I have been to Desaru before. I likely won't forget about my first visit there, but not for the reasons you'd imagine. A classic case of Looked Better In Pictures. Catfished by a resort, if you will. It wasn't a particularly terrible night; facilities were functional and the advertised beach diligently lived up to its reputation. Yet, the one thing I remember was failing to fall asleep when dark fell, due to how unsafe I felt with the sheer lack of guests on the property.
Fast forward a couple of years to when the pandemic was just around the corner. Early announcements of One&Only debuting an outpost on the touristy Malaysian coast were circulating. Significant, being the first Southeast Asian destination of the brand's five-star portfolio. Sadly, as the world then came to a standstill, so did further news on the latest addition.
Thus when presented the opportunity to finally to pop by for a stay while attending the signature Four Hands of its Embers Beach Club, the conclusion is obvious. Chiefly that with One&Only, what you see is what you get.
You arrive to a verdant lawn framed by parallel blocks on both sides. Tread away from the lobby and the green cascades towards the main pool, an emerald runway symmetrically flanked by daybeds as it reaches for the ocean. The visual narrative of neat lines is inherited from its esteemed architect Kerry Hill, whose work here was ultimately a swan song before his passing.
The tropical retreat is likely not the only one that's home to over 80 species of flora and fauna, but preserving the original habitation was very much a deliberate decision. You'll find trees repurposed as signposts, like one that points towards the coordinates of other One&Only resorts.
You can put yourself down for a concise, on-site nature walk (10/10 recommend) as part of the one complimentary daily activity to fully appreciate the forestry of the 1,500 square metre mini kingdom. The most grandiose of the efforts resides at the One&Only Spa.
The intentionality of the space's design is evident, a personal favourite of the entire property I might add. Past the doors of reception, you enter an uncharacteristically dark passageway, and your vision focuses entirely on the light emanating at the end. At dead centre, a majestic, over 300 year-old Banyan tree. Besides the adjacent decked out (Techno)gym and cold plunge, the picturesque patio past the historic tree are easily the Spa's highlights.
The thematic reverance for nature pervades the suites. Locally sourced stone, cane, yellow balau timber and even the planted green roofs that you can't see from within.
The central courtyard is, without doubt, the most unique feature. Dividing spacious bed chambers from equally large bathrooms, it's also the most complained about, we're told. Seems it takes some getting used to for us first-world, ensuite folk.
Yet, I can't help thinking it's this very layout that sets the resort apart from many other luxury, nature-infused getaways. More meaningfully, it takes inspiration from traditional Malaysian kampung (village) housing that's filled with the weather's elements. Which unfortunately, the outdoor furniture are also at mercy of.
Still, it's a clever combination having the petite pool at the heart and the option to slide open connecting doors, all whilst shielded away by the exterior blinds. It allows a guest experience that feels both liberating while maintaining a desired level of privacy.
Housed within the estate are Japanese restaurant Hoshi with a towering vibrant mural, and Dusky Monkey bar with its portraits of the very dusky monkey it earns its moniker from, candidly photographed sitting at the counter by the establishment's former General Manager.
Ambara serves lovely cuisine of the country complete with an open kitchen to catch the action; but if you want that schnazzy pool hang, Ember Beach Club oozes that while simultaneously carrying a more intimate tone in the evening.
It makes perfect sense that even non-staying patrons come by to spend the entire afternoon there. To make the most of it though, align your calendar with the seasonal Four Hands that Chef Andrew Walsh divulges for a taste of Cure, matched with the best of the collaboration's guest chef.
Just a two-hour drive away under ideal traffic conditions, it honestly wins out further travel for an idyllic white-sand-turquoise-sea vacation. And believe me when I say that this time, it wasn't difficult falling asleep.
It’s a new year, and there’s a good chance you’re looking for a new job. Maybe you’re pondering going freelance or starting your own business. You are not alone. Statistics suggest that a third of the workforce switches jobs every 12 months nowadays. Witnessing wave after wave of layoffs, people have learnt that companies aren’t loyal to staff any more if indeed they ever were, so why should employees display blind loyalty to their bosses?
Even here in status-obsessed Singapore, where a stable and well-paid office job has long been seen as the ideal, more and more people are looking for “meaning and purpose in what they do, not just for good salaries,” per the gahmen’s recent Forward SG report. Giving new meaning to the phrase ‘Money no enough,’ today, we want jobs that are rewarding on a level beyond remuneration—jobs we’re passionate about. Often, that means creating a job for yourself.
Many of Canadian artist Samara Shuter’s super-detailed paintings celebrate the type of peacock sartorialism seen at the Pitti Uomo menswear fair. Why the passion for men’s style? Shuter’s family has deep roots in the garment trade—she grew up amongst bolts of colourful cloth, and she says her father’s dapper dressing when she was a young girl also left a lasting impression.
“My father had an incredible appreciation for style. He had the most amazing collection of ties,” she recalls. Her dad’s struggles to support his family in various corporate sales roles, which required the Shuter clan to regularly relocate—“We moved every year or year-and-a-half; I was kinda like an army brat, it felt very unstable,” Shuter says of her peripatetic upbringing—also left an indelible mark.
