Latest news with #ThankYouFestival
New Paper
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New Paper
Cai fan merch label PointyRice calls out Uniqlo keychain's 'uncanny' likeness
Another small local brand is speaking up about Uniqlo Singapore's local food campaign. The Japanese retailer's UTme! Local Delights Collection, which consists of T-shirts featuring iconic Singaporean dishes, sparked buzz online recently for its resemblance to small local clothing brand Musoka Club's designs. The incident generated conversation about who owns the copyright to local food culture. Meanwhile, another player has entered the picture. Ms Caitanya "Cait" Tan is the founder and chief executive of local merchandise brand PointyRice. She has been fielding messages from followers about the similarities between her product and Uniqlo's gift-with-purchase, which she describes to The Straits Times as "too uncanny". As part of Uniqlo's Thank You Festival celebrations, which ran till May 29, customers who spent $100 and above in-store at Orchard Central and Jewel Changi Airport received a customisable Mixed Rice Keychain. And they could pick little acrylic "dishes" to fit inside a plate-shaped keychain. Uniqlo's customisable Mixed Rice Keychain, a gift-with-purchase as part of its Thank You Festival. PHOTOS: UNIQLO PointyRice ( currently retails stickers of mixed rice dishes that customers purchase individually to layer and customise onto a plate sticker. Dishes start at $2.50 a sticker, while a plate and rice are both priced at $2.50. When Uniqlo teased its Mixed Rice Keychain in May, followers asked Ms Tan if she was working with the Japanese retailer. She took to Instagram (@caitofalltraits) on May 19 to clear the air. It is the first retail brand started by the 38-year-old, whose many hats include being an actress, voiceover artist, host and director of boutique agency AllTraits, under which PointyRice operates. PointyRice founder Caitanya Tan at her pop-up cai fan stall in April. PHOTO: POINTYRICE She created PointyRice as a "lifelong Singaporean identity-building project" for locals to "celebrate hawker dishes we grew up with that don't get enough recognition". After conceptualising the brand in November 2024, she launched PointyRice on April 5 with a pop-up at Lyf Farrer Park. The set-up featured a table with trays of stickers portraying different types of cai fan dishes, which customers could choose to customise their "plates". Ms Tan and her team of three played hawkers serving their customers. She hired her cousin, a fellow actress, to act as a grumpy cai fan auntie - "to put the 'fun' in cai fan". A six-minute video she posted of the event garnered more than 200,000 views on Instagram and TikTok combined. She believes Uniqlo Singapore would have seen the video. "I cannot say they copied me, but the internet got mad for me. I've done a lot of research - I started with cai fan because no one had done the concept in this way, and I understand why now. It's not an easy project. It's extremely difficult to design each digital asset, then produce it as a physical product that people can customise themselves; and the ability to layer." Screenshots of comments on Uniqlo Singapore's Instagram account. PHOTOS: UNIQLOSG/INSTAGRAM She says she had reached out to Uniqlo Singapore a month before to collaborate, but did not hear back. She has worked with the brand on past campaigns in the capacity of a content creator. Within 40 minutes of her posting her May 19 video on Instagram, a representative from the brand reached out. Uniqlo denied taking inspiration from PointyRice or mimicking her designs. The brand also invited her to its Thank You Festival media event, and raised the possibility of a future collaboration. But it was "too coincidental", says Ms Tan. "I just wanted them to acknowledge it." She believes the biggest similarity was the store concept and layout. "It's not just cai fan, it's bringing cai fan to a physical experience. Effort went into the detailed designs, sourcing multiple failed samples and hand-cutting 28,000 stickers just to set up an experience that is now going to be considered by the masses as an imitation of Uniqlo's campaign. PointyRice's pop-up cai fan stall in April. PHOTO: POINTYRICE "A creative's currency is her creativity and ideas. It's not the keychain I'm sad about. It's the concept of the pop-up that I'd put research and finances into that hurt me the most." In response to queries from ST, a Uniqlo spokesperson says: "Uniqlo is aware of an ongoing conversation and values all perspectives shared. "As is our standard practice, Uniqlo commenced planning for its customisable mixed rice keychain several months prior to its launch through our Thank You Festival. This item is part of a global trend of customisable accessories and follows other customisable gift items created by Uniqlo in Singapore in previous years." The spokesperson adds that Uniqlo did not receive any collaboration proposals from local artists or illustrators related to the cai fan customisation. PointyRice's long-term plan is to produce merchandise, says Ms Tan, who is working on expanding her products to nasi padang and nasi kandar. Her ultimate vision is to have a physical space recreating a hawker centre, with stalls selling various delicacies in sticker form. She says: "People are going to say, 'How to IP cai fan? It's for everybody.' But a little credit wouldn't hurt anyone. We're all Singaporean."
