The store that brought ‘real fashion’ to Singapore: influencer Mae Tan on Surrender, and her love of menswear
Dover Street Market’s opening was a watershed for fashion in Singapore, but Mae Tan’s store paved its way. The 23-year-old reflects on Surrender’s history, why Singaporeans don’t invest in fashion, and why a bricks-and-mortar presence matters
Despite its role as a global financial, and now even a diplomatic, centre, Singapore has always lagged behind other Asian cities – such as Hong Kong, Seoul, Tokyo and Shanghai – when it comes to fashion retailing.
Blame it on the constantly hot weather or the laid-back style of its denizens, but the city has yet to develop a strong fashion identity that can support a world-class shopping landscape. While there are plenty of malls, offering the top labels that you can find in major international hubs, multi-brand stores and independent boutiques are still hard to find.
In recent years, however, thanks to an influx of travellers from nearby countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei and Vietnam, and the government’s focus on increasing the city state’s soft power, things have started to change.
The arrival last year of Dover Street Market, the uber-cool emporium with branches in fashion capitals such as London, New York and Tokyo, was a watershed moment. Fashion insiders in Hong Kong still wonder why the boutique chain passed it over in favour of the Lion City. Until Dover Street Market opened, the only shop in Singapore that offered an assortment of niche luxury and streetwear labels was Surrender, on the shopping thoroughfare of Orchard Road.
Surrender started out as a small menswear boutique inside Singapore’s Raffles Hotel, offering preppy menswear labels such as Thom Browne and APC. About four years ago, it went through a rebranding under current creative manager Mae Tan, whose family acquired it from its founder.