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CNA
3 days ago
- Sport
- CNA
'A city without history is harder to love': The emotional case for preserving Singapore's heritage through conserved buildings
For former national shuttler Wong Shoon Keat, the Singapore Badminton Stadium along Guillemard Road is more than just a sporting venue. It was here in 1983 that Mr Wong, then 26, made history clinching Singapore's first men's singles gold medal in badminton at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games. Recounting those days, he said: 'After winning the SEA Games gold medal, a lot of people came to me to congratulate me. But the first one I ran to … (was) my wife who came down from (the stands). 'After I met her, I went to see my dad, my mother and my uncle. A lot of them … they carried me and threw me up in the air.' The 68-year-old said the hall holds 'very good memories' – not only for him but also other shuttlers. 'To any badminton players, ex-national players and all that, this is something like our hometown,' Mr Wong said wistfully. His fond memories of the Singapore Badminton Stadium also extend to his son, Derek. It was here where his son first picked up a racquet as a five-year-old and developed a love for the game. Derek, now 36, and his brother Jason, 28, have since followed in the footsteps of Mr Wong and his wife Irene Lee, who is a former national badminton champion. The couple has two other sons. As a child, Mr Derek Wong would spend many afternoons after school at the Guillemard Road stadium, where his parents ran a badminton shop. Later, as a member of the national youth team, he would return to the same hall for training. He went on to represent Singapore at the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Olympics. Likening the badminton stadium to his 'second home', the younger Mr Wong said the hall carries deep meaning for the local badminton community. It has long served as a dedicated space where players of all levels – from casual enthusiasts to national athletes – can train, compete and share their love for the game. '(The stadium) started from so long ago, when Singapore was still a developing country, and somehow it's still standing up till now and serving the same purpose of giving people a place to play badminton or to compete in it.' The Singapore Badminton Stadium is among five sites that have been long on the national radar and have in recent weeks been thrust back into the public eye. On May 14, then-Minister for National Development Desmond Lee announced that the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) is proposing to conserve five locations of heritage significance. Alongside the badminton stadium, the other sites are the former Royal Malayan Navy administrative block, Jurong Hill Tower, six public housing blocks in the Dakota Crescent estate, and the North and South Grandstands at Bukit Timah Turf City. In a joint response to queries from CNA TODAY, URA and the National Heritage Board (NHB) said on Jun 4: 'The five sites that will be proposed for conservation as part of the upcoming Draft Master Plan 2025 reflect our continued efforts to protect and enhance Singapore's heritage assets to anchor our sense of place and identity, as the city evolves to meet the changing needs of current and future generations.' Since Singapore's urban conservation programme was launched 36 years ago in 1989, URA has conserved more than 7,200 buildings and structures in more than 100 areas. Experts said that conserving key sites provides tangible markers of the evolving Singapore story – physical reminders of how the nation has changed over time. But conservation should go beyond just preserving the bricks and mortar, they noted. Safeguarding the social memories and intangible heritage tied to these spaces is just as important. Dr Yeo Kang Shua, vice-president of the International Council on Monuments and Sites Singapore (ICOMOS), said: 'Conserving physical buildings is often more straightforward than preserving the memories they hold. Yet we rely on these spaces to anchor our experiences and give form to the intangible. 'Retaining the buildings is only the first step; their continued relevance depends on how they are used to sustain the memories and meanings associated with them.' Noting that the five sites are neither 'monumental' nor 'visually striking', heritage educator Ho Yong Min, founder of The Urbanist Singapore, a content platform dedicated to heritage storytelling and urban design, instead pointed to their value in grounding Singaporeans in the nation's shared past. 'The sites are some of the earliest reflections of Singapore designing for itself. They speak not just of nation-building, but of everyday life in the decades after independence. 'They are also located in different parts of the island. This geographic spread allows a wider public to feel connected to our heritage. These are not buildings found in the central area as most people might associate conserved heritage buildings with. They are landmarks of the people and that makes them deeply human.' Located within Jurong Hill Park is a lookout tower which once offered visitors panoramic views of the surrounding industrial estate. Built in 1969, Jurong Hill Tower was developed by JTC Corporation as part of the broader plans for Jurong New Town and the Jurong Industrial Estate. The concrete structure features a spiral ramp held up by 18 columns. At its peak was an enclosed meeting room with a skylight, which used to house models and exhibitions showcasing the government's industrialisation plans for Jurong, said URA. Between 1969 and 1984, the tower was a popular stop for foreign heads of state and dignitaries touring the industrial estate. Some of them also marked their visits by planting trees in the Garden of Fame located at the foot of the tower. 'The tower's view therefore served to impress upon visitors that Singapore was a place worth investing in as they could literally see industrial progress taking shape,' said public policy analyst Dhevarajan Devadas, who also runs Historyogi, a newsletter, podcast and social media account on Singapore history, heritage and politics. He added that Singapore built several such observatory towers in the 1960s and 1970s – including the ones in Upper Seletar Reservoir and Toa Payoh Town Park – which served as good vantage points to observe the young country's rapid development. 'Interestingly, the final tree (at Jurong Hill Tower's Garden of Fame) was planted by Dr Albert Winsemius, Singapore's economic adviser who played a crucial role in the country's industrialisation,' said Mr Devadas. Dr Nikhil Joshi, a senior lecturer in the Department of Architecture at the National University of Singapore (NUS), also noted its architectural uniqueness. 'It is the first 'garden folly' in Singapore. Follies began as decorative accents on grand estates in England and France during the late 16th and early 17th centuries, but they particularly flourished in the two centuries that followed.' The Jurong Hill Tower and its surrounding Jurong Hill Park grounds were opened to the public in 1970. It grew to be a popular recreational spot for locals, and was later included in the Jurong Heritage Trail – one of 24 trails developed by NHB to offer the public deeper insights into Singapore's built heritage and the stories behind them. Today, however, the area is cordoned off to prevent members of the public from accessing the tower, likely due to pending construction works. In a bid to shape the future of Jurong Hill and the adjacent former Jurong Bird Park site, URA and JTC launched a competition in October 2024 calling for fresh ideas to rejuvenate the area. The competition closed in January this year, but its results have not been publicly announced. Business adviser Loh Pui Wah, 61, used to visit the tower and park regularly with his father as a child. During his primary school years, it became a natural stop after excursions to the former Jurong Bird Park, located nearby. As an adult, Mr Loh worked as a project manager in contract manufacturing and was based in the Jurong industrial estate. The tower remained a part of his routine – this time as a venue to host visiting clients. He recalled business luncheons at the Japanese teppanyaki and Indonesian restaurants once located there, followed by walks up the spiral ramp to take in sweeping views of the estate below. Recounting how the site had often served as an introduction to Singapore's industrial ambitions at the time, Mr Loh said he felt a sense of pride to speak about the nation's achievements to foreign friends and overseas business clients. While Mr Loh has fond memories of growing up in the area, he noted that few landmarks from his youth remain today, as much of the landscape has been reshaped by redevelopment. This is why he strongly supports URA's proposal to conserve the tower, calling it a way to remind younger generations of Singapore's post-independence industrial growth and social evolution. Mr Alex Yew, who similarly frequented the tower over the years, said he was 'overjoyed' to learn about the proposal to conserve the tower. The 53-year-old human resource consultant recalled spending time at the tower with three generations of his family – from birthday celebrations at the restaurants there during his childhood, to date nights with his wife taking in the lights from the surrounding industrial estate, and more recently, visiting the spot with his own children. His most recent visit to the tower was in August 2022, when he made a stop there with friends during a night cycling trip. He returned in 2023, only to find that the tower had been cordoned off. 'I would say that (the tower) forms part of what makes Singapore today ... as a silent observer of the industrial growth that took place beneath the tower and hill, and the history of the place and the memories that they ignite in many Singaporeans.' Built in 1958 by the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT), Dakota Crescent is one of the island's oldest public housing estates. SIT was set up in 1927 to tackle infrastructure and housing challenges in Singapore. It was subsequently dissolved in 1960, with its public housing programme taken over by the newly formed Housing and Development Board (HDB). Tucked away off Old Airport Road, the Dakota Crescent estate is marked by its white-bricked blocks – a mix of two-, three- and seven-storey buildings that are now hoarded up. Constructed just before Singapore's independence, the estate was part of early efforts to ease overcrowding in the city and offer more affordable homes to residents. The estate and road were named after the Douglas DC-3 Dakota, a 1930s passenger aircraft that frequently took off from and landed at the former Kallang Airport runway along Old Airport Road when Singapore was under British colonial rule. In 2014, the government announced that it would demolish the estate, and that existing residents would be relocated to the neighbouring Cassia public housing development. The move prompted a wave of protests from residents and members of the public. Some, such as social entrepreneur Cai Yinzhou and architect and Dakota resident Jonathan Poh, took it upon themselves to fight for the preservation of the iconic estate. Mr Cai, who is a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Bishan-Toa Payoh Group Representation Constituency, founded Dakota Adventures in response to the 2014 announcement. The educational tours were co-guided by Dakota Crescent residents – mostly seniors living in rental housing – and highlighted the estate's historical and social significance. In 2017, Mr Cai also set up the Cassia Resettlement Team – a volunteer group that stepped in to support elderly residents and former Dakota Crescent dwellers in adjusting to life in their new homes. He said: 'If we look at it from a social memories and social history point of view, the bigger case for conservation is actually the lessons that we can learn from heritage and history, and the lessons that Dakota Crescent has undergone in terms of its historical timeline, that enables us to be where we are today. 