Singapore private club 1880's staff in bid to revive club with landlord RB Corp's support
A source told BT that they have made an offer to buy the club's assets, with support and backing from its landlord, RB Corp – a member of Singapore-based and privately-held property investment and development firm RB Capital Group.
The group's flagship development at Robertson Quay includes the InterContinental Singapore Robertson Quay hotel where 1880 is located on the third level. The 22,000 square foot club has a restaurant, bar, spa and co-working space.
Speaking to BT on condition of anonymity, a staff member confirmed that the 60-plus strong team that ran 1880 have come together to ask RB Corp for help after they were suddenly left jobless. 'We are 100 per cent ready to move forward together, with the same purpose and ethos that made the club possible,' said the employee. 'Most of us have been working there for a long time, with a handful right from when the club started.'
The move came after staff were told by liquidators that they can expect to wait some six to 12 months before wages owed can be paid. 'Many people's livelihoods are on the line,' added the employee. 'Some are foreigners who have signed leases here. They are struggling and have taken personal loans.'
The club was founded in 2017 by Canadian entrepreneur Marc Nicholson and has since established itself as a hub for discussions on topics ranging from global conflicts to social justice.
A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU
Friday, 2 pm Lifestyle
Our picks of the latest dining, travel and leisure options to treat yourself.
Sign Up
Sign Up
On Tuesday (Jun 17), Nicholson announced to members and staff via e-mail and WhatsApp messages that the club was closing permanently, and that both its holding company 38 Degrees and operating company 1880 Pte Ltd have been placed into provisional liquidation.
BT understands that 1880's local business here was profitable, but that it got into debt after aggressively expanding to Hong Kong and Bali. Its abrupt closure here follows that of its Hong Kong branch on May 30, just seven months after opening in the territory. The club was also building a six-storey beachside hotel in Bali that never opened.
A source told BT that the staff's bid to revive 1880 will exclude any involvement from its three co-founders – Nicholson, his wife and club CEO Jean Low, and chairman Luke Jones. A check showed that the trio together own just under 80 per cent of 38 Degrees. The minority shareholders comprise many individuals and entities, including the landlord with a 5 to 6 per cent stake.
BT understands that RB Corp is owed rent and has terminated the club's lease. When contacted, a representative from the company told BT: 'As 1880's landlord, we sympathise with the employees who have lost their jobs and the members who made 1880 their second home.'
Meanwhile, the staff member said that 1880 was not just any club. 'The culture at 1880 is completely different. We've had events and conversations here that you can't get anywhere else in Singapore.'
This was echoed by one of 1880's 2,000-plus members, lawyer Lada Shelkovnikova, who has been an active member since she joined in 2019. 'It was more like a home than an F&B (food and beverage) establishment,' she said. 'I've done an event there myself and had all my client meetings there. Its closure is devastating, and we all feel extremely sorry for the employees because the team is absolutely stellar.'
She also had high praise for 1880's programming, which she said was only possible thanks to the staff. 'We've had CEOs, wellness gurus, bestselling authors and C-suites who have come to speak at the club and exchange ideas. No one else can replicate this.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
11 minutes ago
- Straits Times
‘Just being ghosted': Canada's youth face deepening job crisis
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Across Canada, the number of young people with jobs has collapsed to the lowest level since 1998, excluding the years impacted by Covid-19. Ms Sheena Ngigi, age 24, assumed her biochemistry degree from the University of Alberta would mean a relatively easy path to a job. Mr Mathias Ashaba, also 24, wanted to leverage his business degree after immigrating from Uganda in 2024 . Both have applied to dozens of jobs they should be qualified for. And, at every turn, they say they've been rebuffed – if they even hear anything at all. Ms Ngigi has pivoted to applying for receptionist and restaurant gigs in the meantime, though still without any luck, while after almost a year of trying, Mr Ashaba managed to find work as a janitor at a public school. 'You spend hours a day looking for jobs,' Ms Ngigi said. 'People who have been in the industry for a very long time are going for jobs that should be going to people just out of school.' Across Canada, the number of young people with jobs has collapsed to the lowest level since 1998, excluding the years impacted by Covid-19. Employment growth for 16- to 24-year-olds was the weakest on record in July, according to calculations by economists at credit union Alberta Central. The country's youth unemployment rate stands at 15 per cent. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Jobs, infrastructure and homes at the core of Singapore's resilience: Economists Business New online tools by SkillsFuture Singapore help companies plan and curate staff training Life Chinese EV brand Nio to be launched in Singapore in first quarter of 2026 Asia 2 firefighters die in building fire at Osaka's Dotonbori tourist district Singapore Driver hurt after car turns turtle in Upper Thomson accident Sport National tennis player Shaheed Alam serves up charity event to benefit migrant workers Life New Blackpink album scheduled for November, YG Entertainment confirms Singapore Jail for driver of 11-tonne garbage truck that ran over cyclist in Woodlands While the direct impact of US tariffs on Canada has been limited to certain industries, concerns over US President Donald Trump's trade war have prompted companies to curtail hiring, which tends to hurt people looking for their first job more. That's after a pandemic-era surge in immigration boosted the number of people competing for entry-level roles, just as the rise of artificial intelligence and a cooling economy led white-collar employers to cut positions. And with US trade negotiations ongoing, fears of an economic downturn remain. 