On any given day, you are likely to come across at least one person toting a bag from The Paper Bunny. The brand’s Puffer series, famed for inciting six-hour-long queues outside its stores, has become synonymous with the “Singapore girl”—at least that is the running sentiment on TikTok. But the phenomenon is not limited to Singapore either. Personal shoppers from Indonesia and Malaysia alike snap up popular new drops in-store for customers on buying frenzies.

Once a stationery brand, The Paper Bunny has reinvented itself dramatically. Mirroring the journey of its co-founder Jaime Lee, it has grown exponentially from its modest beginnings to a fixture in the lifestyle domain.

It has been a decade since Lee left a cushy law career—with limited design experience then—to launch her stationery brand. But she had harboured a creative streak since she was a child. “I’ve always loved creating things for others and making things look good. I used to hand-make elaborate cards for my loved ones, but I would get bored of folding and sticking over and over again,” she recalls.

Despite this, her passion was unyielding. In 2010, this creative urge eventually reared its head when a friend asked her to design a wedding invite. “I didn’t know what graphic design was at all. She got her friend to teach me how to use basic software.” Lee thoroughly enjoyed the process and was amazed by the benefits of graphic design. “I could design something that was still my own work, and it could reach many more people,” she says.

Lee went on to design her own invitations for her wedding. Understanding that she needed more time to explore her passion, Lee decided to leave practice, citing its demanding hours. “I took on an in-house role at a commodities company instead so that I could explore my curiosity during the evenings.”

To further her skills, she took night classes in graphic design at Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. This education led her to start designing for clients beyond her personal network. Her foray began with wedding designs, and gradually expanded into custom stationery. “That’s how I started. But I felt this great desire to create pieces that I could use in my own everyday life. I wanted to do something that wasn’t just about brides.” Lee then decided to create everyday stationery.

She made the bold decision to venture into e-commerce, a daunting move considering the landscape back then. “Ten years ago, there was very little e-commerce. It was such a grey area. The learning curve was steep,” says Lee.

This push to launch the brand’s presence coincided with a pop-up event they had signed up for, which put them under immense pressure. The experience was overwhelming, with sleepless nights spent setting up the website and navigating unfamiliar aspects like shipping and logistics. Everything about this new world was completely foreign to her, making the entire process a significant learning experience.

The brand would go on to create products like notebooks, greeting cards and even iPhone cases. Lee amassed an impressive Instagram following, and was famously dubbed a “flatlay queen” by Australian fashion influencer Nicole Warne (once known as @garypeppergirl) for her pictures that featured the brand’s products.

As The Paper Bunny grew, Lee observed a shift in customer interests, which aligned with the brand’s core values and design philosophy rather than the specific materials used. “It became apparent that it wasn’t so much about the medium, whether it’s paper or fabric. They wanted more products or pieces that had the same heart, design principles, and storytelling.”

Today, The Paper Bunny’s diverse product range spans from bags and clothing to tableware. Lee points out the brand’s unique flexibility, stating, “There’s a beauty in that we’re not limited by a certain type of product. We’re not a clothing brand or a bag brand. We have the privilege of being able to add anything to our repertoire, as long as we create pieces that are functional and aesthetic. That has kept us in good stead,” she shares.

Read the full story here.

E Ran may own a Japanese restaurant empire in Beijing, which was established in 2011 when he opened the first ever Sushi Zen—but little is known about this Chinese sushi chef on this side of the world. Despite quietly establishing a presence in Singapore last July with a Sushi Zen outpost, his latest high-end sushiya situated in a clandestine enclave within Keong Saik, he was elusive. Operating sans extravagant marketing efforts, Sushi Zen cultivated a discerning clientele eager to indulge in an opulent dining experience.

When we first spoke to Ran, the self-starter confessed that, at the age of 17, he was “not interested in hitting the books and never thought once of being a chef”. However, after much persuasion from his parents to go learn a skill, he managed to secure a spot in a culinary programme offered by Japanese hotel chain New Otani in Beijing. He recalls: “That was 1995, everyone wanted to associate themselves with a prestigious international name brand. These hotel jobs were often glamourised for their attractive compensation packages and most famous restaurants were part of hotels too.” Seven years later, the then-24-year-old met with a crossroads: to pursue a former education at a university or move to Japan (Tokyo, specifically) to hone his Edomae sushi-making skills. Not wanting to let his experience go to waste, he went with the latter. 

Unsurprisingly, the language barrier posed his most formidable challenge. “One just needs time and practice to learn the language. After conquering that, other things like mastering cooking techniques will fall into place,” he assures. Japanese philosophy, on the other hand, can be extremely sophisticated. “China’s culture is heavily diffused into Japan—and even Korea and Vietnam—especially during the Tang dynasty,” expounds Ran, highlighting his relatively easier understanding of Japanese cultural philosophies and aesthetics compared to his Western counterparts. “These influences persist today: Chinese characters appearing in Japanese literature, the adoption of chopsticks in Japan, and even extending to renowned art forms such as ikebana and tea ceremonies.”
 