'It's kind of a snapshot of history, where that was where we were back then," said the MP. As for the educational tours organised by Dakota Adventures, Mr Cai said there was much to learn from the real-life stories from the residents who lived through that period, benefitted from the government's policies and "saw for themselves the transformation of Singapore relative to where they were living". "I think that's the most powerful part of heritage,' he said. Meanwhile, Mr Poh led the Save Dakota Crescent movement, advocating the estate's preservation due to its historical value and unique architectural features, such as the butterfly-shaped blocks and aesthetic influences from the British Modern movement. The founder and principal architect at Provolk Architects added that the estate also embodies the collective memory of Singaporeans who have lived in public housing estates. Together with a group of fellow architects, Mr Poh and Mr Cai published and submitted a conservation report to then-MP for Mountbatten, Mr Lim Biow Chuan. Speaking to CNA TODAY, Mr Lim said: 'I was initially looking at it from the government's point of view, which is that we need to develop this. This is prime land – a plot of land close to town, a plot of land of high value because it's very attractive, next to the MRT Station, next to the river, right next to town. How do you balance giving up this plot?' In this case, conserving part of the estate could mean less prime land is available to be redeveloped into new build-to-order flats. But he was eventually convinced after discussions with the group. 'I think one lesson that we all have to learn is there are always trade-offs ... And I think the group of them persuaded me that if we keep knocking everything down, then something will be lost forever." Mr Lim subsequently filed an adjournment motion in 2016, where he made a case in parliament for the estate's conservation. In 2017, the government announced plans to redevelop Dakota Crescent into new public housing, while retaining some of its iconic buildings and features. URA is now proposing to conserve six of the blocks that had been kept. These buildings frame the estate's central courtyard, home to the dove playground that has become a symbol of Dakota Crescent. The estate is significant as one of the last public housing projects built by SIT, said the authority, adding that it reflects the evolution of public housing in the years before Singapore's independence. It also reflects the government's post-war push to provide affordable mass housing with proper sanitation facilities, URA added. Parts of Tiong Bahru and Kampong Silat – two other SIT estates built around the same period – have also been conserved in earlier years to commemorate Singapore's public housing journey. SINGAPORE BADMINTON STADIUM – SECOND HOME TO SHUTTLERS In 1949, a team of Malayan shuttlers won the inaugural Thomas Cup in Britain – earning Malaya (later Malaysia) the right to host the next edition of the tournament. This paved the way for the creation of the former Singapore Badminton Stadium at 100 Guillemard Road. Designed by Singaporean architect Ng Keng Siang, the building features a protruding box-like structure at its entrance. Inside, its key features include a spacious open hall topped with a metal roof supported by steel trusses, along with tiered grandstand seating. Although the hall was not completed in time for the second tournament, it was ready by June 1952, and later hosted the third and fourth Thomas Cup tournaments in 1955 and 1958. By the 1950s, the stadium had become a cradle of local badminton greats such as Wong Peng Soon, Ismail Marjan and Ong Poh Lim. Beyond badminton, the venue also hosted other sporting competitions such as gymnastics, sepak takraw, table tennis, billiards and wrestling. It doubled up as an entertainment venue for plays, movie screenings, and talent-search and dance competitions. In 1962, the badminton hall was repurposed as the vote-counting centre for the referendum on Singapore's proposed merger with Brunei, Sarawak, Sabah and the Federation of Malay States to form Malaysia. Given its rich sporting legacy, the venue was marked as a historic site by NHB in 1999 – the first sports facility here to receive such recognition. In 2007, the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) announced it would be closing the hall, as the 30-year lease between the Singapore Sports Council and URA was set to end in January 2008. The association later moved its operations to the Singapore Sports School. More than a decade on, SBA returned to its roots. In 2023, it signed a tenancy agreement with the Singapore Land Authority to take over the Guillemard Road site for redevelopment. After renovations, the hall reopened to the public in 2024, sporting a fresh coat of paint and a colourful mural on its exterior that pays tribute to Singapore's badminton greats. A group of Montfort Junior School alumni – who represented the primary school in national badminton competitions in the 1980s – recount spending several afternoons training at the stadium for their extra-curricular activity. One of taxi driver Patrick Chua's fondest memories of the badminton stadium was a school match against the Anglo-Chinese School (ACS) team. Representing Montfort, his team had lost the first two of five games but made a comeback – winning the next three matches to secure overall victory. Mr Chua, 52, said: 'Because ACS is a boys' school and we are also a boys' school, on the day of the finals, the whole hall was filled with mostly boys. 'Every time they won, they would bring their (school) flag around to our side and start showing off their flag. 'Those were the days. It was really quite enjoyable.' FORMER ROYAL MALAYAN NAVY ADMIN BLOCK – A SYMBOL OF MARITIME PAST Sitting in a corner of Woodlands North today is a cream-and-green-coloured building. The lone structure once formed part of the Royal Malayan Naval Base, which operated beside the former British Royal Naval Base. During the colonial days, the site was a key training ground for generations of naval personnel – from locals recruited by the British in the 1950s, to those serving under the Malayan government following the handover of the Royal Malayan Navy (RMN) in 1957, and later, RMN recruits who continued to train there even after Singapore's independence in 1965. Notably, the Malaysian Navy remained in Singapore until 1997, even after the countries' separation, said Historyogi's Mr Devadas. The site was eventually returned to Singapore in that year, and later repurposed as the now-defunct Admiralty West Prison, which operated from 2011 to 2018. URA is proposing to conserve the three-storey admin block – the only structure left standing from the former naval base – and is studying ways to give the building a new lease of life as part of the upcoming 'Housing by the Woods' public housing project. The admin block captures seven decades of naval history – from Singapore's colonial era to its early years post-independence – and reflected the 'urgent need' post-World War II for Malaya to build up its own defences, said URA. Built in 1953, the building was designed in the Art Deco style, reflecting the architectural trends of the time. The symmetrical structure features a central tower topped with twin flagstaffs and an observation deck on the third storey. Flanking it are two two-storey wings with open, naturally ventilated corridors that once served as a viewing gallery overlooking the parade square. It was at this parade square that several important figures – including Singapore's Chief Ministers David Marshall and Lim Yew Hock, as well as Louis Mountbatten and Tunku Abdul Rahman – inspected naval troops, said Mr Devadas. Louis Mountbatten, who held the title Lord Mountbatten, was the Supreme Allied Commander in South-east Asia during World War II, while Tunku Abdul Rahman was Malaysia's first prime minister. Mr Devadas added: 'The block is therefore a symbol of the deep naval history present across Singapore's northeast coast which also includes the former British naval base in Sembawang. 'These facilities remind us that Singapore was not just a maritime trading port but was also a key pillar of British and Malayan naval power. Thousands of Singaporeans once worked in these bases.' Since 1998, the site has been earmarked for future housing, to allow residents to tap on job opportunities at the upcoming Woodlands Regional Centre. URA said it is engaging agencies and stakeholders on how to 'sensitively integrate' the site's naval heritage with future developments. GRANDSTANDS AT BUKIT TIMAH TURF CITY – VESTIGES OF HORSE RACING In its heyday, the Bukit Timah Turf City was home to Singapore's second racecourse from 1933 to 1999, and was a popular venue for horse racing. At the height of horse racing in Singapore, the grandstands there drew thousands of spectators – including Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, who attended the Queen Elizabeth II Cup during her state visit in 1972. The classical-style South Grandstand, which opened in 1933, stands in contrast to the North Grandstand. Built in 1981, the latter is a striking example of Modernist architecture, with its bold, brutalist design. Professional racehorse trainer Jason Lim recalls his first visit to the racecourse with his father as an 18-year-old in 1997. '(The grandstand) was packed with punters and spectators,' said the 44-year-old. 'The horses were galloping past the grandstand and punters were shouting the different numbers they bet on. It was exciting and fun.' He remembered how it took them nearly an hour just to get into the club after buying their entry tickets. 'The atmosphere there was amazing,' he added. As the country progressed, however, the land on which the racecourse sat became more attractive as a site for redevelopment. It was eventually announced in 1993 that the club's Bukit Timah site would be used for residential development, and that it would have to find a new home. Following the relocation of the Singapore Turf Club to Kranji in 1999, the Bukit Timah Turf City was repurposed as a recreational and commercial hub, with spaces leased out for interim lifestyle and leisure activities until the end of 2023. Still, that first visit left a lasting impression on Mr Lim, sparking his passion for horses and set him on the path to a related career. In 2004, he went to Australia to learn more about horse racing and the ropes of the trade, before returning to work at the Kranji Turf Club. Today, URA is proposing to conserve the North and South Grandstands at Bukit Timah Turf City – two structures that reflect Singapore's transition from its colonial past to its post-independence years, and serve as reminders of horse racing's development as a popular spectator sport. A Heritage Impact Assessment was carried out in consultation with heritage interest groups to study and guide plans for the site. The assessment attributed Bukit Timah Turf City's heritage significance to its 66-year history as one of Southeast Asia's top racecourses and its ties to horse racing in Singapore. With this in mind, the grandstands will be adapted for new uses and serve as focal points for the future community. A central open space in front of the grandstands will honour the site's sporting legacy and is intended for sports and recreational activities. Together, the conserved grandstands and the open space are envisioned as the civic and recreational heart of this future precinct. URA said agencies will continue to document the site's heritage and explore ways to tell its story – including through storyboards and heritage trails – as a tribute to the former Turf Club. Agencies are also studying the potential retention and adaptive reuse of 25 other structures on site, including the former Secretaries' Bungalows and the Bukit Timah Saddle Club clubhouse. SINGAPORE'S APPROACH TO HISTORICAL CONSERVATION Singapore's limited land means a 'highly selective approach' is taken when it comes to conserving built heritage – one that balances preservation with future development, URA and NHB said in a joint response to queries from CNA TODAY. In deciding which buildings or sites are gazetted for conservation, the authorities consider whether retaining them contributes to Singapore's development story and if it helps to strengthen national and cultural identity. 'In particular, we would review the feasibility of adapting these heritage buildings for new uses to serve our needs when we integrate them with future developments to make them more accessible to the general public,' they added. At the same time, URA and NHB acknowledged that some buildings or structures hold value in contributing to the 'collective history of our memories and creating a sense of place'. Beyond physical conservation, the agencies also work with stakeholders to find ways to honour and celebrate the heritage and legacies of these spaces. This includes 'heritage interpretation' in various forms, such as through digital documentation, physical markers like storyboards and walking trails, and sensitive urban design. The agencies said they regularly engage stakeholder groups and expert panels – including URA's Heritage and Identity Partnership and NHB's Heritage Advisory Panel – to involve the community upstream in the planning process. 