VivoCity
Encyclopedia
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. Located in the HarbourFront
HarbourFront
HarbourFront is a district situated in southern Singapore, within the Bukit Merah Planning Area. Harbourfront is also the gateway to Sentosa....
precinct, it was designed by the Japanese architect Toyo Ito
Toyo Ito
is a Japanese architect known for creating conceptual architecture, in which he seeks to simultaneously express the physical and virtual worlds. He is a leading exponent of architecture that addresses the contemporary notion of a "simulated" city, and has been called "one of the world's most...
. Its name is derived from the word vivacity. According to Mapletree Chairman Edmund Cheng, VivoCity "evokes a lifestyle experience that is modern, stimulating and accessible to everyone, a place bubbling with energy and flowing with vitality".
History
VivoCity was built on the site of the exhibition halls of the former World Trade Centre, now the HarbourFront CentreHarbourfront Centre
Harbourfront Centre is a key cultural organization on Toronto, Ontario's waterfront, situated at 235 Queen's Quay West. Established as a crown corporation in 1972 by the federal government to create a waterfront park, it became a non-profit organization in 1991. Funding comes from corporate...
. VivoCity has 1500000 square feet (139,354.6 m²) of gross floor area and 1040000 square feet (96,619.2 m²) of retail space, larger than Suntec City
Suntec City
Suntec City is a major multi-use development located in Marina Centre, a subzone of the Downtown Core Planning Area in Singapore.- Design :Suntec City was designed by Tsao & McKown Architects with emphasis on Chinese geomancy . The five buildings and the convention center are arranged so that they...
and Ngee Ann City
Ngee Ann City
Ngee Ann City is a shopping and commercial centre located on Orchard Road, Singapore. The S$520 million building was officially opened on 21 September 1993 by then Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong. Many Singaporeans refer to Ngee Ann City as "Taka", a slang-abbreviation of the anchor tenant's name,...
, the former of which was the largest prior to VivoCity's opening. It was designed by the renowned Japanese architect Toyo Ito
Toyo Ito
is a Japanese architect known for creating conceptual architecture, in which he seeks to simultaneously express the physical and virtual worlds. He is a leading exponent of architecture that addresses the contemporary notion of a "simulated" city, and has been called "one of the world's most...
. Mapletree Investments, a subsidiary of Temasek Holdings
Temasek Holdings
Temasek Holdings is an investment company owned by the government of Singapore. With an international staff of 380 people, it manages a portfolio of about S$193 billion at end of March 2011, focused primarily in Asia...
, is the developer of the S$
Singapore dollar
The Singapore dollar or Dollar is the official currency of Singapore. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or alternatively S$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
417 million complex.
Official Opening
The shopping mall opened officially on December 1, 2006 after a topping-out ceremony on April 18 and a soft launch on October 7 of the same year. The official opening included a six minute fireworks display, a concert by American band String TheoryString theory
String theory is an active research framework in particle physics that attempts to reconcile quantum mechanics and general relativity. It is a contender for a theory of everything , a manner of describing the known fundamental forces and matter in a mathematically complete system...
for the general public, and a Stefanie Sun
Stefanie Sun
Stefanie Sun was born Sng Ee Tze on 23 July 1978, and known to fans as 13姐 , is a Singaporean singer-songwriter. She has sold over 30 million copies of her albums during the span of her career thus far. She does the majority of her recording, and conducts most of her publicity events, in Taiwan,...
concert at the mall's amphitheatre
Amphitheatre
An amphitheatre is an open-air venue used for entertainment and performances.There are two similar, but distinct, types of structure for which the word "amphitheatre" is used: Ancient Roman amphitheatres were large central performance spaces surrounded by ascending seating, and were commonly used...
at the Sky Park on the third floor. The guest of honour
Guest of Honour
Guest of Honour is a 1934 British comedy film directed by George King and starring Henry Kendall, Micki Hood, Edward Chapman and Joan Playfair. An aristocrat unmasks a blackmailer. Based on F. Anstey's 1903 play The Man from Blankley's which had been made as a 1920 Paramount silent The Fourteenth...