In 2007, he returned to China to work for a joint Chinese-Japanese restaurant group. Over the next four years, he was fortunate to be acquainted with his clients and suppliers and most of them offered guidance to fuel his entrepreneurial ambitions. This sparked him to want to become a chef-owner where one has freedom and control over an entire restaurant operation. In 2011, he finally unveiled Sushi Zen, his inaugural restaurant in Beijing. Finding a location wasn’t all a bed of roses though.

Left without a choice, he ventured to the heartlands and found a humble shop in a hutong (ancient alleyway) to serve up Edomae-style sushi. Thanks to the influence of Chinese social media Weibo and WeChat, the restaurant quickly captivated the likes of wealthy gourmands in search of high-quality Japanese Edomae sushi in Beijing. What began as a two-person operation rapidly expanded into a premium Japanese restaurant empire, reaching a pinnacle of eight Japanese-themed restaurants in the portfolio by 2020—think izakaya, sukiyaki, tempura, Japanese hot pot and à la carte concepts. Ran declares: “We’ve never prioritised marketing. Throughout the years, none of my concepts in China have employed marketing services, and Sushi Zen is no exception.”

When the pandemic struck, China imposed strict restrictions where dine-ins were rendered impossible. By 2022, many restaurants folded, and Ran wasn’t exempt; he was strong-armed to shut down a couple of his restaurants in Beijing. “Initially, I was looking to Shanghai to expand. However, my friends residing in Singapore persuaded me to explore this opportunity,” shares Ran. His first visit to Singapore took place in October 2022 where he was particularly impressed with the overall safety and governance which he says “is good for business”. He also witnessed how the city-state bounced back quickly after the pandemic as compared to neighbouring Asian countries or even Europe for instance. Over the following six months, alongside a long-time business partner and investor who handles everything outside the kitchen, the Singaporean outpost of Sushi Zen was inaugurated.

What might be deemed as a leap of faith, this overseas venture prompted Ran to relocate his entire family from Beijing to Singapore, focusing all his attention on the new endeavour. “The decision to leave my four remaining restaurants behind didn’t come easy but I trust the foundations of the business built over the past 13 years and the talents that I have nurtured to continue to prosper,” he explains. At the Singaporean outpost, it hosts a select—and exclusive—audience of eight over lunch and dinner each day. Behind the smooth hinoki wood counter, Ran showcases his Edomae-sushi-making chops utilising ultra-premium seasonal ingredients from Japan, expressed in his own unique flair.

Read full story here.

To the uninitiated, a feng shui master’s calculated manoeuvring of a protractor over detailed floor plans might seem mystical, obscure and superstitious—as might crystals, amulets and wind chimes. But the feng shui and ba zi masters of today want you to know that the opposite is true. 

What even is feng shui and ba zi? According to Paul Kek and Renaye Chan, the co‑founders of consultancy group Alchemy International Advisory, feng shui, literally “wind water” in Mandarin, “harmonises individuals with their environment through the arrangement of spaces”. The result is the enhancement of “positive energy flow and well‑being”.

Meanwhile, in ba zi, the eight characters derived from one’s birth year, month, day and hour can “reveal an individual’s innate personality, health conditions, family ties, romantic relationships and luck cycles in life”, says Venus Wang‑Lysiak, a senior branch director at real estate agency Propnex who also offers ba zi consultations, talks and lectures. 

One would imagine that the scrutiny of modern scepticism has relegated Chinese metaphysics to the annals of your grandparents’ memories, but no. Just ask the hordes of luxury brands, tech start‑ups, lawyers, businessmen, celebrities and more who flock to feng shui and ba zi masters in search of business and relationship advice. At Way Fengshui Group, one of the most prominent feng shui consultancy services in Singapore founded in 1984, 70‑year‑old Grand Master Tan Khoon Yong commands crowds of nearly a thousand at his lectures, a feat that speaks to the persistent popularity of this ancient practice—one that hides in plain sight, organising our relationships with our spaces in ways we do not see. 

But first, to set the record straight: feng shui is not religious or supernatural. “It’s a science,” insists Alvin Sai, the 43‑year‑old master who founded MZ Fengshui Mastery in 2005. He points towards how the principles of feng shui rely on the connection and relationship of the magnetic fields possessed by objects and people. Nor is ba zi a hoax. In Wang‑Lysiak’s words, the calculation of one’s ba zi is an “ancient mathematical formula” that can “surface personality traits or behaviours that had previously gone unnoticed”.

Of course, if feng shui and ba zi are held to the same level of rigour and falsifiability that the natural sciences are held to today, it would be easy to dismiss them as pseudoscience. Nevertheless, there is a place for Chinese metaphysics as a valuable source of cultural knowledge that eludes ethnic or religious boundaries. 