'We also work closely with building owners and industry stakeholders to ensure that conserved buildings are sensitively restored and well-integrated with future developments to ensure their relevance in the years to come,' they added. Under the Heritage Impact Assessment framework introduced in 2022, public projects that could significantly affect key heritage sites are required to undergo additional 'in-depth consultation' with URA and NHB. This process helps determine whether more detailed heritage studies or other mitigation measures are needed. For selected sites, URA and NHB may recommend conducting heritage studies to provide a more holistic understanding of the heritage significance of these buildings and structures, as well as how future developments may impact them. The findings from these studies may then be factored into shaping subsequent development plans. On what the most important aspects of a site that should be conserved are, NUS' Dr Joshi said that "significance" is an important factor in heritage management. This refers to the sum of various values, including architectural and aesthetic, social, communal, scientific, historical, rarity, associational and environmental. These are values that heritage professionals have to weigh when deciding what should be retained. Giving the example of Dakota Crescent estate, Mr Poh said that while conserving the estate's authentic form is important, it is just as critical to adapt to the needs of users today. This includes considering how much of its original design – including the fact that lifts were not built on every floor – should be retained. 'After all, I think we have to also balance the fact that people are going to live in this building, people are going to use the building,' said Mr Poh. 'Even if we are purist in our conservation intent, I think we shouldn't also discount the fact that people need to use it.' On a whole, heritage and architectural experts said that the proposals reflect a growing national emphasis on balancing conservation with development needs. Mr Devadas said that there is 'much greater awareness and appreciation' for heritage today, compared to the past where the focus was squarely on 'urgently needed progress'. Taken together, the sites provide a tangible and holistic snapshot of Singapore's development over the years. Dr Yeo of ICOMOS said the conservation of the five sites adds to a fuller and more nuanced narrative of the era that they were built in. Their architecture, he noted, also coincided with major global shifts such as World War II and Singapore's own independence and urban transformation. For instance, the post-war focus on defence in the 1950s coincided with the expansion of the Royal Malayan Navy and the completion of the former naval base. In the same decade, SIT also worked to address urgent post-war housing needs, as seen in developments like the Dakota Crescent estate. He then added that there are other sites beyond the five that are worth considering too. "It is essential to consider other conserved buildings, those yet to be conserved, and even those lost to history. Together, they offer a more comprehensive understanding of Singapore's architectural and developmental journey.' The experts also noted that there is a shift towards valuing everyday heritage – beyond just colonial-era monuments – in Singapore's conservation efforts. Mr Ho of the Urbanist Singapore said: 'We are seeing a broader recognition that heritage includes not just colonial buildings or shophouses, but also post-independence spaces tied to nation-building and community life.' He added that the five sites reflect a willingness to conserve not just the 'monumental or visually striking', but also spaces with emotional resonance and everyday significance. 'It reflects a growing recognition that places tied to daily life and collective memory deserve as much attention as grand landmarks. That is an encouraging step forward.' Agreeing, Mr Devadas said that the proposals acknowledge that buildings that once served more functional purposes are also important sites of heritage and memory, alongside the more familiar state and cultural monuments. NUS' Dr Joshi highlighted that nearly all of Singapore's 75 gazetted national monuments are colonial-era structures. The repurposing of such 'less significant' 20th-century buildings could represent a 'democratisation of heritage', he added. On Jun 25, URA will unveil the Draft Master Plan 2025, a blueprint outlining Singapore's detailed land use plans for the next 10 to 15 years. The conservation proposals for the five sites will be presented as part of its public exhibition. Ahead of that, experts told CNA TODAY that some key principles to guide conservation efforts include ensuring that any new use of the site aligns with its original purpose, and that any new design respects the heritage significance of the original structure. Where possible, original materials and building techniques should also be employed in restoration works. Equally important, they said, is involving the community early in the process – to ground conservation in shared memory and to ensure it stays accessible. Mr Ho from the Urbanist Singapore said: 'Make (the site) accessible, meaningful, and visible. A conserved building that no one enters is little different from a demolished one. 'Additions or interventions should also be reversible. Future generations should have the freedom to update, not be trapped by our decisions.' Mr Devadas also highlighted the importance of the site not becoming part of a 'private fenced-off development'. 'The sites should become part of the surrounding area's community life rather than being monuments to gaze upon,' he added. Agreeing, Mr Ho said: 'Preserving only the shell without public access risks turning heritage into a backdrop rather than a lived experience. A meaningful conservation project keeps the building in motion. It remains part of daily life.' Beyond the physical conservation of the sites, the experts also pointed to the need to preserve the intangible heritage and social memories tied to these places. Ultimately, the sites carry 'emotional memory', and losing these would mean losing the physical evidence of stories that have shaped the nation, said Mr Ho. 'Conservation is not about freezing time. It is about keeping history visible and usable. Every building we preserve gives Singapore more cultural depth and more space to reflect.' For the Merdeka and Majulah generations, returning to the sites could bring back memories of who they were, who they were with, and what Singapore was striving to become back then. For younger Singaporeans, these places offer a tangible glimpse of the country's early years – which must also be paired with 'thoughtful heritage interpretation and storytelling', said Mr Ho.
CNA
4 days ago
- Sport
- CNA
From badminton halls to horse racing grandstands: The importance of conserving spaces that aren't 'monumental or visually striking'
For former national shuttler Wong Shoon Keat, the Singapore Badminton Stadium along Guillemard Road is more than just a sporting venue. It was here in 1983 that Mr Wong, then 26, made history clinching Singapore's first men's singles gold medal in badminton at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games. Recounting those days, he said: 'After winning the SEA Games gold medal, a lot of people came to me to congratulate me. But the first one I ran to … (was) my wife who came down from (the stands). 'After I met her, I went to see my dad, my mother and my uncle. A lot of them … they carried me and threw me up in the air.' The 68-year-old said the hall holds 'very good memories' – not only for him but also other shuttlers. 'To any badminton players, ex-national players and all that, this is something like our hometown,' Mr Wong said wistfully. His fond memories of the Singapore Badminton Stadium also extend to his son, Derek. It was here where his son first picked up a racquet as a five-year-old and developed a love for the game. Derek, now 36, and his brother Jason, 28, have since followed in the footsteps of Mr Wong and his wife Irene Lee, who is a former national badminton champion. The couple has two other sons. As a child, Mr Derek Wong would spend many afternoons after school at the Guillemard Road stadium, where his parents ran a badminton shop. Later, as a member of the national youth team, he would return to the same hall for training. He went on to represent Singapore at the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Olympics. Likening the badminton stadium to his 'second home', the younger Mr Wong said the hall carries deep meaning for the local badminton community. It has long served as a dedicated space where players of all levels – from casual enthusiasts to national athletes – can train, compete and share their love for the game. '(The stadium) started from so long ago, when Singapore was still a developing country, and somehow it's still standing up till now and serving the same purpose of giving people a place to play badminton or to compete in it.' The Singapore Badminton Stadium is among five sites that have been long on the national radar and have in recent weeks been thrust back into the public eye. On May 14, then-Minister for National Development Desmond Lee announced that the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) is proposing to conserve five locations of heritage significance. Alongside the badminton stadium, the other sites are the former Royal Malayan Navy administrative block, Jurong Hill Tower, six public housing blocks in the Dakota Crescent estate, and the North and South Grandstands at Bukit Timah Turf City. In a joint response to queries from CNA TODAY, URA and the National Heritage Board (NHB) said on Jun 4: 'The five sites that will be proposed for conservation as part of the upcoming Draft Master Plan 2025 reflect our continued efforts to protect and enhance Singapore's heritage assets to anchor our sense of place and identity, as the city evolves to meet the changing needs of current and future generations.' Since Singapore's urban conservation programme was launched 36 years ago in 1989, URA has conserved more than 7,200 buildings and structures in more than 100 areas. Experts said that conserving key sites provides tangible markers of the evolving Singapore story – physical reminders of how the nation has changed over time. But conservation should go beyond just preserving the bricks and mortar, they noted. Safeguarding the social memories and intangible heritage tied to these spaces is just as important. Dr Yeo Kang Shua, vice-president of the International Council on Monuments and Sites Singapore (ICOMOS), said: 'Conserving physical buildings is often more straightforward than preserving the memories they hold. Yet we rely on these spaces to anchor our experiences and give form to the intangible. 'Retaining the buildings is only the first step; their continued relevance depends on how they are used to sustain the memories and meanings associated with them.' Noting that the five sites are neither 'monumental' nor 'visually striking', heritage educator Ho Yong Min, founder of The Urbanist Singapore, a content platform dedicated to heritage storytelling and urban design, instead pointed to their value in grounding Singaporeans in the nation's shared past. 'The sites are some of the earliest reflections of Singapore designing for itself. They speak not just of nation-building, but of everyday life in the decades after independence. 'They are also located in different parts of the island. This geographic spread allows a wider public to feel connected to our heritage. These are not buildings found in the central area as most people might associate conserved heritage buildings with. They are landmarks of the people and that makes them deeply human.' Located within Jurong Hill Park is a lookout tower which once offered visitors panoramic views of the surrounding industrial estate. Built in 1969, Jurong Hill Tower was developed by JTC Corporation as part of the broader plans for Jurong New Town and the Jurong Industrial Estate. The concrete structure features a spiral ramp held up by 18 columns. At its peak was an enclosed meeting room with a skylight, which used to house models and exhibitions showcasing the government's industrialisation plans for Jurong, said URA. Between 1969 and 1984, the tower was a popular stop for foreign heads of state and dignitaries touring the industrial estate. Some of them also marked their visits by planting trees in the Garden of Fame located at the foot of the tower. 'The tower's view therefore served to impress upon visitors that Singapore was a place worth investing in as they could literally see industrial progress taking shape,' said public policy analyst Dhevarajan Devadas, who also runs Historyogi, a newsletter, podcast and social media account on Singapore history, heritage and politics. He added that Singapore built several such observatory towers in the 1960s and 1970s – including the ones in Upper Seletar Reservoir and Toa Payoh Town Park – which served as good vantage points to observe the young country's rapid development. 