of the event was chairman of Temasek Holdings
Temasek Holdings
Temasek Holdings is an investment company owned by the government of Singapore. With an international staff of 380 people, it manages a portfolio of about S$193 billion at end of March 2011, focused primarily in Asia...
and former cabinet
Cabinet of Singapore
The Cabinet of Singapore forms the Government of Singapore together with the President of Singapore. It is led by the Prime Minister of Singapore who is the head of government...
minister S Dhanabalan
S Dhanabalan
Suppiah Dhanabalan was a high-profile political leader in Singapore in the 1980s. He was appointed to several heavyweight cabinet positions in the 1980s and early 1990s under Prime Ministers Lee Kuan Yew and Goh Chok Tong....
. During its first month of opening, it attracted 4.2 million visitors, equivalent to the population of Singapore, and attracted 7.28 million visitors in total before the grand opening. The String Theory concert included a giant harp
Harp
The harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
with strings stretching to the third floor of the mall. The concert was held at The Promenade and lasted ten days, from 1 to 10 December. Barricade
Barricade
Barricade, from the French barrique , is any object or structure that creates a barrier or obstacle to control, block passage or force the flow of traffic in the desired direction...
s were put at the boardwalk blocking the front portion of the boardwalk which is facing the Keppel Harbour
Keppel Harbour
Keppel Harbour is a stretch of water in Singapore between the mainland and the southern islands of Pulau Brani and Sentosa. Its naturally sheltered and deep waters was to meet the requirements of British colonists attempting to establish a Far East maritime colony in that part of the world, and...
. CISCO auxiliary police
Auxiliary police
Auxiliary police or special constables in England) are usually the part-time reserves of a regular police force. They may be armed or unarmed. They may be unpaid volunteers or paid members of the police service with which they are affiliated...
were deployed for the opening, with the food court on the third floor and the whole Sky Park (roof garden
Roof garden
A roof garden is any garden on the roof of a building. Besides the decorative benefit, roof plantings may provide food, temperature control, hydrological benefits, architectural enhancement, habitats or corridors for wildlife, and recreational opportunities....
) closed to the public for the day. Parts of the car park were closed for the invited guests as well. A giant projection screen
Projection screen
A projection screen is an installation consisting of a surface and a support structure used for displaying a projected image for the view of an audience. Projection screens may be permanently installed, as in a movie theater; painted on the wall; or semi-permanent or mobile, as in a conference room...
was put at the main entrance of the mall, this screen was to show the concert of Stefanie Sun.
Countdown
VivoCity served as the official venue for the live televised countdown to the new year, instead of SentosaSentosa
Sentosa, which translates to peace and tranquility in Malay , is a popular island resort in Singapore, visited by some five million people a year...
as per previous years.
The 2007 countdown concert, held from 31 December 2006 to 1 January 2007, was held at the rooftop amphitheatre and included performances by various well-known homegrown artistes from MediaCorp
MediaCorp
Media Corporation of Singapore, better known as MediaCorp, is a group of commercial media companies in Singapore, with business interests in television and radio broadcasting, interactive media, and, to a lesser extent, print publishing and film-making....
Channel 5 and 8, as well as the Top 11 finalists of the 2nd season for Singapore Idol
Singapore Idol
Singapore Idol is a television show on Channel 5 of MediaCorp TV. It is a competition among undiscovered singers in Singapore. Like others in the Idol series, it is modelled after Pop Idol. The current judges are singer/songwriter Dick Lee and record producers Florence Lian and Ken Lim. Previous...
.
The 2008 countdown concert, held from 31 December 2007 to 1 January 2008 is a same with Taufik Batisah
Taufik Batisah
Muhammad Taufik Bin Batisah, is the winner of the first season of the reality TV series Singapore Idol...
