In Chinatown, a blue signboard hangs just outside the store of an Indian tailor, saying “Velkommen Til Singapore Og Til ABBA’s Dept. Store”.
“When we were by the ships in Arial Plaza, we had many Scandinavian sailors walking by, so I thought this sign would draw them in,” said Mr Parkash Naraindas Budhrani, 69, the owner of ABBA’s Department Store, a 47-year-old tailor shop named after the Swedish music group.
“When I’m working here, I don’t need to travel; I meet people from all over,” he added.
Specialising in everything from tuxedos to cheongsams, Mr Parkash, who goes by “Jimmy” to his clients, and his store are centrefolds in Singapore’s heritage scene, even inspiring a play by the tailor’s son, comedian Rishi Budhrani, Can I Make You A Suit, Mate?
ABBA’s is one of several businesses in Chinatown featured in heritage and experience design consultancy Bridging Generation’s CTRL+ Heritage Youth Symposium and Hackathon on Jun 13 and 14.
The event brought together Singaporeans aged 18 to 35 to brainstorm and pitch ideas to protect and advance heritage businesses and landmarks in Chinatown, under the guidance and instruction of over 30 heritage practitioners and experts. The top five teams with the best ideas would be rewarded with S$5,000 each to fully realise their pitches.
For ABBA’s, Mr Parkash says that he’s happy with his business delivering the same kind of service, even if newer methods are allowing other shops to charge higher prices. “People who want to have a personalised suit and get precise measurements will still come here,” he said.
However, he is open to seeking help for his low footfall. Mr Parkash said that 70 per cent of his clientele are tourists, so Covid-19 and the current Middle East wars have severely affected his business. “Even local clients have gone down because of work-from-home; nobody wants to dress up anymore.”
In exchange for the knowledge on how to sustain a business for nearly five decades and learning the basics of measuring suits, the youth groups would give suggestions for his problems.
At the event’s inauguration, Minister of State for Education Jasmine Lau spoke about the importance of encouraging young people to preserve heritage, especially in the era of artificial intelligence (AI).
“No database or algorithm can replicate the feeling of walking through a neighbourhood that our family once did. Similarly, no model can give you the warmth nor the weight of hearing your grandparents’ dialect when you sit down with them,” said Ms Lau, “Heritage is not data. It is lived experiences, emotions and meaning – shared between people, across generations, through trust and love.”
“In today’s landscape where so much can be automated, I hope that our stories, our cultures, and our memories are among the most human things we have left and we will cherish them for as long as we can,” she added.