'Interestingly, the final tree (at Jurong Hill Tower's Garden of Fame) was planted by Dr Albert Winsemius, Singapore's economic adviser who played a crucial role in the country's industrialisation,' said Mr Devadas. Dr Nikhil Joshi, a senior lecturer in the Department of Architecture at the National University of Singapore (NUS), also noted its architectural uniqueness. 'It is the first 'garden folly' in Singapore. Follies began as decorative accents on grand estates in England and France during the late 16th and early 17th centuries, but they particularly flourished in the two centuries that followed.' The Jurong Hill Tower and its surrounding Jurong Hill Park grounds were opened to the public in 1970. It grew to be a popular recreational spot for locals, and was later included in the Jurong Heritage Trail – one of 24 trails developed by NHB to offer the public deeper insights into Singapore's built heritage and the stories behind them. Today, however, the area is cordoned off to prevent members of the public from accessing the tower, likely due to pending construction works. In a bid to shape the future of Jurong Hill and the adjacent former Jurong Bird Park site, URA and JTC launched a competition in October 2024 calling for fresh ideas to rejuvenate the area. The competition closed in January this year, but its results have not been publicly announced. Business adviser Loh Pui Wah, 61, used to visit the tower and park regularly with his father as a child. During his primary school years, it became a natural stop after excursions to the former Jurong Bird Park, located nearby. As an adult, Mr Loh worked as a project manager in contract manufacturing and was based in the Jurong industrial estate. The tower remained a part of his routine – this time as a venue to host visiting clients. He recalled business luncheons at the Japanese teppanyaki and Indonesian restaurants once located there, followed by walks up the spiral ramp to take in sweeping views of the estate below. Recounting how the site had often served as an introduction to Singapore's industrial ambitions at the time, Mr Loh said he felt a sense of pride to speak about the nation's achievements to foreign friends and overseas business clients. While Mr Loh has fond memories of growing up in the area, he noted that few landmarks from his youth remain today, as much of the landscape has been reshaped by redevelopment. This is why he strongly supports URA's proposal to conserve the tower, calling it a way to remind younger generations of Singapore's post-independence industrial growth and social evolution. Mr Alex Yew, who similarly frequented the tower over the years, said he was 'overjoyed' to learn about the proposal to conserve the tower. The 53-year-old human resource consultant recalled spending time at the tower with three generations of his family – from birthday celebrations at the restaurants there during his childhood, to date nights with his wife taking in the lights from the surrounding industrial estate, and more recently, visiting the spot with his own children. His most recent visit to the tower was in August 2022, when he made a stop there with friends during a night cycling trip. He returned in 2023, only to find that the tower had been cordoned off. 'I would say that (the tower) forms part of what makes Singapore today ... as a silent observer of the industrial growth that took place beneath the tower and hill, and the history of the place and the memories that they ignite in many Singaporeans.' Built in 1958 by the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT), Dakota Crescent is one of the island's oldest public housing estates. SIT was set up in 1927 to tackle infrastructure and housing challenges in Singapore. It was subsequently dissolved in 1960, with its public housing programme taken over by the newly formed Housing and Development Board (HDB). Tucked away off Old Airport Road, the Dakota Crescent estate is marked by its white-bricked blocks – a mix of two-, three- and seven-storey buildings that are now hoarded up. Constructed just before Singapore's independence, the estate was part of early efforts to ease overcrowding in the city and offer more affordable homes to residents. The estate and road were named after the Douglas DC-3 Dakota, a 1930s passenger aircraft that frequently took off from and landed at the former Kallang Airport runway along Old Airport Road when Singapore was under British colonial rule. In 2014, the government announced that it would demolish the estate, and that existing residents would be relocated to the neighbouring Cassia public housing development. The move prompted a wave of protests from residents and members of the public. Some, such as social entrepreneur Cai Yinzhou and architect and Dakota resident Jonathan Poh, took it upon themselves to fight for the preservation of the iconic estate. Mr Cai, who is a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Bishan-Toa Payoh Group Representation Constituency, founded Dakota Adventures in response to the 2014 announcement. The educational tours were co-guided by Dakota Crescent residents – mostly seniors living in rental housing – and highlighted the estate's historical and social significance. In 2017, Mr Cai also set up the Cassia Resettlement Team – a volunteer group that stepped in to support elderly residents and former Dakota Crescent dwellers in adjusting to life in their new homes. He said: 'If we look at it from a social memories and social history point of view, the bigger case for conservation is actually the lessons that we can learn from heritage and history, and the lessons that Dakota Crescent has undergone in terms of its historical timeline, that enables us to be where we are today. 'It's kind of a snapshot of history, where that was where we were back then," said the MP. As for the educational tours organised by Dakota Adventures, Mr Cai said there was much to learn from the real-life stories from the residents who lived through that period, benefitted from the government's policies and "saw for themselves the transformation of Singapore relative to where they were living". "I think that's the most powerful part of heritage,' he said. Meanwhile, Mr Poh led the Save Dakota Crescent movement, advocating the estate's preservation due to its historical value and unique architectural features, such as the butterfly-shaped blocks and aesthetic influences from the British Modern movement. The founder and principal architect at Provolk Architects added that the estate also embodies the collective memory of Singaporeans who have lived in public housing estates. Together with a group of fellow architects, Mr Poh and Mr Cai published and submitted a conservation report to then-MP for Mountbatten, Mr Lim Biow Chuan. Speaking to CNA TODAY, Mr Lim said: 'I was initially looking at it from the government's point of view, which is that we need to develop this. This is prime land – a plot of land close to town, a plot of land of high value because it's very attractive, next to the MRT Station, next to the river, right next to town. How do you balance giving up this plot?' In this case, conserving part of the estate could mean less prime land is available to be redeveloped into new build-to-order flats. But he was eventually convinced after discussions with the group. 'I think one lesson that we all have to learn is there are always trade-offs ... And I think the group of them persuaded me that if we keep knocking everything down, then something will be lost forever." Mr Lim subsequently filed an adjournment motion in 2016, where he made a case in parliament for the estate's conservation. In 2017, the government announced plans to redevelop Dakota Crescent into new public housing, while retaining some of its iconic buildings and features. URA is now proposing to conserve six of the blocks that had been kept. These buildings frame the estate's central courtyard, home to the dove playground that has become a symbol of Dakota Crescent. The estate is significant as one of the last public housing projects built by SIT, said the authority, adding that it reflects the evolution of public housing in the years before Singapore's independence. It also reflects the government's post-war push to provide affordable mass housing with proper sanitation facilities, URA added. Parts of Tiong Bahru and Kampong Silat – two other SIT estates built around the same period – have also been conserved in earlier years to commemorate Singapore's public housing journey. SINGAPORE BADMINTON STADIUM – SECOND HOME TO SHUTTLERS In 1949, a team of Malayan shuttlers won the inaugural Thomas Cup in Britain – earning Malaya (later Malaysia) the right to host the next edition of the tournament. This paved the way for the creation of the former Singapore Badminton Stadium at 100 Guillemard Road. Designed by Singaporean architect Ng Keng Siang, the building features a protruding box-like structure at its entrance. Inside, its key features include a spacious open hall topped with a metal roof supported by steel trusses, along with tiered grandstand seating. Although the hall was not completed in time for the second tournament, it was ready by June 1952, and later hosted the third and fourth Thomas Cup tournaments in 1955 and 1958. By the 1950s, the stadium had become a cradle of local badminton greats such as Wong Peng Soon, Ismail Marjan and Ong Poh Lim. Beyond badminton, the venue also hosted other sporting competitions such as gymnastics, sepak takraw, table tennis, billiards and wrestling. It doubled up as an entertainment venue for plays, movie screenings, and talent-search and dance competitions. In 1962, the badminton hall was repurposed as the vote-counting centre for the referendum on Singapore's proposed merger with Brunei, Sarawak, Sabah and the Federation of Malay States to form Malaysia. Given its rich sporting legacy, the venue was marked as a historic site by NHB in 1999 – the first sports facility here to receive such recognition. In 2007, the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) announced it would be closing the hall, as the 30-year lease between the Singapore Sports Council and URA was set to end in January 2008. The association later moved its operations to the Singapore Sports School. More than a decade on, SBA returned to its roots. In 2023, it signed a tenancy agreement with the Singapore Land Authority to take over the Guillemard Road site for redevelopment. After renovations, the hall reopened to the public in 2024, sporting a fresh coat of paint and a colourful mural on its exterior that pays tribute to Singapore's badminton greats. A group of Montfort Junior School alumni – who represented the primary school in national badminton competitions in the 1980s – recount spending several afternoons training at the stadium for their extra-curricular activity. One of taxi driver Patrick Chua's fondest memories of the badminton stadium was a school match against the Anglo-Chinese School (ACS) team. Representing Montfort, his team had lost the first two of five games but made a comeback – winning the next three matches to secure overall victory. Mr Chua, 52, said: 'Because ACS is a boys' school and we are also a boys' school, on the day of the finals, the whole hall was filled with mostly boys. 'Every time they won, they would bring their (school) flag around to our side and start showing off their flag. 'Those were the days. It was really quite enjoyable.' FORMER ROYAL MALAYAN NAVY ADMIN BLOCK – A SYMBOL OF MARITIME PAST Sitting in a corner of Woodlands North today is a cream-and-green-coloured building. The lone structure once formed part of the Royal Malayan Naval Base, which operated beside the former British Royal Naval Base. During the colonial days, the site was a key training ground for generations of naval personnel – from locals recruited by the British in the 1950s, to those serving under the Malayan government following the handover of the Royal Malayan Navy (RMN) in 1957, and later, RMN recruits who continued to train there even after Singapore's independence in 1965. Notably, the Malaysian Navy remained in Singapore until 1997, even after the countries' separation, said Historyogi's Mr Devadas. The site was eventually returned to Singapore in that year, and later repurposed as the now-defunct Admiralty West Prison, which operated from 2011 to 2018. URA is proposing to conserve the three-storey admin block – the only structure left standing from the former naval base – and is studying ways to give the building a new lease of life as part of the upcoming 'Housing by the Woods' public housing project. The admin block captures seven decades of naval history – from Singapore's colonial era to its early years post-independence – and reflected the 'urgent need' post-World War II for Malaya to build up its own defences, said URA. Built in 1953, the building was designed in the Art Deco style, reflecting the architectural trends of the time. The symmetrical structure features a central tower topped with twin flagstaffs and an observation deck on the third storey. Flanking it are two two-storey wings with open, naturally ventilated corridors that once served as a viewing gallery overlooking the parade square. It was at this parade square that several important figures – including Singapore's Chief Ministers David Marshall and Lim Yew Hock, as well as Louis Mountbatten and Tunku Abdul Rahman – inspected naval troops, said Mr Devadas. Louis Mountbatten, who held the title Lord Mountbatten, was the Supreme Allied Commander in South-east Asia during World War II, while Tunku Abdul Rahman was Malaysia's first prime minister. Mr Devadas added: 'The block is therefore a symbol of the deep naval history present across Singapore's northeast coast which also includes the former British naval base in Sembawang. 