, Daren Tan Sze Wei and Deal Or No Deal
Deal or No Deal (Singapore)
Deal or No Deal is a game show which was aired in Singapore on MediaCorp TV Channel 5 and MediaCorp TV HD5. The show debuted on 13 May 2007 with a million dollar deal show series from Sunday to Wednesday, after which the show aired every Wednesday, 08:30 pm or 20:30...
babes in addition of artistes from Channel 5 and 8. Prior to the actual countdown party, fans were treated to a 50-minute showcase for the solo and group winners of the talent competition "Live The Dream", as well as performances by the other finalists of that competition.
The 2009 countdown concert, from 31 December 2008 to 1 January 2009 is also held as well, but this time it was for the artistes from Channel 8 and U instead of those from Channel 5. It is for this reason that the Channel 5 countdown had to be held at another location, namely the Marina Bay Float. It also held the 2010 countdown from 31 December 2009 to 1 January 2010.
Facilities
VivoCity's iconic architecture sets it apart from the traditional box format of many existing (and upcoming) retail developments in the region as it includes event spaces, al fresco dining by the 300 m long Promenade and a large roof top AmphitheatreAmphitheatre
An amphitheatre is an open-air venue used for entertainment and performances.There are two similar, but distinct, types of structure for which the word "amphitheatre" is used: Ancient Roman amphitheatres were large central performance spaces surrounded by ascending seating, and were commonly used...
. The Sky Park of the shopping mall is a popular place for all walks of life since its opening. The Play Court and the open spaces in the mall are also popular places with families and children alike in the mall. The Promenade and the entrance area with the water features around the mall a popular place for children to play in. The wading pool on the third floor is where many children play at besides the Play Court downstairs. The Sky Park also has an Amphitheatre and was where the grand opening was held. It is also a place popular to view Sentosa
Sentosa
Sentosa, which translates to peace and tranquility in Malay , is a popular island resort in Singapore, visited by some five million people a year...
. Some hold picnics in the mall's outdoor space as well. VivoCity's design allows it to accommodate over 300 different tenants, including many new-to-market brands and retail concepts.
The mall has Singapore's largest cinema
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
multiplex with 15 screens and 2,293 seats by the cinematic company Golden Village
Golden Village
Golden Village is a cinema operator based in Singapore which is a joint venture by Golden Harvest of Hong Kong and Village Roadshow of Australia. It operates nine multiplexes and cineplexes in the country including a largest cineplex at VivoCity. It joined hands to open a cinema at Great World...
, along with one of the largest cinema screens in Asia. Companies such as Toys "R" Us and Dairy Farm have their flagship outlets in VivoCity. Dairy Farm, which owns Cold Storage, Shop N Save, Giant Hypermarket
Giant Hypermarket
Giant Hypermarket is a major supermarket and retailer chain in Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, and UAE. It is a subsidiary of Dairy Farm International Holdings .-History:...
, 7-Eleven
7-Eleven
7-Eleven is part of an international chain of convenience stores, operating under Seven-Eleven Japan Co. Ltd, which in turn is owned by Seven & I Holdings Co...
and Guardian Health & Beauty takes up 3,700 square metres (1 acre) of space on Basement 2 and about 7,400 square metres on Level 1. The new hypermart, called VivoMart, is connected by its own travelator and sells gourmet
Gourmet
Gourmet is a cultural ideal associated with the culinary arts of fine food and drink, or haute cuisine, which is characterised by elaborate preparations and presentations of large meals of small, often quite rich courses...
food from all over the world, including the United States, Germany, Japan and Australia. The hypermarket, GIANT is located on both basement two and level one while both Cold Storage and Guardian pharmacy are located on level one.
There are two giant food court
Food court
A food court is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food vendors and provides a common area for self-serve dining. Food courts may be found in shopping malls and airports, and in various regions may be a standalone development...
s — a 2,200 square metre Kopitiam Group facility in Basement 2 and another spread over 2,500 square metres run by the BreadTalk Group, which is a Food Republic food court in similar concept at its sister food court at Wisma Atria
Wisma Atria
Wisma Atria is an established shopping mall on Orchard Road in Singapore with retail businesses on 5 levels. The centre which opened in 1986, is directly linked underground to Orchard MRT station and neighbouring centres...
.