'Whether it's making new investment or hiring a lot of workers, there's just no appetite for businesses to do that given the enormous uncertainty we're still dealing with these days,' said Ms Claire Fan, an economist at Royal Bank of Canada. 'It's the uncertainty that's freezing hiring demand right now.' Low supply While the overall Canadian economy has held up fairly well in the face of Mr Trump's trade war, the weakness in the youth job market is a potential sign that growth is weakening, a key consideration for the Bank of Canada as it weighs when to cut interest rates. Canada's unemployment rate has crept up to 6.9 per cent, from 6.6 per cent at the beginning of 2024 , according to Statistics Canada data. The share of job seekers who have been out of work for more than six months is the largest since 1998. With fewer jobs to go around, some older workers are competing for the kind of entry-level positions typically taken up by those just starting out, making the competition more fierce. Mr Ashaba, the business graduate who lives in Toronto, estimates that he applied to more than 30 entry-level jobs in everything from customer service to construction. 'I found it very difficult,' he said. 'Employers required experience, but how can I get experience without a job?' 'Career scarring' As companies use automation to cut costs and replace jobs, young graduates are finding themselves settling for roles they're overqualified for. 'We have engineering graduates coming to us who can't get a job in the better fields,' said Mr Tim Lang, the chief executive officer of Youth Employment Services in Toronto. 'We have seen a higher sense of desperation from so many more youth who have been applying to in some cases hundreds of jobs and not getting a response back.' The consequences of this trend could reverberate for years to come. Ms Carrie Axten, who helps young people break into the job market at Prospect Human Services, an employment charity in Alberta, warns of 'career scarring' that can impact an employee's long-term prospects when their first job comes too late. And entry-level jobs are critical for young people to develop skills like time management and teamwork, she said. That's particularly true for high school students. Tara Alex-Hamah, a 15-year-old in Toronto, estimates she's applied to 50 positions, from grocery stores to McDonald's to the library. She just wants a job so she can earn some pocket money and save for university, but now she's about ready to give up. 'It's kind of disappointing because you're not even getting a rejection email, you're just being ghosted basically,' she said in an interview before the start of her third year of high school in September. 'Right now I think I'm just going to focus on school.' BLOOMBERG
Straits Times
11 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Air Canada flight attendants face new pressure to end strike
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Roughly 10,000 flight attendants walked off the job after midnight on Aug 16, insisting the airline had failed to address their demands. Toronto - Canada's labour tribunal on Aug 18 declared a strike by Air Canada's flight attendants illegal, a decision that could end a work stoppage which has cancelled travel for half a million people worldwide. Roughly 10,000 flight attendants walked off the job after midnight on Aug 16, insisting the airline had failed to address their demands for higher wages and compensation for unpaid ground work, including during boarding. Canada's national carrier, which flies directly to 180 cities domestically and abroad, said the strike had forced cancellations impacting 500,000 people. Over the weekend, federal labour minister Patty Hajdu invoked a legal provision to halt the strike and force both sides into binding arbitration. Following Ms Hajdu's intervention, the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), a regulatory tribual, ordered the flight attendants back to work on Aug 17. The flight attendants' union said it would defy the order, forcing Air Canada to walk back plans to partially restore service late on Aug 17. CIRB regulators upped the pressure on Aug 18. It ordered the union 'to resume the performance of their duties immediately and to refrain from engaging in unlawful strike activities', Air Canada said in a statement. The tribunal gave the Canadian Union of Public Employees until noon to communicate to members that they 'are required to resume the performance of their duties', Air Canada further said. Carney 'disappointed' Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters in Ottawa on Aug 18 it was 'disappointing' that eight months of negotiations between the carrier and union did not produce an agreement. 'We recognise very much the critical role that flight attendants play in keeping Canadians and their families safe as they travel,' he said. 'It is important that they're compensated equitably.' But, he added, Canada faced a situation where hundreds of thousands of citizens and visitors were facing travel uncertainty. CUPE had over the weekend earlier slammed the Canadian government's intervention as 'rewarding Air Canada's refusal to negotiate fairly by giving them exactly what they wanted.' 'This sets a terrible precedent,' it said. Labour minister Hajdu said over the weekend that she had hoped a deal could have been reached through bargaining, but 'it has now become clear that this dispute won't be resolved at the table'. 'Canadians are increasingly finding themselves in very difficult situations and the strike is rapidly impacting the Canadian economy,' she added. On Aug 14, Air Canada detailed the terms offered to cabin crew, indicating a senior flight attendant would on average make C$87,000 (S$80,000) by 2027. CUPE has described Air Canada's offers as 'below inflation (and) below market value'. In a statement issued before the strike began, the Business Council of Canada warned an Air Canada work stoppage would exacerbate the economic pinch already being felt from US President Donald Trump's tariffs. AFP
CNA
11 minutes ago
- CNA
More than 36,000 workers aged 40 and above used topped-up SkillsFuture credits for training
Thousands of mid-career employees have used their topped-up SkillsFuture credits to pursue training in areas like information and communication technologies. SkillsFuture Singapore says take-up of its Level-up Programme was healthy in its first year. Still, analysts say employers need to encourage more mid-career workers to upskill and stay relevant. Nasyrah Rohim with more.