'These facilities remind us that Singapore was not just a maritime trading port but was also a key pillar of British and Malayan naval power. Thousands of Singaporeans once worked in these bases.' Since 1998, the site has been earmarked for future housing, to allow residents to tap on job opportunities at the upcoming Woodlands Regional Centre. URA said it is engaging agencies and stakeholders on how to 'sensitively integrate' the site's naval heritage with future developments. GRANDSTANDS AT BUKIT TIMAH TURF CITY – VESTIGES OF HORSE RACING In its heyday, the Bukit Timah Turf City was home to Singapore's second racecourse from 1933 to 1999, and was a popular venue for horse racing. At the height of horse racing in Singapore, the grandstands there drew thousands of spectators – including Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, who attended the Queen Elizabeth II Cup during her state visit in 1972. The classical-style South Grandstand, which opened in 1933, stands in contrast to the North Grandstand. Built in 1981, the latter is a striking example of Modernist architecture, with its bold, brutalist design. Professional racehorse trainer Jason Lim recalls his first visit to the racecourse with his father as an 18-year-old in 1997. '(The grandstand) was packed with punters and spectators,' said the 44-year-old. 'The horses were galloping past the grandstand and punters were shouting the different numbers they bet on. It was exciting and fun.' He remembered how it took them nearly an hour just to get into the club after buying their entry tickets. 'The atmosphere there was amazing,' he added. As the country progressed, however, the land on which the racecourse sat became more attractive as a site for redevelopment. It was eventually announced in 1993 that the club's Bukit Timah site would be used for residential development, and that it would have to find a new home. Following the relocation of the Singapore Turf Club to Kranji in 1999, the Bukit Timah Turf City was repurposed as a recreational and commercial hub, with spaces leased out for interim lifestyle and leisure activities until the end of 2023. Still, that first visit left a lasting impression on Mr Lim, sparking his passion for horses and set him on the path to a related career. In 2004, he went to Australia to learn more about horse racing and the ropes of the trade, before returning to work at the Kranji Turf Club. Today, URA is proposing to conserve the North and South Grandstands at Bukit Timah Turf City – two structures that reflect Singapore's transition from its colonial past to its post-independence years, and serve as reminders of horse racing's development as a popular spectator sport. A Heritage Impact Assessment was carried out in consultation with heritage interest groups to study and guide plans for the site. The assessment attributed Bukit Timah Turf City's heritage significance to its 66-year history as one of Southeast Asia's top racecourses and its ties to horse racing in Singapore. With this in mind, the grandstands will be adapted for new uses and serve as focal points for the future community. A central open space in front of the grandstands will honour the site's sporting legacy and is intended for sports and recreational activities. Together, the conserved grandstands and the open space are envisioned as the civic and recreational heart of this future precinct. URA said agencies will continue to document the site's heritage and explore ways to tell its story – including through storyboards and heritage trails – as a tribute to the former Turf Club. Agencies are also studying the potential retention and adaptive reuse of 25 other structures on site, including the former Secretaries' Bungalows and the Bukit Timah Saddle Club clubhouse. SINGAPORE'S APPROACH TO HISTORICAL CONSERVATION Singapore's limited land means a 'highly selective approach' is taken when it comes to conserving built heritage – one that balances preservation with future development, URA and NHB said in a joint response to queries from CNA TODAY. In deciding which buildings or sites are gazetted for conservation, the authorities consider whether retaining them contributes to Singapore's development story and if it helps to strengthen national and cultural identity. 'In particular, we would review the feasibility of adapting these heritage buildings for new uses to serve our needs when we integrate them with future developments to make them more accessible to the general public,' they added. At the same time, URA and NHB acknowledged that some buildings or structures hold value in contributing to the 'collective history of our memories and creating a sense of place'. Beyond physical conservation, the agencies also work with stakeholders to find ways to honour and celebrate the heritage and legacies of these spaces. This includes 'heritage interpretation' in various forms, such as through digital documentation, physical markers like storyboards and walking trails, and sensitive urban design. The agencies said they regularly engage stakeholder groups and expert panels – including URA's Heritage and Identity Partnership and NHB's Heritage Advisory Panel – to involve the community upstream in the planning process. 'We also work closely with building owners and industry stakeholders to ensure that conserved buildings are sensitively restored and well-integrated with future developments to ensure their relevance in the years to come,' they added. Under the Heritage Impact Assessment framework introduced in 2022, public projects that could significantly affect key heritage sites are required to undergo additional 'in-depth consultation' with URA and NHB. This process helps determine whether more detailed heritage studies or other mitigation measures are needed. For selected sites, URA and NHB may recommend conducting heritage studies to provide a more holistic understanding of the heritage significance of these buildings and structures, as well as how future developments may impact them. The findings from these studies may then be factored into shaping subsequent development plans. On what the most important aspects of a site that should be conserved are, NUS' Dr Joshi said that "significance" is an important factor in heritage management. This refers to the sum of various values, including architectural and aesthetic, social, communal, scientific, historical, rarity, associational and environmental. These are values that heritage professionals have to weigh when deciding what should be retained. Giving the example of Dakota Crescent estate, Mr Poh said that while conserving the estate's authentic form is important, it is just as critical to adapt to the needs of users today. This includes considering how much of its original design – including the fact that lifts were not built on every floor – should be retained. 'After all, I think we have to also balance the fact that people are going to live in this building, people are going to use the building,' said Mr Poh. 'Even if we are purist in our conservation intent, I think we shouldn't also discount the fact that people need to use it.' On a whole, heritage and architectural experts said that the proposals reflect a growing national emphasis on balancing conservation with development needs. Mr Devadas said that there is 'much greater awareness and appreciation' for heritage today, compared to the past where the focus was squarely on 'urgently needed progress'. Taken together, the sites provide a tangible and holistic snapshot of Singapore's development over the years. Dr Yeo of ICOMOS said the conservation of the five sites adds to a fuller and more nuanced narrative of the era that they were built in. Their architecture, he noted, also coincided with major global shifts such as World War II and Singapore's own independence and urban transformation. For instance, the post-war focus on defence in the 1950s coincided with the expansion of the Royal Malayan Navy and the completion of the former naval base. In the same decade, SIT also worked to address urgent post-war housing needs, as seen in developments like the Dakota Crescent estate. He then added that there are other sites beyond the five that are worth considering too. "It is essential to consider other conserved buildings, those yet to be conserved, and even those lost to history. Together, they offer a more comprehensive understanding of Singapore's architectural and developmental journey.' The experts also noted that there is a shift towards valuing everyday heritage – beyond just colonial-era monuments – in Singapore's conservation efforts. Mr Ho of the Urbanist Singapore said: 'We are seeing a broader recognition that heritage includes not just colonial buildings or shophouses, but also post-independence spaces tied to nation-building and community life.' He added that the five sites reflect a willingness to conserve not just the 'monumental or visually striking', but also spaces with emotional resonance and everyday significance. 'It reflects a growing recognition that places tied to daily life and collective memory deserve as much attention as grand landmarks. That is an encouraging step forward.' Agreeing, Mr Devadas said that the proposals acknowledge that buildings that once served more functional purposes are also important sites of heritage and memory, alongside the more familiar state and cultural monuments. NUS' Dr Joshi highlighted that nearly all of Singapore's 75 gazetted national monuments are colonial-era structures. The repurposing of such 'less significant' 20th-century buildings could represent a 'democratisation of heritage', he added. On Jun 25, URA will unveil the Draft Master Plan 2025, a blueprint outlining Singapore's detailed land use plans for the next 10 to 15 years. The conservation proposals for the five sites will be presented as part of its public exhibition. Ahead of that, experts told CNA TODAY that some key principles to guide conservation efforts include ensuring that any new use of the site aligns with its original purpose, and that any new design respects the heritage significance of the original structure. Where possible, original materials and building techniques should also be employed in restoration works. Equally important, they said, is involving the community early in the process – to ground conservation in shared memory and to ensure it stays accessible. Mr Ho from the Urbanist Singapore said: 'Make (the site) accessible, meaningful, and visible. A conserved building that no one enters is little different from a demolished one. 'Additions or interventions should also be reversible. Future generations should have the freedom to update, not be trapped by our decisions.' Mr Devadas also highlighted the importance of the site not becoming part of a 'private fenced-off development'. 'The sites should become part of the surrounding area's community life rather than being monuments to gaze upon,' he added. Agreeing, Mr Ho said: 'Preserving only the shell without public access risks turning heritage into a backdrop rather than a lived experience. A meaningful conservation project keeps the building in motion. It remains part of daily life.' Beyond the physical conservation of the sites, the experts also pointed to the need to preserve the intangible heritage and social memories tied to these places. Ultimately, the sites carry 'emotional memory', and losing these would mean losing the physical evidence of stories that have shaped the nation, said Mr Ho. 'Conservation is not about freezing time. It is about keeping history visible and usable. Every building we preserve gives Singapore more cultural depth and more space to reflect.' For the Merdeka and Majulah generations, returning to the sites could bring back memories of who they were, who they were with, and what Singapore was striving to become back then. For younger Singaporeans, these places offer a tangible glimpse of the country's early years – which must also be paired with 'thoughtful heritage interpretation and storytelling', said Mr Ho. 'A city without visible layers of accessible history becomes harder to love and harder to explain to the next generation.'