As one of the venues of the inaugural Singapore Biennale
Singapore Biennale
The Singapore Biennale is a contemporary art biennale in Singapore. The first Singapore Biennale operated as one of a lineup of Singapore 2006 events. Fumio Nanjo, Director of Tokyo's Mori Art Museum, has been reappointed Artistic Director of the Singapore Biennale 2008...
in 2006, several commissioned art pieces from established designers around the world were also unveiled in VivoCity. It is the only venue of the Singapore Biennale where the exhibits are permanent. An international student design contest was recently held to find a design for incorporation into the architecture of VivoCity; it received 365 submissions from various countries.
Other features include a True Fitness gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
, spas
Day spa
A day spa is a business establishment which people visit for professionally administered personal care treatments such as massages and facials. It is similar to a beauty salon in that it is only visited for the duration of the treatment. Day spas sited in airport terminals are often called airport...
, restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s and dance clubs. A Tangs
Tangs
Tangs is a company that specialises in the retail market, selling goods to customers. It is based in Singapore, and owns Singapore's oldest store which has become an icon of the Singapore retail market...
store is located in the building on the first and second floor, which it is the only branch other than its flagship Orchard Road
Orchard Road
Orchard Road is a road in Singapore that is the retail and entertainment hub of the city-state. It is regularly frequented by the local population as well as being a major tourist attraction...
store. The store will sell a number of merchandise that cannot be found at its Orchard Road store, and the management has said the aisle
Aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of seats on both sides or with rows of seats on one side and a wall on the other...
s are wider. The first Gap
Gap (clothing retailer)
The Gap, Inc. is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco, California, and founded in 1969 by Donald G. Fisher and Doris F. Fisher. The company has five primary brands: the namesake Gap banner, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta. As of September 2008,...
store in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
opened at the mall and a number of new faces to the Singapore retail market will set up shops at the mall.
The mall has a car park with a total of 2,179 lots and a loading and unloading bay. The car parks are located in basements 1 and 2 as well as from levels 2 to 7. Also, there is a coach
Coach (vehicle)
A coach is a large motor vehicle, a type of bus, used for conveying passengers on excursions and on longer distance express coach scheduled transport between cities - or even between countries...
and tour bus
Tour bus
A tour bus service is a bus service that takes visitors sightseeing, with routes around tourist attractions. Double-decker buses and/or open top buses are commonly used, for their good views....
es bay in the mall.
Transport
The terminal of the Sentosa ExpressSentosa Express
Sentosa Express is a monorail line connecting Sentosa island to HarbourFront on the Singapore mainland across the waters.Built at a cost of S$140 million, development started in June 2003 and was completed in December 2006. The fully elevated 2.1-kilometre two-way line and three out of four...
monorail is located on level 3 (next to the Food Republic
Food Republic
- Food Republic Website - US :"Food Republic" is a website founded on the idea that guys everywhere are putting food at the center of their lives like never before. This is the site for men who want to eat and drink well, and to live smart. It was launched in March, 2011 by Food Republic Media...
food court) and is known as Sentosa Station. It was officially opened on January 15, 2007.
- Resort World Sentosa 8 or RWS8 bus stop is at the front of VivoCity. The bus service operates between VivoCity to the Resort World Sentosa.
- Linkway at basement 2 that connects to HarbourFront MRT StationHarbourFront MRT StationHarbourFront MRT Station is an underground Mass Rapid Transit interchange of the North East Line and the Circle Line in Singapore. It is located in the south of Singapore next to the HarbourFront Centre, previously known as the Singapore World Trade Centre. It serves as a terminal station of the...
and the Seah Im Hawker Centre across Telok Blangah Road. - Two air-conditioned bridges on level 2 (lined with shops) connecting to HarbourFront CentreHarbourFront Centre, SingaporeHarbourFront Centre is a shopping mall located at Maritime Square, Telok Blangah in the Bukit Merah Planning Area, Singapore. The mall is part of a development known as HarbourFront which is connected to VivoCity, the country's largest shopping mall. Formerly known as the World Trade Centre, it was...
