Life Power List 2024: 10 people, places or pursuits that rocked the Singapore lifestyle scene
SINGAPORE – Meet the 10 people, places or pursuits that rocked the Singapore lifestyle scene in 2024.
A for Anxiety in Inside Out 2
In Inside Out 2, Anxiety enters Riley’s teenage mind, causing havoc by driving her to seek perfection in sports and social relationshipsPHOTO: THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY
Whenever The Straits Times makes a social media post about someone blowing his or her top in public – a screaming match breaks out at a lift in VivoCity mall, or a scuffle erupts in a queue for Labubu toys – the top-liked comment is likely to be: “So many crazy people in Singapore these days.”
So what better character to kick off the Life Power List 2024 than Anxiety from the Pixar animation Inside Out 2 released in June, the sequel to 2015’s Inside Out? The main character, teen girl Riley, is introduced to the new emotion voiced by Maya Hawke.
As Inside Out 2 producer Mark Nielsen puts it: “Anxiety has been a part of our story from the beginning, but given the impact the last few years have had on all of us – especially teens – it seems like the right time in history to be talking about it.”
Labubu, the must-have toy of the year
Pastel furry doll Labubu, created by Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung in 2015, is in the Pop Mart line of figurines and collectibles.ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG
Serrated teeth upturned in a smirk, and a seemingly evil glint in the eyes. These are the signature attributes of Labubu – a character in the Pop Mart line of figurines and collectibles – that has taken the world by storm.
But Labubu, created by Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung in 2015, is no nefarious character.
The pastel furry toy has been described as “kind-hearted”, her smirk an indicator of mischief rather than signs of a villainous disposition.
This is despite the sheer amount of illicit and unlawful activity she has elicited in Singapore this past year, from children manhandling claw machines to steal the dolls within to food outlets selling unauthorised Labubu-inspired confectionery.
Pop star Taylor Swift and the year Singapore became Swiftapore
American pop star Taylor Swift performing at the Singapore National Stadium on March 2, 2024. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
“Who’s afraid of little old me?” American pop star Taylor Swift howls on her latest album, The Tortured Poets Department (TTPD).
United States President-elect Donald Trump might have been just a wee bit afraid of the 35-year-old singer-songwriter in 2024.
“I hate Taylor Swift!” he wrote on social media in September, capital letters, emphatic punctuation and all, a few days after her endorsement of US Vice-President Kamala Harris for the November presidential election.
A funny response, if one recalls that Swift released a song about him, titled You Need To Calm Down, back in 2019.
Ultimately, Trump taking umbrage was unnecessary, as he went on to win the presidential race.
Nevertheless, his fear of Swift’s outsized influence – an even more dominant force in pop culture in 2024 than ever – was not unwarranted.
The Lo & Behold Group’s managing director Wee Teng Wen champions local brands with New Bahru
The Lo & Behold Group’s managing director Wee Teng Wen at lifestyle enclave New Bahru in Kim Yam Road. ST PHOTO: HESTER TAN
It was not some glitzy commercial mall with big overseas brands that grabbed headlines in 2024.
Instead, lifestyle destination New Bahru, a retail and food haven in Kim Yam Road championing Singapore-born brands, became the talk of the town in the second half of the year.
In a cut-throat year where both the food and beverage as well as retail scene were savaged, few could pull off what Mr Wee Teng Wen, managing director of home-grown hospitality company The Lo & Behold Group, did at New Bahru.
Taking on a nine-year lease as the master tenant, the 44-year-old transformed the former Nan Chiau High School into a buzzing enclave of over 40 F&B and retail concepts with an accumulative spending of more than $25 million to set up.
Pang Gek Teng, founder-CEO of Surrey Hills Holdings, goes beyond brunch food
Ms Pang Gek Teng, chief executive and founder of Surrey Hills Holdings, at the Ion Orchard outlet of her Surrey Hills Grocer.ST PHOTO: GIN TAY
The year 2024 was when Ms Pang Gek Teng achieved what she deems “the impossible”.
The founder and chief executive of Surrey Hills Holdings took on a $2.5 million project – her most ambitious yet – opening three new food and beverage brands that are all unrelated to her popular chain of Aussie-inspired cafe Surrey Hills Grocer. The Singaporean restaurateur has proven she can do more than just brunch food.
All located at Raffles City Shopping Mall, the three brands are Japanese ramen restaurant Mensho Tokyo, which opened in July; Spanish restaurant MoVida Original from Melbourne, which opened in August; and the eagerly anticipated hot-pot concept Bon Broth in partnership with acclaimed Taiwanese chef Andre Chiang. Bon Broth is slated to open in early 2025.