Martechvibe
02-05-2025
- Business
- Martechvibe
Skechers Launches AI Retail Assistant Luna
Using real-time data from the conversation, Luna acts as a personal stylist, suggesting garments based on the customer's current outfit. Staff Writer less than a minute ago Skechers has deployed Luna, an AI powered retail assistant created by We Are Social, at its new store in Punggol Coast Mall, Singapore. Customers can converse with Luna through an interactive kiosk in-store or via Telegram, receiving real-time personalised style advice and product recommendations. Using real-time data from the conversation, Luna acts as a personal stylist, suggesting garments based on the customer's current outfit or helping them piece together a look from the rack based on their preferences. The month long activation celebrates Skechers' new store opening in the heart of the Punggol Digital District. Irene Lee, Senior General Manager, Skechers Singapore, said, 'As a comfort technology brand, harnessing new and innovative solutions to connect with our customers is part of our DNA. With the opening of our new store in Punggol Digital District, it enhances customers' retail journey with a unique, social, and interactive experience with Luna.' Manolis Perrakis, Innovation Director at We Are Social Singapore, said, 'The emergence of AI speech to speech technologies is powering an agentic AI revolution that forms the backbone of future consumer facing systems.' 'Luna is an additional touchpoint for Skechers to complement its innovative retail experience, uniting retail and online environments into a seamless ecosystem. This integration empowers brands to strengthen customer relationships and drive dynamic, two way conversations that connect the shop floor and customers' phones.' ALSO READ: The Martechvibe team works with a staff of in-house writers and industry experts. 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VISIT WEBSITE Adobe Experience Cloud features Adobe Campaign, enabling marketers to synchronise their customer data from various channels for omnichannel marketing. By leveraging its omnichannel integration with Adobe Journey Optimiser, brands can build multi-step journeys, campaigns, and personalised real-time moments that follow their customers across channels. VISIT WEBSITE ActiveCampaign is an intelligent multichannel marketing automation platform that enables marketers to seamlessly connect campaigns across the channels that matter most to them. It helps enterprises streamline personalised marketing, transactional emails, and one-to-one CRM interactions throughout the customer lifecycle. VISIT WEBSITE UiPath offers a comprehensive AI-powered robotic automation platform, enabling marketers to streamline recurring functions, such as lead automation and customer engagement. Utilising its capabilities, marketers can personalise and automate customer interactions, depending on their needs and preferences. VISIT WEBSITE SAP is a composable marketing automation technology provider, offering SAP Intelligent RPA solutions to automate repetitive, rules-based business processes, including marketing and sales. Using its tech stack, marketers can automatically extract product data from manufacturers' websites, update online inventory and import website and email sales. VISIT WEBSITE Microsoft offers Power Automate, a low-code and AI-powered RPA software that helps marketers streamline tasks like lead management, email campaigns, social media management, data analysis, content publishing, and customer feedback. Leveraging its capabilities, businesses can automate repetitive tasks, such as lead capture and email marketing workflows. VISIT WEBSITE IBM offers AI-powered Robotic Process Automation capabilities for CRM and marketing functions. It enables users to automate workflows with integrated OCR and intelligent chatbots, distribute work across multiple bots without human interventions and manage emails via low-code authoring tools. VISIT WEBSITE Hyland offers an AI-powered comprehensive robotic automation software suite, enabling marketers' teams to automate their campaigns. Its Natural Language Processing (NLP) technology allows businesses to automate repetitive marketing functions, such as execution of targeted and personalised strategies in near real-time. VISIT WEBSITE Datamatics is an intelligent automation platform, offering TruBot RPA designer, a low-code bot design tool for marketing teams to create customised bots quickly. It provides 500 pre-built components, enabling low-code design and rapid deployment capabilities with drag-and-drop options. VISIT WEBSITE Automation Anywhere offers Automation Success Platform powered by Vertex AI, enabling enterprises to develop a cloud-based digital workforce at scale. Leveraging its bots, ML, and AI technologies, marketers can automate their marketing and sales processes. One of its popular offerings is Automation Co-Pilot, a genAI-powered assistant that empowers businesses to create and summarise content. VISIT WEBSITE Appian is a global technology provider, delivering end-to-end process automation with RPA, AI, IDP and API integrations. Utilising the readily available APIs of this low-code platform, teams can create a series of connected digital business applications including customer management and marketing. VISIT WEBSITE Powered by Zoho Corporation, Zoho Analytics enables marketers to track all critical metrics in a single platform to enhance marketing outcomes. The company offers 75 pre-built data visualisation reports and dashboards on marketing performance for collaborative analysis. With its AI-powered assistant, marketers can generate automated insights, predict future trends, and configure smart alerts. VISIT WEBSITE Semrush is an online visibility management and content marketing SaaS platform, offering marketing analytics tools to global businesses. Its open-source analytical tools include Market Explorer and Traffic Analytics for understanding market trends and website traffic respectively. VISIT WEBSITE Nielsen is a global audience insights, data and analytics solution provider, helping marketers measure what people listen to and watch. It offers a comprehensive, AI-powered Nielsen Marketing Cloud platform with sub-products such as Audience Segments, Scarborough, and Advanced Audiences to understand audiences for different targeting initiatives. VISIT WEBSITE MoEngage is a full-stack marketing automation platform, offering consumer insights and analytics solutions for marketers to understand customer LTV. With MoEngage Analytics, they can measure user engagement, spot behavioural patterns, and act on retention to prevent app uninstalls. VISIT WEBSITE Microsoft Clarity is a behavioural analysis tool that helps marketers understand user interaction with their website. It supports features like Session recordings, Heatmaps, and ML insights in real time. Processing more than a petabyte of data from over 100 million users per month, Clarity accommodates limitless traffic for various marketing measurements at scale. VISIT WEBSITE Powered by AI-led insights, Merkle offers scalable marketing analytics and CX technology solutions, helping brands to optimise their campaigns. Some of its flagship solutions are Measurement & Media analytics, Consumer & Experience insights, and Product & Market intelligence. VISIT WEBSITE Hubspot offers marketing analytics and dashboard software, enabling businesses to make data-backed decisions for use cases, such as revenue generation, site analytics and detailed reporting. Leveraging the capabilities of its multi-touch revenue attribution model, marketers can monitor real-time website traffic via unique tracking codes. VISIT WEBSITE Google Analytics is an open-source analytics tool by Google, enabling marketing teams within organisations to better understand their customers via valuable insights. Consequently, businesses can use those insights to take action, such as website improvement and tailored audience list creation. VISIT WEBSITE Adverity is an integrated data analytics platform, enabling marketers to automate their customer's data integration and visualisation functions. It offers 600+ pre-built data connectors to popular marketing platforms, social media networks, SEO tools, and marketing automation solutions. The platform also provides pre-build dashboards to generate tailored reports. VISIT WEBSITE Adobe Experience Cloud offers Adobe Analytics and Adobe Target within its analytics tools solutions, enabling marketers to execute in-depth analysis of their customer data. Adobe Analytics allows the sales and marketing teams to mix, match, and analyse data from any digital point in the customer journey. VISIT WEBSITE Ahrefs features a suite of analytics tools under its Ahref Enterprise offering. It offers API and Looker Studio connectors, enabling marketing teams to elevate their SEO strategy with enterprise-grade and insights. Some of the criteria for its API endpoints include Backlinks, Organic & Paid Traffic, SERPs, Website health score and more. VISIT WEBSITE StackAdapt is a multi-channel programmatic advertising platform, enabling digital marketers to customise their strategy. It offers open and flexible DSP (Digital Signal Processing) capabilities for executing tailored ad campaigns. Furthermore, its ad previewer lets marketing teams preview video, display and native ads on desktop or mobile across 500+ publishers, covering 23 verticals. VISIT WEBSITE Rakuten is a global affiliate ad technology company, enabling advertisers to optimise their marketing strategies with data-driven insights. It offers AI-powered forecasting and benchmarking capabilities and dynamic multi-touch commissioning tools, allowing advertisers to customise their campaigns. It also supports first-party data collection integrations for both B2B and B2C marketers. VISIT WEBSITE Nielsen offers Nielsen Ad Intel, a cross-platform advertising intelligence platform with actionable insights to identify prospects, analyse brand strategies and learn from past advertising campaigns. It offers various advertising intelligence features such as ad spend monitoring, competitive benchmarking, global competitive insights and expert data harmonisation. VISIT WEBSITE Magnite is an independent sell-side advertising technology provider, enabling publishers to monetise their content across all screens and formats. It offers Magnite Streaming, a singular supply-side platform that merges technology from the Magnite CTV and SpotX platforms. Utilising this functionality, marketers can identify their potential audiences to restructure their targeting strategies. VISIT WEBSITE IBM offers a comprehensive suite of Watson Advertising to agencies and marketers. With Watson Advertising's AI-powered assistant, advertisers can customise their advertisements, based on real-time ad results. It also supports functionalities of cookieless advertising, ad fraud management and brand safety measurements. VISIT WEBSITE Google features a comprehensive list of AI-powered Ad tools under its Google Ads offering. Some of its popular tools include Keywords Planner, Ads Editor, Reach Planner, Ads Mobile App, Insights Finder, Ads API, and Recommendations Page. Additionally, it offers Google AdMob to help businesses plan their in-app revenue generation strategy. VISIT WEBSITE Criteo is an all-in-one connected commerce media platform, enabling marketers and agencies to scale their digital and physical assets. Leveraging the capabilities of its AI-powered technology, brands can develop strategies for intent-based product recommendations, multi-prolonged accessibility, contextual advertising, and more. VISIT WEBSITE Basis Tecnologies (formerly known as Centro), is a