconic boat-like structure that houses the hotel’s world famous infinity pool.

It was breathtaking, no matter how many times I saw it.

My taxi driver, an elderly gentleman in his 50’s, nodded in agreement.

“It has everything,” he endorsed as he pulled up to the front doors of Tower One.

“Food, shopping, entertainment, the arts. Everything.”

I was in the city-state for a quick tour of the hotel and its properties which include the expansive The Shoppes shopping mall — all courtesy of Marina Bay Sands.

Amelyn, my guide, greeted me with a smile in the hotel lobby.

“Is this your first time here?” she asked. It is.

“Let’s get you checked in, have lunch and then we’ll head for The Shoppes to see what they have to offer.” Excellent.

My jaw dropped when I saw my room – huge, spacious and luxurious. The bathroom sports his-and-her sinks, a huge tub and a separate shower space – a swank reflection of the image of luxury that Marina Bay Sands projects and projects well.

I realised I did not have much time to admire the finer points of what my room had to offer, for now, and rushed back downstairs to the lobby, where I was acquainted with the rest of the media personnel visiting the property on the trip. After some brief introductions, we were whisked to the first stop on our visit: Adrift.

Located in the lobby between Towers One and Two, the restaurant is an amalgamation of Chef David Myers’ travels throughout Asia and America, reimagined in the form of a beautifully laid-out dining space and a bespoke bar.

Instantly, we were treated to a serving of the best of what it had to offer – just in time for lunch. Digging into a heaping serving of Popcorn Togarashi and Rice Crackers seasoned with Green Onion Salt and Yuzu Kosho

Aioli, we shared our delight over the savoury dishes before partaking in a delicious plate of Chicken Shio Koji sandwiches.

Touring the Shoppes

 

After sating our appetites, it was time for the much anticipated tour of The Shoppes which encompasses close to 800,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space.

It is home to over 170 luxury and premium brands and their flagship stores, a few of which we would soon visit for a personalised tour. The air of excitement was almost palpable as we made our way through the interconnected hallways linking both hotel and shopping mall.

“There’s almost no need to leave the premises,” Amelyn told us. It’s true. Throughout my entire stay, I didn’t take one step outside. There was no need to.

We arrived at Hermès.

“This is the Hermès Le Temps Suspendu,” the French retail manager proudly explained as we crowded into the store selling the luxury brand’s exclusive timepieces.

The name of the finely crafted watch he held up for us to see invoked Proust. The French and time – inseparable.

He prodded the crown. The hands reset to a preset time — 11 o’clock.

“Now, time for us has stopped. But inside, the mechanisms are still moving. Push it again, and time continues to flow. It’s all very romantic,” he said, inebriated with the whole concept.

The rest of us exchanged impressed looks.

“Incidentally,” I asked, out of earshot of all the other journalists, “how does one properly pronounce Hermès?

“Oh, it’s ‘Err meize,” he replied effortlessly.

“‘Her maze?” I tried.

He smiled sympathetically. “Almost there.”

 

Next stop

 

Our next stop was Uomo Collezioni, where we were ushered into a private room behind an automated sliding door disguised as a mirror.

Inside, a lush wall-to-wall carpet brushed against my rather unsophisticated shoes. I instantly regretted the decision I made to wear my most comfortable but less than presentable pair of sneakers, also becoming suddenly self-conscious of my dress shirt, which paled in comparison to the pristine custom tailored suits and jackets that lined the walls.

“This is but one of Uomo’s six retail stores here in The Shoppes,” its retail manager, Andy Singh informed us, and proceeded to demonstrate some of the personalised services the outlet offers, involving taking measurements and fitting, recommendation of cloths and materials and more.

Uomo Group first made an appearance at The Shoppes in 2010 and has not looked back since, having grown exponentially with the increased local and tourist numbers. Footflow for each store has also gone up, leading to better sales.

In a separate interview, Uomo Group president and chief executive officer Johnny Manglani told me why Uomo does what it does – which is providing the very best in personalised services for its clients.

“When I first started the business, the lagging service in the existing retail market was quite noticeable and left room for improvement.

“Since then, I gave Uomo an ultimatum to provide clients with quintessential service which would make them want to return again,” he said. On his vision for the future of Uomo, the charismatic entrepreneur replied:

“I have always aspired to present the very best products and impeccable service to our clients. We want to continue enhancing these two important characteristics of Uomo and respectively broaden our outreach to the global market.”