. - An outdoor pedestrian bridge on level 2 (near the Golden Village Cinema) linking to St James Power StationSt James Power StationSt James Power Station is a music and nightlife venue in the HarbourFront area of the Bukit Merah Planning Area, Singapore, near VivoCity.-History:...
- The Sentosa ExpressSentosa ExpressSentosa Express is a monorail line connecting Sentosa island to HarbourFront on the Singapore mainland across the waters.Built at a cost of S$140 million, development started in June 2003 and was completed in December 2006. The fully elevated 2.1-kilometre two-way line and three out of four...
terminal station on level 3 connecting to SentosaSentosaSentosa, which translates to peace and tranquility in Malay , is a popular island resort in Singapore, visited by some five million people a year...
Island.
Upgrading works
The mall has seen several problems since its opening in October, such as lack of signs and directions. The mall provides brochureBrochure
A brochure is a type of leaflet. Brochures are most commonly found at places that tourists frequently visit, such as museums, major shops, and tourist information. Brochure racks or stands may suggest visits to amusement parks and other points of interest...
s with layout map
Map
A map is a visual representation of an area—a symbolic depiction highlighting relationships between elements of that space such as objects, regions, and themes....
s at their information counters. The mall has engaged an Australian agency Woodhead
Woodhead
Woodhead is a small and scattered settlement at the head of the Longdendale valley in Derbyshire, England, situated 18 miles from Manchester and 17 miles from Barnsley. It lies on the River Etherow and the Trans Pennine Trail...
to improve the signs at the mall. The new signs will be named on the anchor tenants instead of generic names to serve as internal landmarks within the mall. New signs have been added to the corridors leading to elevator
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...
lobbies. All existing signs will be replaced with new ones. The toilet
Toilet
A toilet is a sanitation fixture used primarily for the disposal of human excrement, often found in a small room referred to as a toilet/bathroom/lavatory...
s were wet and a toilet bowl had a seat and cover missing from a ladies toilet. Sanitary bins were also overflowing, but the floor
Floor
A floor is the walking surface of a room or vehicle. Floors vary from simple dirt in a cave to many-layered surfaces using modern technology...
s, sink
Sink
A sink is a bowl-shaped plumbing fixture used for washing hands, for dishwashing or other purposes. Sinks generally have taps that supply hot and cold water and may include a spray feature to be used for faster rinsing...
s and cubicle
Cubicle
Тhe cubicle, cubicle desk, office cubicle or cubicle workstation is a partially enclosed workspace, separated from neighboring workspaces by partitions that are usually tall...
s were in acceptable condition. The management has since started on improvement works to the toilets and the nursing room to cater to the heavy usage due to the number of shoppers. The works are being done in phases and have been completed since March 2007. Some have raised issues of the water hygiene at its water features. The management cordoned off part of the pool for maintenance work for a period of time which has since been completed. The wading pool is filtered
Filtration
Filtration is commonly the mechanical or physical operation which is used for the separation of solids from fluids by interposing a medium through which only the fluid can pass...
and chlorinated
Chlorination
Chlorination is the process of adding the element chlorine to water as a method of water purification to make it fit for human consumption as drinking water...
on a regular basis.
Visit the website of VivoCity www.vivocity.com.sg for the updated tenant listing.
Scaffolding collapse
On August 24, 2006, a 15-meter (50 ft) tall section of construction scaffoldingScaffolding
Scaffolding is a temporary structure used to support people and material in the construction or repair of buildings and other large structures. It is usually a modular system of metal pipes or tubes, although it can be from other materials...
outside the mall collapsed, injuring three workers.
Candy Empire controversy
A notice posted in the Candy Empire shop in the basement initially banned trolleysShopping cart
A shopping cart is a cart supplied by a shop, especially supermarkets, for use by customers inside the shop for transport of merchandise to the check-out counter during shopping...
and wheelchair
Wheelchair
A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, designed to be a replacement for walking. The device comes in variations where it is propelled by motors or by the seated occupant turning the rear wheels by hand. Often there are handles behind the seat for someone else to do the pushing...
s from entering. After an outcry in Singaporean newspapers and threats of boycotting, the store backed down and now allows entry to all.