programmatic advertising platform, offering ad management tools for search, social and site direct via a single interface. Its flagship products are Basis Assistant and Basis Automate+. Basis Assistant is a Chrome extension, connecting 20+ platforms and tools, and Basis Automate+ is a digital advertising automation tool for simplifying campaign process. VISIT WEBSITE AppsFlyer is a mobile attribution company, helping mobile advertisers to identify their ad network. It offers a measurement suite, giving app marketers full visibility into their customer journeys while preserving their privacy. Utilising its AI-powered Creative Optimisation platform, marketers can formulate their creative strategy. VISIT WEBSITE Adtriba is a cross-channel digital marketing management platform based on data-driven attribution modelling. Its solutions include Adtriba Triangulation, enabling advertisers to witness the integration of diverse measurement methods, such as Marketing Mix Modelling (MMM), Multi-Touch Attribution (MTA) and Incrementality Testing. VISIT WEBSITE Adobe Experience Cloud offers connected advertising solutions with its natively integrated Adobe Advertising platform. Its consultancy-based reporting options come with AI-powered optimisation features, helping advertisers analyse their ad performance via 200+ measurement metrics. Utilising its connected TV (CTV) and search, social, and commerce tools, marketers can optimise their customer acquisition strategy. VISIT WEBSITE specialises in Conversational AI, generating autonomous conversations that appear human-like. These conversations form the foundation of brand engagement. Their AI-powered, no-code Dynamic Automation Platform manages around two billion conversations from a multitude of channels in numerous languages. VISIT WEBSITE Sprinklr offers a comprehensive suite of 250+ AI-intent bot templates for various industry verticals to accelerate bot development. Its specialised AI and compliant rule engine enables marketers to modify and automate their promotional campaigns for better engagement via suggestion-based personalised bots. VISIT WEBSITE Meta's new class of generative AI features and creative tools allow users to create and share custom stickers or update the visual style of their photos with a simple text prompt. They can also chat with 28 different AIs and get unique perspectives on topics like travel, games and food. VISIT WEBSITE is a UI-based platform that allows marketers to create a chatbot quickly and deploy it easily on multiple channels. Leveraging the capabilities of its conversational builder, enterprises can build the Dialogflow using dialogue messages. Some of its popular offerings include XO: Experience Optimisation and GALE(Beta). VISIT WEBSITE IBM watsonx Assistant is an interactive virtual agent that utilises natural language and AI, enabling users to set it up on their app and website. It offers fast and accurate responses to customers, enhancing their overall experience and satisfaction with its adaptive learning capabilities. VISIT WEBSITE Haptik helps enterprises manage their customer lifecycle with generative AI-powered conversational solutions to boost marketing and sales. It offers Contakt and Interakt to enhance overall CX, where Interakt enables marketers to send hyper-targeted and personalised campaigns to drive customers to take action on WhatsApp. VISIT WEBSITE Dialogflow is an all-in-one platform for developing chatbots, voice bots, and virtual agents using natural language understanding and Google AI. It helps marketing teams create conversational agents that can handle common customer requests and issues, such as FAQs, and order status at scale. VISIT WEBSITE Dialpad is a fully integrated unified conversation intelligence platform that utilises ongoing ML(Machine Learning) algorithms and does not require coding to configure a chatbot. It offers real-time insights and tips, helping marketing teams customise their approach for every customer. VISIT WEBSITE is a low code-no code, enterprise-grade generative AI platform offering readily available LLMs for CX transformations. Its omnichannel reporting and analytics suite for marketing enables organisations to streamline their customer journeys. VISIT WEBSITE is a global conversational AI technology provider optimised for operational efficiency at scale. It offers self-learning AI capabilities that emphasise Natural Language Understanding (NLU) along with intent suggestions. VISIT WEBSITE Avaamo is an all-in-one conversational AI platform for enterprises offering a suite of industry-specific skills developed to automate and resolve common use cases. It offers Outreach, which enables marketers to educate and engage with customers across existing touchpoints through proactive and personalised communication. VISIT WEBSITE Amazon Lex offers fully managed conversational AI interfaces with advanced natural language models to design, build, test, and deploy conversational interfaces in applications. It enables sales and marketing teams to automate user tasks in their applications like the CRM and across any digital channel. VISIT WEBSITE Zendesk is an AI-powered customer feedback software provider, offering customer satisfaction (CSAT) software to businesses across multiple industries. Its marketplace offers 1600+ apps and integrations, enabling marketers to create a complete customer feedback system. VISIT WEBSITE UserVoice provides product feedback management software for SaaS businesses. Its UserVoice Validation tool delivers actionable user insights to inform roadmap strategy. From testing ideas to ensuring satisfaction with released features, it helps research and marketing teams gather quick user feedback throughout the entire product lifecycle. VISIT WEBSITE Twilio provides integrated Mindful Feedback functionality within its Flex offering, enabling marketers to automatically take action based on real-time customer feedback. It automatically collects customer feedback after Flex interactions by capturing feedback over post-call voice IVR, outbound voice IVR, conversational SMS, Web SMS, email, and web surveys. VISIT WEBSITE Trustpilot offers ML and AI-powered feedback management tools, helping marketers build trust and loyalty through customer reviews. Its AI-driven Review Insights tool enables marketers to identify growth areas from negative feedback, whereas its Image Generator tool lets them enhance social media engagement. VISIT WEBSITE Survey Monkey is a global online survey and forms tech stack provider, offering AI-fueled market research solutions to businesses. Its enterprise feedback management program provides 250+ templates with the capabilities of customisation, allowing organisations to build tailored survey forms. VISIT WEBSITE Sprinklr is a unified customer experience platform (CXM), offering AI-powered feedback management capabilities with its flagship product: Sprinklr Surveys. It integrates solicited customer feedback with unified-CXM data, enabling brands to derive meaningful, actionable insights. Utilising its genAI-powered survey builder, marketers can create conversational surveys to streamline their NPS strategies. VISIT WEBSITE Salesforce is a comprehensive customer-oriented technology provider offering a feedback management suite. Salesforce's survey responses help marketers create personalised surveys based on their existing customers' data. Some of the supported applications of its feedback management platform are genAI-powered survey form development and sentiment-insights-based survey collections. VISIT WEBSITE QuestionPro is an online feedback software provider, offering ready-made survey templates to businesses across 40+ countries. Leveraging the capabilities of its customer satisfaction templates, advertisers and marketers can create and gather tailored questions. VISIT WEBSITE Qualtrics is an all-in-one customer experience solution provider, offering website & app feedback tools for organisations to collect customer feedback efficiently. Its digital experience analytics capabilities combined with DXA integrations, bring together verbal and behavioural data for in-depth analysis of user feedback. VISIT WEBSITE HubSpot is a one-stop marketing platform, providing customer feedback software under its Service Hub offerings. Its pre-built APIs include net promote score (NPS), customer effort score (CES), and customer satisfaction (CSAT) surveys, allowing marketers to strengthen their customer loyalty strategy. VISIT WEBSITE Medallia is a comprehensive platform, enabling marketers to capture feedback from all customer touch points. Some of its popular feedback management software capabilities include Sense360 for analysing consumer spending, Medallia Video to automatically extract meaningful insights from customer's feedbacks and Agile Research for creating branded surveys in real-time. VISIT WEBSITE Zeotap lets brands integrate, unify, segment and orchestrate customer data, fostering a cookieless future. It offers a 'Non-Customer Entity Data' feature that helps marketers to integrate both customer and non-customer entity data. VISIT WEBSITE Twilio provides, Twilio Segment, an AI-powered CDP, enabling marketers to streamline their personalised customer engagement journeys. It brings together clean, consented customer data for real-time insights with 450+ pre-built connectors. VISIT WEBSITE Syntasa provides data-ready CDP capabilities, equipping marketers with essential tools to prepare their customer data. It offers real-time sentiment analytics capabilities, helping enterprises derive behavioural insights from unified user profiles to foster hyper-personalised experiences. VISIT WEBSITE SAP is a company-wide customer data management platform, helping marketers improve engagement, conversion, and retention. It offers a genAI-powered data model, enabling enterprises to unify their B2B and B2C customers' profiles to reach their personalisation goals. VISIT WEBSITE Oracle is a global database management company, providing CDP solutions, under its flagship product: Oracle Unity. Its AI-powered models enable marketers to create hyper-personsalised campaigns with predictive insights by streamlining real-time customer data from heterogeneous sources. VISIT WEBSITE Growthloop is a composable CDP platform, allowing marketing and sales team to action their data at scale. It offers GrowthLoop Audience Builder, enabling marketers to initiate their lead generation functions. VISIT WEBSITE Adobe Experience Cloud offers a real-time CDP, letting users create high-value audience segments for B2C and B2B use cases across their marketing funnel. It follows a cookieless marketing approach to automatically unify customer data across various online and offline channels in real-time. VISIT WEBSITE ActionIQ is a composable CDP platform that offers audience segmentation, acquisition marketing, and Customer 360 capabilities. It integrates analytical tools, enabling marketers to collect and analyse their first-party customer data at scale. VISIT WEBSITE Zoho CRM leverages automation and comprehensive analytics to empower any sales team, fostering stronger customer loyalty. Ideal for both small businesses and enterprises, this software enables enhanced productivity and tailored solutions through predictive intelligence. VISIT WEBSITE Zendesk offers Zendesk Sell, an easy-to-deploy CRM platform that is simple to deploy and navigate, catering to businesses of any scale. Its mobile-friendly Sell app has the functionalities of geolocation, helping sales and marketing teams. Offering an all-in-one CRM platform, organisations can implement use cases like prospecting, engagement, lead generation and communication capabilities. VISIT WEBSITE SugarCRM