Straits Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
Cai fan merch label PointyRice calls out Uniqlo keychain's ‘uncanny' likeness
Uniqlo's customisable Mixed Rice Keychain, a gift-with-purchase as part of its Thank You Festival. PHOTO: UNIQLO SINGAPORE – More small local brands are speaking up about Uniqlo Singapore's local food campaign. The Japanese retailer's UTme! Local Delights Collection, which consists of T-shirts featuring iconic Singaporean dishes, sparked buzz online recently, for its resemblance to small local clothing brand Musoka Club's designs. The incident generated conversation about who owns the copyright to local food culture. Meanwhile, another player has entered the picture. Ms Caitanya 'Cait' Tan is the founder and chief executive of local merchandise brand PointyRice. She has been fielding messages from followers about the similarities between her product and Uniqlo's gift-with-purchase, which she describes to The Straits Times as 'too uncanny'. As part of Uniqlo's Thank You Festival celebrations, which ran till May 29, customers who spent $100 and above in-store at Orchard Central and Jewel Changi Airport received a customisable Mixed Rice Keychain. And they could pick little acrylic 'dishes' to fit inside a plate-shaped keychain. PointyRice ( currently retails stickers of mixed rice dishes that customers purchase individually to layer and customise onto a plate sticker. Dishes start at $2.50 a sticker, while a plate and rice are both priced at $2.50. Uniqlo's Mixed Rice Keychain gift-with-purchase. PHOTO: UNIQLO When Uniqlo teased its Mixed Rice Keychain in May, followers asked Ms Tan if she was working with the Japanese retailer. She took to Instagram (@caitofalltraits) on May 19 to clear the air. It is the first retail brand started by the 38-year-old, whose many hats include being an actress, voice-over artist, host and director of boutique agency AllTraits , under which PointyRice operates. She created Pointy Rice as a 'lifelong Singaporean identity-building project' for locals to 'celebrate hawker dishes we grew up with that don't get enough recognition'. After conceptualising the brand in November 2024, she launched PointyRice on April 5 with a pop-up at Lyf Farrer Park. The set-up featured a table with trays of stickers portraying different types of cai fan dishes, which customers could choose to customise their 'plates'. Ms Tan and her team of three played hawkers serving their customers. She hired her cousin, a fellow actress, to act as a grumpy cai fan auntie – 'to put the 'fun' in cai fan'. A six-minute video she posted of the event garnered more than 200,000 views on Instagram and TikTok combined. She believes Uniqlo Singapore would have seen the video. 'I cannot say they copied me, but the internet got mad for me. I've done a lot of research – I started with cai fan because no one had done the concept in this way, and I understand why now. It's not an easy project. It's extremely difficult to design each digital asset, then produce it as a physical product that people can customise themselves; and the ability to layer.' Screenshot of comments on Uniqlo Singapore's Instagram account. PHOTO: UNIQLOSG/INSTAGRAM Screenshot of comments on Uniqlo Singapore's Instagram account. PHOTO: UNIQLOSG/INSTAGRAM She says she had reached out to Uniqlo Singapore a month before to collaborate, but did not hear back. She has worked with the brand on past campaigns in the capacity of a content creator. Within 40 minutes of her posting her May 19 video on Instagram, a representative from the brand reached out. Uniqlo denied taking inspiration from PointyRice or mimicking her designs. The brand also invited her to its Thank You Festival media event, and raised the possibility of a future collaboration. But it was 'too coincidental', says Ms Tan. 'I just wanted them to acknowledge it.' She believes the biggest similarity was the store concept and layout. 'It's not just cai fan, it's bringing cai fan to a physical experience. Effort went into the detailed designs, sourcing multiple failed samples and hand-cutting 28,000 stickers just to set up an experience that is now going to be considered by the masses as an imitation of Uniqlo's campaign. 