And his plans for more brands to make an appearance, and perhaps even a future expansion into Malaysia?

“We are looking at opportunities for regional expansion which have yet to be considered. On the topic of brands, we always have plans. The trick is to make them appear at the right time,” he said.

 

The Artioli brand

 

As we prepared to leave, an affable Italian gentleman entered the room. Wearing a perpetual smile, he greeted each of us with a firm handshake and introduces himself as Andrea Artioli, the current patriarch of the Artioli brand.

He posed a question. “Do you know who wears my shoes?”

It was a simple question, but I shook my head politely.

He smiled an even bigger smile: “Robert De Niro, Sir Elton John, George Clooney. They love my shoes.”

I tried not to look flabbergasted.

“And now, our clients will have the chance to adorn their feet with the very same shoes, should they choose to.”

Andrea pulled out a book of samples featuring the exotic material they used in production. Crocodile skin, snakeskin, even shark – the choices available are mindboggling.

“Oh, but not to worry,” he reassured us.

“I make sure the animals have already died natural deaths before I choose to use their skins. I don’t kill them for it. That’s one thing I’m adamant about. No unnecessary killing.”

I ran my fingers over the selection and gazed at my own worn out sneakers. Perhaps in the future, I told myself as we bid farewell to Andrea and made our exit.

Evening drew near, and we had time to freshen up before moving on to the next event – an exclusive red carpet experience taking invited guests on a theatrical journey throughout The Shoppes and reintroducing shoppers to the changes made to the mall in the past 18 months.

Titled Discover, the one-night only celebration is yet another signature event created by The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands. The chic and stylish affair saw the mall transform into a carnival-themed luxury haven – featuring a lush Garden of Enchantment, fashion presentations on a life-sized carousel, dance acts, jazz performances at the Finest Bar and a signature Shoppes cocktail in the magnificent Ice Palace.

“It has been a successful journey, marking the end of our three-year long strategic retail remix. As such, we wanted to celebrate The Shoppes achievements as it further

cements its position as the leading luxury shopping destination in Asia,” said Marina Bay Sands’ vice-president of retail, John Postle.

The Shoppes’ remix completion saw an unprecedented assembly of 15 luxury duplexes and triplexes, many of which are the brands’ biggest stores in Singapore that include Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, Prada and more.

 

Unmatched experience

 

“Today, we are proud to offer our shoppers an experience that is unmatched in the region – from a comprehensive variety of luxury brands, bespoke services and limited edition items that can only be found right here.

“We have always envisioned The Shoppes to house the most luxurious brands that reflect global trends, all under one roof. Now in 2015, this vision has come to fruition. We thank our shoppers for their continued patronage, and our retailers for their confidence in expanding their presence with us.

“The expansion allows the world’s most coveted brands to showcase their most complete range of collections here, making The Shoppes an unrivalled one-stop shopping destination in Asia,” he added.

I was ushered into the Woodland Wonder area, where models presented guests with a golden key to enter and explore the delights that lay ahead. VIP shoppers and guests were then led to the Garden of Enchantment, which housed a dazzling display of some of the world’s most distinguished gems and timepieces from leading brands at The Shoppes amidst a Jo Malone scented ambience.

The next stop was the Finest Bar, which was located along the belt of luxury men’s boutiques within The Shoppes.

Along the way, The Shoppes pulled out all the stops and spared no expense in entertaining guests with an electrifying mix of dance performances, fashion presentations and a truly delightful mix of live music and fine-dining canapés.

Awaiting us at the end of our tour was the grand Ice Palace, where an array of fashion presentations by luxury brands — including Etro, Roberto Cavalli, Maison Margiela, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Proenza Schouler and a special Armani Group presentation (Giorgio Armani, Armani Collezioni, Emporio Armani) — were held beneath a glistening chandelier.

The luxurious night ended on a high with five lucky guests walking away with prizes including a dinner for four at Ku Dé Ta, a Lacquer & Spa treatment, and S$1,000 worth of The Shoppes vouchers.

As I made my way back to my hotel room, I recalled the words I first heard when I got here.

“It has everything.”

How very true, I thought to myself as I finally climbed into bed, awash in the soft neon glow of Singapore’s business district, seeping through a gap in the curtains.

For more information on The Shoppes, call +65 6688 6888 or email [email protected].