is a global CRM software provider, helping marketing, sales, and service teams improve efficiency through automation, data, and intelligence in near real-time. It offers Sugar Market, an all-in-one marketing automation platform that helps marketers to automate their campaign with higher ROI. VISIT WEBSITE Salesforce is a one-stop sales and support CRM software that regularly updates customer records, tracks emails and calls, and creates organised support processes for quicker customer responses. Its simple and scalable infrastructure is ideal for businesses of all sizes. VISIT WEBSITE Pipedrive stands out with its emphasis on automation, tailorability, and seamless integration. Purposefully built to enhance the efficiency and productivity of sales professionals, this CRM solution has an intuitive setup and robust capabilities. It facilitates lead generation, comprehensive sales analytics, and seamless business expansion. VISIT WEBSITE Oracle NetSuite CRM, a component of Oracle's business software suite, is for all midsize and booming businesses that want a comprehensive, integrated CRM solution with ERP capabilities. Using it, customers and partners can directly interact with the platform, freeing the additional work load for their sales team. VISIT WEBSITE Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales represents a robust cloud-based CRM solution brimming with features such as pipeline assessment, relationship analytics, and conversational intelligence. It utilises AI-powered insights to provide actionable intelligence via predictive analytics, lead scoring and sentiment analysis. VISIT WEBSITE Less Annoying is a CRM software that utilises a straightforward search feature within its contact management system, making it easy to track contacts. It is ideal for small-sized businesses and offers a highly intuitive and user-friendly interface. VISIT WEBSITE Insightly offers CRM software solutions for enterprises looking to understand their audience data across various marketing functions. It integrates seamlessly with third-party apps, streamlining workflow automation, including bulk emailing and report generation. VISIT WEBSITE HubSpot's sleek dashboard with consolidated CRM tools simplify complex customer data, further transforming it into meaningful insights. Complementing typical CRM functionalities, HubSpot provides tailored options, including conversation intelligence and email monitoring. VISIT WEBSITE Apptivo delivers adaptable and web-based CRM solutions, enabling marketing and sales teams to streamline all customer service requirements across various devices and browsers. Despite its focused feature set, it encompasses over 65 interconnected applications alongside a robust sales pipeline management tool, ensuring efficient tracking of potential leads without any downtime. VISIT WEBSITE Sitecore offers composable cloud solutions with its flagship products, Sitecore Experience Platform(XP) and Sitecore Experience Manager (XM). They help marketers to overcome scalability challenges. Some of its features include intuitive visual editing, headless delivery, marketing automation, scalable personalisation, data and machine learning capabilities. VISIT WEBSITE Salesforce Experience Cloud is a platform that helps enterprises link clients, partners, and employees to securely exchange information and documents. Built on its Customer 360 platform, Salesforce's DXP ensures seamless integration with any solution in the Salesforce ecosystem. VISIT WEBSITE Oracle Cloud offers a comprehensive suite of platform-based marketing automation solutions for personalised B2B and B2C automation campaigns. Some of its featured products are Eloqua Marketing Automation, CrowdTwist Loyalty and Engagement, and Unity Customer Data Platform. VISIT WEBSITE Optimizely is a digital experience platform (DXP) provider that offers Optimizely One, an easy-to-use and fully integrated suite. It provides a single, unified workflow with thoughtfully embedded AI and machine-learning algorithms, accelerating work across the entire marketing lifecycle. VISIT WEBSITE OpenText offers a cloud-native, scalable platform for enterprises to streamline their marketing functions. It provides fully composable content management, digital asset management, creative workflows, personalisation, targeting and customer data technologies in one place, ensuring a holistic approach to B2B, B2E and B2C experiences. VISIT WEBSITE Neptune DXP is a PaaS(Platform-as-a-Service) provider, helping marketing teams build custom apps based on modular, reusable application building blocks. The company offers flexible environments to businesses across different verticals, further providing personalised digital solutions at scale. VISIT WEBSITE Magnolia is a composable DXP that comes with no-code connector packs and low-code micro-frameworks for third-party integrations. It also offers an open-source version alongside its commercial plans enabling enterprises to build tailored use cases. VISIT WEBSITE Liferay DXP helps marketers deliver personalised and connected digital experiences across a broad range of channels, including customer portals, websites, intranets, mobile apps, and connected devices. It offers intuitive CMS, user analytics, and site management tools that businesses need to launch, test and optimise digital experiences for faster go-to-market. VISIT WEBSITE Powered by IBM Consulting, IBM iX offers a composable DXP, providing a comprehensive solution to make enterprises' systems future-ready. Utilising its data-driven insights and intelligent workflows, marketers can design and deliver human-centred experiences across the customer lifecycle. VISIT WEBSITE HCL Digital Experience (DX), forms part of a wider HCL Customer Experience (CX) product portfolio, offering core capabilities such as content management, DAM, CDP called Signals, and low-code application development. It provides services in government, life sciences, insurance, financial services, and other verticals. VISIT WEBSITE Contentstack is a headless CMS and Composable Digital Experience Platform (DXP) solution provider that helps marketers gain a competitive edge. It recently launched into Google Cloud Marketplace, and is also available on Microsoft Azure and AWS. It seamlessly enables mid-market brands to adopt its omnichannel campaign engine to drive higher conversions and sales. VISIT WEBSITE Bloomreach Commerce Experience Cloud provides businesses an edge with its modular capabilities: Content Management System (CMS), Discovery features for search and merchandising optimisation, and Engagement tools such as Customer Data Platforms (CDP) for personalisation and analytics. VISIT WEBSITE Adobe Experience Cloud offers a comprehensive set of services specifically designed to address the day-to-day requirements for personalised customer experience at scale. Its platform helps manage different digital content and assets to improve customer satisfaction. Some of its products include Adobe Gen Studio, Experience Manager Sites, Real-time CDP, and Marketo Engage. VISIT WEBSITE Acquia offers DXP solutions, comprising of two main elements: Acquia Drupal Cloud and Acquia Marketing Cloud. It can be accessed in both platform-as-a-service (PaaS) and software-as-a-service (SaaS) with additional components such as Site Factory for multisite management, digital asset management (DAM), CDP, personalisation, and Campaign Studio. VISIT WEBSITE
Fashion United
01-05-2025
- Business
- Fashion United
Skechers' AI shop assistant is friendly, chatty—and watching what you wear
The physical store is not dead, but it is being reprogrammed. Skechers, the U.S. footwear company known less for fashion cachet than for functional comfort, is attempting a digital leap forward with the launch of Luna—an AI-powered retail assistant installed at its new flagship in Singapore's Punggol Coast Mall. Described as a 'personal stylist,' Luna uses a mix of speech-to-speech artificial intelligence and messaging integration to advise customers on what to buy, based on what they are wearing or browsing. Shoppers can interact with Luna via an in-store kiosk or continue the conversation later on Telegram—one of the more telling aspects of the rollout, signalling a shift in how brands hope to blur the boundaries between physical and digital commerce. 'As a comfort technology brand, harnessing new and innovative solutions to connect with our customers is part of our DNA,' said Irene Lee, senior general manager at Skechers Singapore. 'With the opening of our new store in Punggol Digital District, it enhances customers' retail journey with a unique, social, and interactive experience with Luna.' Developed by We Are Social Singapore, the initiative is more than just a gimmick tied to a store opening. It marks a growing retail interest in deploying AI agents not only as customer service tools but as data-gathering intermediaries—interfaces that can learn from shoppers' preferences in real time and potentially reshape inventory, merchandising, and marketing strategies accordingly. Indeed, Luna's conversational interface is not simply reactive. It collects and processes data with each interaction, using it to generate style suggestions and product matches. Manolis Perrakis, innovation director at We Are Social Singapore, positioned the system as part of a broader trend: 'The emergence of AI speech-to-speech technologies is powering an agentic AI revolution that forms the backbone of future consumer-facing systems.' This may be the real story. While the idea of a machine that suggests the right trainers to go with your jacket might appear convenient—or even charming—the underlying ambition is strategic. Retailers are no longer just selling shoes; they are building adaptive feedback loops with consumers. Luna's goal is not simply to assist, but to integrate: across in-store, mobile, and e-commerce channels, creating what Perrakis calls a 'seamless ecosystem.' The AI sales associate as data funnel This seamlessness has costs as well as benefits. For one, it elevates customer engagement at the potential expense of privacy. With AI-powered assistants learning in real time, brands may acquire more intimate behavioural insights than most shoppers realise—particularly if interactions shift to private messaging platforms like Telegram, where communication is perceived as more casual or secure. Moreover, the experience economy that underpins such activations still carries risk. AI agents like Luna may streamline decision-making, but they lack the serendipity and human improvisation that defines the best retail encounters. As retailers chase efficiency and personalisation, they may also need to guard against reducing fashion to a series of transactional micro-recommendations. There is also the question of scalability. While a sleek activation in a forward-thinking district like Punggol may create a buzz, integrating such systems across legacy retail infrastructure—often fragmented and not built with interoperability in mind—presents considerable challenges. The more sophisticated the AI, the more invisible and extensive the infrastructure required to support it. Still, the logic is clear. In a retail landscape increasingly defined by 'phygital' convergence, AI offers the potential to turn every touchpoint into a moment of brand engagement—and data collection. Whether customers experience this as helpful or invasive may determine how widely such systems are embraced. For now, Skechers is betting that the novelty of a chatty machine stylist—plus the comfort of its footwear—will be enough to entice. But what's certain is that with each new deployment, AI is not just entering the store. It is redefining what the store is for.