'A creative's currency is her creativity and ideas. It's not the keychain I'm sad about. It's the concept of the pop-up that I'd put research and finances into that hurt me the most.' PointyRice's pop-up stall in April, featuring cai fan 'dishes' customers could use to customise their orders. (*PLS COLLAGE w/ pic below) PHOTO: POINTYRICE Uniqlo Singapore's Mixed Rice Keychain cai fan stall concept at Ion Orchard. ST PHOTO: AMANDA CHAI In response to queries from ST, a Uniqlo spokesperson says: 'Uniqlo is aware of an ongoing conversation, and values all perspectives shared. 'As is our standard practice, Uniqlo commenced planning for its customisable mixed rice keychain several months prior to its launch through our Thank You Festival. This item is part of a global trend of customisable accessories, and follows other customisable gift items created by Uniqlo in Singapore in previous years.' The spokesperson adds that Uniqlo did not receive any collaboration proposals from local artists or illustrators related to the cai fan customisation. PointyRice's long-term plan is to produce merchandise, says Ms Tan, who is working on expanding her products to nasi padang and nasi kandar. Her ultimate vision is to have a physical space recreating a hawker centre, with stalls selling various delicacies in sticker form. She says: 'People are going to say, 'How to IP cai fan? It's for everybody.' But a little credit wouldn't hurt anyone. We're all Singaporean.' Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
AsiaOne
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- AsiaOne
Uniqlo's local food tees draw buzz for looking ‘eerily similar' to Singapore brand Musoka Club, Lifestyle News
SINGAPORE — Japanese fashion retailer Uniqlo's latest campaign spotlighting Singapore's food heritage is getting buzz — but not for the right reasons. Its new UTme! Local Delights Collection, a limited series of T-shirts released on last Friday (May 23) as part of the brand's annual Thank You Festival, has drawn comparisons online to small local clothing brand Musoka Club ( Uniqlo's series features designs inspired by iconic local dishes in five prints depicting kaya toast, chilli crab, chicken rice, laksa and bak kut teh. The shirts, priced at $29.90 each, were designed in collaboration with local artists Tiffany Lovage and Kenneth Seow. They are sold only at selected Uniqlo stores, including in Orchard Central and Jewel Changi Airport. They caught the attention of Musoka Club's founder, who wishes to be known only as Ms Elaine, a week ago when Uniqlo started teasing its series on Instagram. She began receiving messages from customers asking if the series was Musoka Club's collaboration with Uniqlo. Some followers left comments on Uniqlo Singapore's Instagram, saying the designs look 'eerily similar' and remarking that 'imitation is the sincerest form of flattery but copying without credit is not — please respect original work'. Musoka Club's Dress Code: Kopitiam Series collection was launched in July 2023 for Singapore's 58th birthday, and featured the same five local dishes as well as a sixth, nasi lemak. The T-shirts are priced at $59 each. Ms Elaine tells The Straits Times that the resemblance was 'too similar' for her to stay silent. Apart from the choice of dishes, she cites specific design elements including centralised food illustrations, use of descriptive arrows for each ingredient, retro-styled food titles and short descriptions at the bottom of the T-shirt as uncanny similarities. The 29-year-old, who founded Musoka Club in 2020, says: 'At first, we didn't dare to reply or even like the comments because we didn't want to come off as saying Uniqlo copied us. But the similarities were so big that people started assuming it was a collaboration.' As the post gained traction, she dug deeper and found that Mr Seow follows Musoka Club on Instagram. 'It's been both heartwarming and painful to watch the public speak up on our behalf while we remained quiet,' she adds. Started as a side hustle during the Covid-19 pandemic, Musoka Club is today run by a team of three, including a part-time illustrator. Its Kaya Toast Club shirt began as a joke, but became its most successful launch and is the design most new customers start with. The label has since collaborated with companies including Starbucks, Shihlin Taiwan Street Snacks and Sapporo to create merchandise T-shirts. Acknowledging that it is hard to claim ownership on design inspiration, Ms Elaine says: 'We know no one owns Singapore's food culture — it belongs to all of us. But when a bigger brand puts out something so visually close to ours, it feels like watching your proudest work get mistaken for someone else's." She had let slide other instances in the past when smaller brands or university committees designed T-shirts in a similar style. On one occasion, she received backlash for issuing a statement against a new brand whose similar shirts had caused confusion among fans, which left her 'burned' and wary about speaking out again. 