Bynd Artisan Opens Fourth Store in Takashimaya Shopping Centre
Bynd Artisan starts a new chapter with its own standalone space in Orchard Road. Winner of Singapore Tourism Awards—Best Shopping Experience 2017 and cited by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in his May Day Rally Speech as a Singapore company that inspires local brands to continuously innovate, the move into the heart of the city encompasses the brand’s desire to share its experiential concept with a wider audience.
Located within Takashimaya Shopping Centre, the corner unit at Basement 1 of the mall is designed by creative agency &Larry.
Elements of copper along with wood elements are integrated into the layout to retain the signature style of Bynd Artisan’s experiential concept. The use of integrated lighting on the shelves helps to illuminate Bynd Artisan’s leather products and add warmth to the area. Apart from the aesthetics, the smell of leather entices one’s senses and draws one to walk in for a new shopping experience.
The key touch point here is the craftsmen station, where one can watch their leather items of choice being personalised with names, initials or words that convey meaningful messages to intended recipients.
Being able to personalise gifts on the spot encourages interaction between the craftsmen and customers, engaging them in the design and creation process.
Launched with this new space are two new offerings that are available only at Bynd Artisan Takashimaya SC:
- Engraved brass letter types in script font that allows customers to monogram their leather goods with calligraphic style
- Limited edition wallets hand painted by marquage artist Cherin Sim
It is through conversations created and stories shared that further emphasises Bynd Artisan’s brand ethos, “Something’s Worth Sharing”.
Cherin Sim X Bynd Artisan Vintage Spitfire Shark-Face Series
Building on the success of the Cherin Sim for Bynd Artisan hand-painted camouflage print on Bynd Artisan’s leather products and Monogram workshops, Winnie Chan (Founder of Bynd Artisan) commissioned Cherin to create limited edition leather goods for Bynd Artisan’s new atelier in Takashimaya SC. In today’s fast-paced society where change is constant and luxury goods have become a commodity, a unique product can form one’s identity while making a statement on a personality or expressing a certain style.
Understanding the hypebeast generation and their obsession with cult brands, Cherin uses Bynd Artisan’s wallets as a blank canvas to create these one of a kind hand painted and symmetrical artwork that acknowledges how streetwear is being used by the current generation to express themselves. Drawing inspiration from a historic nose art that is symbolic and vital in communicating psychological warfare back in World War II, Cherin utilises imported Angelus leather paint to embellish the iconic Flying Tigers Shark-Face military insignia onto three Compact Wallets and three Long Wallets in Gold, Silver and Red, each collection featuring one piece per colour. With each piece being uniquely different, she ingeniously transforms these wallets into statement pieces through a bold choice of colours that stand out against the stark hue of black, further accentuating every piece’s individuality.
The complexity of this artwork further emphasises and reflects Cherin’s attention to detail – each piece requiring over a week’s worth of time to complete. Although the tradition of bedecking and personalising war crafts has faded with the passing of time, memories remain and stories are retold through various expressions of the art form – analogous to the creation of these limited edition vintage pieces through the elevation of Bynd Artisan’s classic leather products. Just like how Bynd Artisan is a modern reinterpretation of Winnie’s grandfather’s book-binding business, this collection is an apt depiction of inspirational sharing with the current generation.
Through this collaboration, Winnie aims to take a contemporary approach by adding bold iconic pieces into Bynd Artisan’s mix of neutrals and dark hued tones which are otherwise what the brand is recognised for. These accented pieces not only provide visual stimulation to the current collection of solid colours but also build onto the brand’s extensive portfolio of lifestyle products.
Other Bynd Artisan outlets are located at Holland Village (Jalan Merah Saga), Tangs and Pedder on Scotts.