So, when she set out to forge her own career, Shuter says, “It was important to me that I could do something that I love, but where I was in control.” Having seen her father suddenly lose jobs and the turmoil that caused for her whole family, she says, “It was important that what I did, nobody could take away from me.” So she became an artist. Back in the mid-’00s, Shuter took the money she’d saved waiting tables and tending bar and hired a booth at an art fair in Toronto. It was a big gamble, several thousand dollars, everything she had. “But that weekend, all the works I’d painted sold out. I couldn’t believe it.”
Three years later, Shuter was selling sufficient volume, at high enough prices, that she was able to quit pouring pints and focus on her art practice full-time.
Leading independent British bespoke shoemaker Nicholas Templeman says it was an invaluable experience mastering his craft as an employee of one of the most legendary firms in the trade. But to make the sort of shoes he was passionate about, he had to set up his own business. “I trained at an established bootmaker—I worked at John Lobb for seven years before going it alone,” he explains. “I had a great time there and there’s a lot I look back fondly on, I don’t think I could have learnt as much about shoes and bootmaking anywhere else in the world.”
Eventually, though, Templeman reached a point where to be fulfilled, he needed full creative and quality control over the footwear he made. “That’s only really possible when your name is stamped on the soles,” he says. Having his signature on the product also means Templeman is especially punctilious about quality. “I’m pretty fastidious about what I make, no shortcuts, even if, as currently, it makes the lead times longer than I’d like.”
Master watchmaker Denis Flageollet, cofounder of De Bethune and a godlike figure in the world of watches, reckons passion—and the confidence to express that passion—is an essential attribute in anyone aspiring to stand out in haute horlogerie. “I love talking to young independent watchmakers to see whether they have that spark inside them, that passion that will allow them to really grow their vision of what watchmaking can be,” he says.
“For several years now, I’ve realised I need to pass on the knowledge I have, not just to train new watchmakers for De Bethune, but to share what I know and my experiences with a larger audience,” Flageollet says. The advice he habitually gives young watchmakers is, “You have to be brave, you have to be bold. If you think you’ve got an idea, but it’s maybe a bit of a crazy idea, or it’s a bit left-field, just go and do it. The only way you’re going to know is to try it, and then see what the world thinks of it; it could be the next great idea.”
He says creatives have got to trust their instincts. “You shouldn’t be scared of not being understood. Maybe they’ll understand you in 10 years’ time—or after you’re dead! The most important thing is that you do what you believe in, what you’re passionate about.” Flageollet encourages rising watchmakers to place a bet on themselves. “I tell them to gamble, try and do something that they believe in, take a leap of faith because that ultimately is what’s going to make them happy.”
Independence is brilliant, but as any start-up entrepreneur, small business owner or freelancer will tell you, there’s also much to be said for a reliable monthly salary. However, those who choose to go the regular wage route are increasingly opting to work for purpose-driven businesses, where the sense of fulfilment goes beyond merely cashing that wonderfully predictable pay cheque.
“To be a successful organisation in the 21st century, to attract the best people, you need to be authentic,” says the co-founder of Soneva luxury resorts, Sonu Shivdasani, OBE. “You can’t be saying one thing and doing something different, because people will vote with their feet now—they don’t need the work. So if you aren’t authentic, you’re not going to attract the best people.”
In Soneva’s case, that authenticity comes down to what Shivdasani calls “a very clear focus, an undiluted philosophy” he has dubbed SLOWLIFE, an acronym standing for Sustainable, Local, Organic, Wellness, Learning, Inspiring, Fun, Experiences. “Essentially, offering luxuries, while minimising our impact on the environment and enhancing the overall wellbeing of our guests,” Shivdasani sums it up. Soneva is considered the gold standard in sustainable tourism.
The brand’s founders, Shivdasani and his wife Eva, believe a business must have a purpose beyond simply making money, if it hopes to generate high levels of employee engagement and as a flow-on effect, happy customers. “In our industry, in hospitality, the definition of luxury is the magic created by our people, the hosts—we don’t have employees at Soneva, we have hosts. And I believe that magical service has to come from the gut; you can’t train it, it has to be instilled. By having a core purpose that our hosts are aligned with, they become more engaged, more passionate.”
Preparing to open a new wing opened at Soneva Jani in the Maldives a couple of years ago, Shivdasani recalls, “We had 80 vacancies. And within a week, we had 3,000 applicants for those 80 vacancies.” When the successful candidates arrived and Shivdasani was performing their induction, he joked with the fresh hires, “You know, it’s actually tougher to get into Soneva Jani than it is to get into Goldman Sachs or Oxford—and that’s because people really were passionate about joining us.”
We’ll grant you that the prospect of working in a tropical paradise probably didn’t harm Soneva’s recruitment efforts. Nevertheless, there’s a potent lesson in the anecdote for organisations trying to engage people who’ll stay on for more than 12 months. Showing you care about something beyond the bottom line—demonstrating you care about your employees, your customers, and the world—has its advantages. Think about it, boss.