'We understand that it could be a style that's similar in inspiration. But when a global brand does something this similar, our original work risks looking like the copy, and customers will think we're the ones chasing trends. We wanted to show that we didn't copy someone else.' As Musoka Club does not have loud branding on its shirts, 'it's easy for our customers to be misled to thinking it's an extension of our collection that we did some time back', she adds, expressing concern that Uniqlo's lower prices may lead people to think that hers are not worth paying for. 'And because they're a global brand, they'll always reach a wider audience first.' In response to queries from ST, a spokesperson for Uniqlo Singapore says in a statement: 'We are aware of the recent conversations surrounding this initiative. We respect the dialogue it has sparked and remain committed to fostering open, thoughtful engagement within our creative community.' The spokesperson adds: 'Uniqlo has proudly supported local since 2009, with a deep commitment to connecting meaningfully with our community. Our latest UTme! Local Delights Collection was created in celebration of Singapore's vibrant food culture, together with home-grown artists and beloved local food brands. 'Food has long been part of our cultural storytelling. For example, in 2017 and 2020, we also highlighted local favourites such as chicken rice, laksa, nasi lemak, kaya toast and kopi and hotpot in our UTme! collection, as a tribute to everyday Singaporean experiences.' Ms Elaine emphasises that her intention is not to level accusations of copyright infringement against Uniqlo, but to safeguard Musoka Club's future. 'Once a design is mass-produced by a global brand, the design will feel expired. We can't use it again without feeling like we copied them. We have plans to launch other food series using the same template. But now, the first impression people – especially Uniqlo's customers – will get would be that we're jumping onto the trend. 'To us, it's not just a design because it's our No. 1 bestseller; it's our identity. It feels like we lost that special thing we used to have.' [[nid:718421]] This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.
Straits Times
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
Uniqlo's local food tees draw buzz for looking ‘eerily similar' to Singapore brand Musoka Club
SINGAPORE - Japanese fashion retailer Uniqlo's latest campaign spotlighting Singapore's food heritage is getting buzz – but not for the right reasons. Its new UTme! Local Delights Collection, a limited series of T-shirts released on May 23 as part of the brand's annual Thank You Festival, has drawn comparisons online to small local clothing brand Musoka Club ( Uniqlo's series features designs inspired by iconic local dishes, in five prints depicting kaya toast, chilli crab, chicken rice, laksa and bak kut teh. The shirts, priced at $29.90 each, were designed in collaboration with local artists Tiffany Lovage and Kenneth Seow, and are sold only at selected Uniqlo stores including in Orchard Central and Jewel Changi Airport. They caught the attention of Musoka Club's founder, who wishes to be known only as Ms Elaine, a week ago when Uniqlo first started teasing its series on Instagram. She began receiving messages from customers asking if the series was Musoka Club's collaboration with Uniqlo. Some followers left comments on Uniqlo's Instagram, saying the designs look 'eerily similar' and remarking that 'imitation is the sincerest form of flattery but copying without credit is not - please respect original work'. Musoka Club's Dress Code: Kopitiam Series collection was launched in July 2023 for Singapore's 58th birthday, and featured the same five local dishes as well as a sixth, nasi lemak. The T-shirts are priced at $59 each. Musoka Club's The Chilli Crab Club T-shirt (left) and Uniqlo's UTme! Local Delights Collection - Chilli Crab tee. PHOTOS: MUSOKA CLUB, UNIQLO Ms Elaine tells The Straits Times that the resemblance was 'too similar' for her to stay silent. Apart from the choice of dishes, she cites specific design elements including centralised food illustrations, use of descriptive arrows for each ingredient, retro-styled food titles and short descriptions at the bottom of the T-shirt as uncanny similarities. The 30-year-old, who founded Musoka Club in 2020, says: 'At first, we didn't dare to reply or even like the comments, because we didn't want to come off as saying Uniqlo copied us. But that was until the similarities were so big that people started assuming it was a collaboration.' As the post gained traction, she dug deeper and found that Mr Seow follows Musoka Club on Instagram. 