They join the Surrey Hills Grocer outlet which opened at the same mall in July 2023.
Fong Chi Chung of Putien Group waives service charge, absorbs GST
Putien Group founder and chairman Fong Chi Chung is looking to expand his F&B empire by opening more Putien Mama stalls in foodcourts.PHOTO: ST FILE
In a year where diners made themselves scarce – preferring to spend their strong Singapore dollars overseas, and leading restaurant owners and chefs to despair over empty dining rooms – this power lister made a power move that others in the industry are watching closely.
Mr Fong Chi Chung, 56, founder and chairman of the Putien Group, which has 22 restaurants in Singapore, announced in August that all 19 Putien outlets, two Uncle Fong Hot Pot Restaurant outlets and Sam Leong St Chicken Rice would waive the 10 per cent service charge and absorb the 9 per cent goods and services tax (GST).
Not for a spell. This looks to be a forever move that essentially knocks a fifth off what his diners pay.
Eugene Tan’s roles in SAM, National Gallery Singapore come with a lot of clout
Dr Eugene Tan is chief executive of both the National Gallery Singapore and the Singapore Art Museum. PHOTO: SINGAPORE ART MUSEUM
The suave Eugene Tan, 52, is a regular on arts power lists – not just in Singapore, but also globally.
In 2024, the world’s leading international contemporary art magazine Art Review ranked him 24th on its ardently watched “Power 100”, an indicator that he is one of the most influential people right now deciding the sort of art that gets made and seen.
The continued rise in the ranks – he was 29th in 2023 – comes as he was promoted to double-hat as chief executive of both the National Gallery Singapore and the Singapore Art Museum (SAM) after Ms Chong Siak Ching stepped down in April.
UOB cements position as most influential patron in Singapore art scene
Singaporean Yong Wee Loon (right), winner of the UOB South-east Asian Painting of the Year award, and Joanna Maneckji, named the Most Promising Artist of the Year (Singapore) under the Emerging Artist Category. ST PHOTO: GIN TAY
UOB’s “day job” is handling loans, deposits and a wealth of diverse portfolios, but the bank cemented its role as the most influential patron in the Singapore art scene in 2024, investing good chunks of cash in both arts and arts education.
It has a long, illustrious history as an arts patron. In November, the UOB South-east Asian Painting of the Year ran its 43rd edition, which was won by 63-year-old Yong Wee Loon, the first Singaporean to do so in more than a decade.
The longest-running art contest in Singapore has expanded regionally and evolved to become one of the most prestigious in South-east Asia.
Ho Ren Yung steers global brand evolution of Banyan Group
Banyan Group deputy chief executive Ho Ren Yung has steered the company’s brand evolution and raised its global profile significantly with its 12 hospitality brands.PHOTO: BANYAN GROUP
Ms Ho Ren Yung, deputy chief executive of Banyan Group, oversaw the company’s brand relaunch in a bumper year of 19 openings in 2024. These included Banyan Tree Higashiyama Kyoto in Japan and Angsana Tengchong in China.
Together with her team, the 39-year-old has steered the group’s brand evolution and raised its global profile significantly with its 12 hospitality brands such as Banyan Tree, Angsana, Cassia and Garrya. She is now preparing to open its 100th hotel by 2025.
To mark Banyan Group’s 30th anniversary in 2024, she announced the establishment of a Rewilding Banyan Fund on Nov 1, where US$1 (S$1.35) would be pledged for every direct booking made on Banyan Group’s websites. The new fund will support long-term rewilding efforts to restore natural habitats in the destinations where the company operates.
Japan takes centre stage in Singapore and beyond
At the 2024 Emmys, Shogun’s Hiroyuki Sanada picked up Best Actor (Drama) and became the first Japanese actor to win an Emmy, while Anna Sawai was the first actor of Asian descent to win Best Actress (Drama). PHOTO: REUTERS
Scroll through your social media feed this holiday season, and practically everyone you know is in Japan or making plans to vacation there.
The running joke is that you are more likely to bump into a fellow Singaporean in Tokyo or Osaka than in Orchard Road.
Japan is, after all, the top destination for Singaporean travellers, according to Visa’s Global Travel Intentions Study released in early 2024. The country is undergoing a boom in inbound tourism and saw a monthly record of 3.31 million visitors in October alone.
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