So do feng shui and ba zi really work? Kek and Chan, who work with private individuals and corporate clients, including Chanel, Club Med and DBS Bank, recall stories of feng shui audits on clients struggling to conceive. Shortly after their advice, they received news of successful conceptions. Sai, meanwhile, remembers helping a small‑business owner, who had given up on feng shui after consulting three other masters to no avail. But after his audit, the business improved. On why the other three masters failed to turn his client’s fortunes, Sai posits that it could be that they practise different classical schools of thought, which may not have accounted for modern realities. 

For Wang‑Lysiak, it was a feng shui master who pushed her to success. She had originally planned to pursue a career in fashion and design, but the master persuaded her to go into real estate instead after reading her chart. The career switch brought out the best of her skills, and she was rewarded with a litany of awards and her first million by age 25. If ba zi had given her this much, it is perhaps no surprise that after the pivotal moment of her grandmother’s passing, she redirected her focus to “helping people navigate life through astrology, rather than make lucrative gains flipping houses”. 

The masters are quick to point out, however, that feng shui and ba zi are not magical fixes. “[Feng shui] is about creating a balanced and conducive space rather than relying on supernatural interventions,” Kek and Chan say. Similarly, after analysing one’s luck cycle in a ba zi reading, Sai says that individuals must continue to work hard to counteract any bad luck. 

As for the profile of clients, you can find almost every type of person across every stratum of society, such as private individuals looking for property advice or solutions to family conflicts, companies configuring their office spaces and entrepreneurs seeking business advice. Word‑of‑mouth recommendations continue to play an important role in landing new clients, both local and foreign, across the board—which is why Kek and Chan’s consultancy business remains popular even without extensive marketing efforts. 

Read full story here.

Reimagining a six-bedroom residence at Tomlinson Heights as a timeless home with elevated touches and considerations for wellness and relaxation—this formed the basis of the design brief handed to Miaja Design Group by the homeowners. Having seen the firm’s portfolio, the clients were drawn to its design approach and the overall mood and feel of its residential projects, which was precisely what they wanted to express in their new home. The result is an elegant rendition of what ensues when purpose meets aesthetics: a sophisticated and inviting home with a sense of wellness at its heart.

“I believe they wanted the ‘Miaja style’ right from the beginning: comfort, elegance, and an atmosphere that is refined, yet not contrived,” says company founder and lead designer Isabelle Miaja of her clients’ key considerations. “Their previous home was a beautiful landed house that suited their lifestyle at that moment in time. They wanted a stylish new place in which they could worry less about children running around, where the beautiful views of the city were left unobstructed, the breezes flowed freely, and each object was purposely chosen so as not to crowd the spaces.”

Miaja describes Tomlinson Heights as a well-laid-out building that takes full advantage of its sweeping views, natural light, and airflow. For this reason, the designer did not have to alter the apartment’s layout, focusing instead on augmenting the sense of comfort and elegance already afforded by the architectural shell. She also spent much time with the client discussing ways to achieve the perfect balance between beauty and functionality.

Some of the occupants’ more specific requirements were zones for wellness, with some emphasis on greenery. As such, the balcony’s yoga corner was a must—bringing nature up to the 18th floor of a high-rise building by creating a garden also added a sense of familiarity, as per the clients’ previous landed property. This yoga corner was further enhanced with a mural which, together with the green wall, opens up to the spectacular view, providing the perfect spot for stretching and meditation.

Likewise, spaces to accommodate the occupants’ hobbies and lifestyles were also taken into account. “A kitchen that catered to their love of cooking and their art collection, which was brought over from their previous home, needed to be well thought through,” says Miaja. “The children’s bedrooms needed to give them a warm welcome when they returned home from abroad, instead of being these impersonal guest rooms.”

A timeless aesthetic and meticulous attention to detail allow the design to take centre stage, right from the private lift lobby. The grand double-height living room stands as the signature feature of the residence, presided over by a bespoke Phi chandelier designed by Miaja herself that makes the most of the seven-metre ceiling height. Below this centrepiece, luxury and comfort converge in an inviting, sophisticated selection of furniture, inclusive of a pair of Jensen swivel armchairs from Minotti and an Aurae sofa from Maxalto.

Design details elevate the home’s architectural features: the ledges running along the perimeter of the rooms are finished in Botticino marble, and the desks sitting on them were designed to be moveable, allowing the homeowners to enjoy the view while using them. The balconies were landscaped, the chandeliers provide light and serve as works of art, and the wallpapers were specially selected to suit the design of each space. “Everything was tailored to create an unspoken language of sophistication,” declares Miaja. “[It is] discreet, yet present.”

As evidenced by the soft design touches and carved-out spaces, the overall aim of the whole apartment was to foster a sense of well-being and relaxation, says Miaja. “Raw and natural materials such as grass and silk have their own energy. Stone and greenery reflect serenity; harmonious colours balance the natural rhythm our eyes and minds respond to. Like appreciating an artwork, one can instinctively feel if the composition is just right.”

Read full story here.