'It's been both heartwarming and painful to watch the public speak up on our behalf while we remained quiet,' she adds. A screenshot of comments defending Musoka Club on Uniqlo's Instagram. PHOTO: UNIQLOSG/INSTAGRAM Started as a side hustle during the Covid-19 pandemic, Musoka Club is today run by a team of three, including a part-time illustrator. Its Kaya Toast Club shirt began as a joke, but became its most successful launch and is the design every new customer starts with. The label has since collaborated with companies including Starbucks, Shihlin Taiwan Street Snacks and Sapporo to create merchandise T-shirts. Acknowledging that it is hard to claim ownership on design inspiration, Ms Elaine says: 'We know no one owns Singapore's food culture – it belongs to all of us. But when a bigger brand puts out something so visually close to ours, it feels like watching your proudest work get mistaken for someone else's.' Musoka Club's The Bak Kut Teh Club T-shirt (left) and Uniqlo's UTme! Local Delights Collection - Song Fa Bah Kut Teh tee. PHOTOS: MUSOKA CLUB, UNIQLO She had let slide other instances in the past when smaller brands or university committees designed T-shirts in a similar style. On one occasion, she received backlash for issuing a statement against a new brand whose similar shirts had caused confusion among fans, which left her 'burned' and wary about speaking out again. 'We understand that it could be a style that's similar in inspiration. But when a global brand does something this similar, our original work risks looking like the copy, and customers will think we're the ones chasing trends. We wanted to show that we didn't copy someone else.' As Musoka Club does not have loud branding on its shirts, 'it's easy for our customers to be misled to thinking it's an extension of our collection that we did some time back', she adds, expressing concern that Uniqlo's lower prices may lead people to think that hers are not worth paying for. 'And because they're a global brand, they'll always reach a wider audience first.' A comparison of Uniqlo and Musoka Club's shirts provided by Musoka Club, who neutralised the colours in Uniqlo's design for clearer visual comparison. PHOTO: MUSOKA CLUB In response to queries from ST, a spokesperson from Uniqlo says in a statement: 'We are aware of the recent conversations surrounding this initiative. We respect the dialogue it has sparked and remain committed to fostering open, thoughtful engagement within our creative community.' The spokesperson adds: 'Uniqlo has proudly supported local since 2009, with a deep commitment to connecting meaningfully with our community. Our latest UTme! Local Delights Collection was created in celebration of Singapore's vibrant food culture, together with home-grown artists and beloved local food brands. 'Food has long been part of our cultural storytelling. For example, in 2017 and in 2020, we also highlighted local favourites such as chicken rice, laksa, nasi lemak, kaya toast and kopi and hotpot in our UTme! collection, as a tribute to everyday Singaporean experiences.' Ms Elaine emphasises that her intention is not to level accusations of copyright infringement against Uniqlo, but to safeguard Musoka Club's future. A comparison of Uniqlo and Musoka Club's shirts provided by Musoka Club, who neutralised the colours in Uniqlo's design for clearer visual comparison. PHOTO: MUSOKA CLUB 'Once a design is mass produced by a global brand, the design will feel expired. We can't use it again without feeling like we copied them. We have plans to launch other food series using the same template. But now, the first impression people - especially Uniqlo's customers - will get would be that we're jumping onto the trend. 'To us, it's not just a design, because it's our number one bestseller; it's our identity. It feels like we lost that special thing we used to have.' Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
