The Curtains Go Up On A Rejuvenated Orchard Road

The S$40 million Orchard Road rejuvenation is now complete. Complemented by the shiny new facades of shopping malls such as Palais Renaissance, Paragon, Liat Towers and Centrepoint, shoppers are in for a rush of multi-sensory experiences as they enjoy the new Orchard Road complete with new international brands, a great range of F&B options as well as exciting events and entertainment.

Started in April 2008, the enhancement works, which covered the Tanglin, Orchard and Somerset zones, saw the repaving of the pedestrian malls and installation of co-ordinated street furniture. Cheery flower totems have been installed in the Tanglin zone and new public spaces have been created with the urban green rooms fronting ION Orchard to Ngee Ann City. Aside from new multi-functional lamp posts, Orchard Road now features tree up-lighting that showcases the street’s characteristic lush greenery after sundown. Ambient lighting also highlights the sleek new glass panels along the Orchard Zone. The ones perpendicular to the pedestrian mall are etched with designs of tropical plants and flora, in line with this zone’s Forest theme while the ones parallel to the pedestrian mall showcase the history of Orchard Road.

“We are thankful for the co-operation and understanding received from all the Orchard Road stakeholders affected by this project. We were able to complete this demanding project in a compressed time-frame of 10 months only because of the strong collaboration between all parties who understood the need to maintain Orchard Road’s competitive position as Singapore’s premier shopping street.” said Mr Andrew Phua, Director of Tourism Shopping and Dining, Destination Experience, Singapore Tourism Board who noted that the precinct sees seven million tourists annually.

Private property owners, encouraged by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), also took the opportunity to refurbish their developments along Orchard Road. Cuppage Terrace, Palais Renaissance and Paragon have completed refurbishment of their facades while Mandarin Gallery and Park hotel will finish works by this year and 2010 respectively. Existing malls like Ngee Ann City and Wisma Atria now feature new brands like Sephora as well as Nike’s largest flagship store in South-east Asia to enhance the shopping experience. Three new malls – Orchard Central, ION Orchard and 313@Somerset - will open by the end of 2009, introducing new flagship stores and international brands.

The Orchard Road Business Association (ORBA) is planning a series of events to promote and enhance one of Singapore’s most recognised icons – Orchard Road, kicking off with a launch event in May.

Chairman of ORBA, Mrs. May Sng said, "Through our stakeholders, we develop and implement programs and initiatives that preserve the differentiating aspects of Orchard Road from others. We're now in discussion with stakeholders to mark this significant point for Orchard Road with interesting merchant promotions and great experiences to encourage visitors to discover the 'new' Orchard Road."

Also on the calendar, will be a privately organized Audi Fashion Festival and the Great Singapore Sale which is starting on 29 May this year.

“In view of today’s challenging economic outlook, Orchard Road is a bright spark that offers visitors leisure and retail therapy. With the completion of the mall enhancement, STB will be working with the ORBA and other individual stakeholders to develop new initiatives and promotions throughout the year, such as the ‘2009 reasons to enjoy Singapore’ marketing campaign. Through the launch of new malls, iconic Orchard Road events such as Christmas in the Tropics and regular activities including Late Night Shopping, Dining and Entertainment, we hope Orchard Road will continue being the most-visited free-access attraction in Singapore and evolve to become one of the world’s top shopping streets.” said Mr Phua.