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| Mining A Heritage |
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Published:
The Edge / Options |
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Date:
The Week of December 22, 2003 |
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 Mr. Ng is out to prove his critics wrong with Asian Heritage Row, KL's latest entertainment hub.
"You're mad." That was the response Mr. Ng got two years ago when he talked about his desire to turn a row of dilapidated pre-war houses across the street from the Sheraton Imperial Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, into an Asian flavoured entertainment hub.
"The owners of the houses told me I was crazy when I approached them about the idea. My childhood friends told me there was no way they were going to consider investing in it. People in the business advised me not to go into it. They said anything beyond the Concorde Hotel area would never work" Ng tells Options in an exclusive interview at Bar SaVanh, the avant garde Indo Chinese restaurant and lounge that anchors his "heritage row" in Jalan Doraisamy.
His critics didn't realize, though, that they were talking to a man who likes living on the edge. Racing enthusiast, mountaineer, extreme sports aficionado - all a man like that needs is people to tell him not to do something for him to embrace the challenge and wade right into the fray.
"I had developers, architects and property consultants telling me it wouldn't work. They said I'd never get returns on my investment, that it was a kampong area and would never attract tenants or clientele. Once people hit this part of Jalan Sultan Ismail, they're on their way to Bangsar."
"Out of madness, call it what you will, I decided to go in. I had no intention of making money. It was more of a challenge for me and I was willing to put my life's savings in to do something different" Ng reveals.
His audacity is admirable when you consider that he had no idea of what he was getting into when he embarked upon his venture, which he has named Asian Heritage Row. He had little knowledge of property development, architectural conservation or adaptive reuse; nor any in the entertainment or food and beverage industries. What he did have was more than 13 years’ of corporate experience within a multinational company.
Daring to dream
Having an office in Heritage House on Jalan Yap Ah Shak, Ng saw that the Heritage House and its neighbours, the Sheraton Imperial Hotel, stood out like two glamorous stepsisters amid the Cinderella buildings that surround them in the locale.
"Every time I walked past the old, dilapidated houses in the area, I told myself something should be done about them, like what was being done in Singapore" Ng shares, referring to the adaptive re-use of heritage properties in the island nation.
"I mulled over it then decided to trace the owners of the houses. I found them to be good, honest people with no interest in spending money on the property. They just wanted to keep their long term tenants" he adds.
Not one to be thwarted, Ng approached them and broached the possibility of entering into a joint venture to redevelop the houses into restaurants.
"They were not interested, they told me to go away, that they didn't need the income. But after six months of persuasion, they finally agreed to let me have a go" he says with a grin, slowly allowing his sliver of his happy-go-lucky self to clip through his cautious façade.
He set up a company. Asian Heritage Row Sdn Bhd, which took over the tenancy of 12 houses in the first row of houses in the street, effected their conversion to commercial use, facilitated approvals from the relevant authorities and sub let them to interested parties. Asian Heritage Row's first intrepid tenants were Vanilla Box, a bakery and café that opened 10 months ago, and Turkish restaurant Saray, which came in two months later. They were followed by Kristao, a restaurant serving Malaysian Portuguese cuisine, which started business six months ago.
"Only after proving we could get DBKL (Kuala Lumpur City Hall) approval for conversion and Tenaga Nasional (Bhd) permission to convert the single phase wiring to three phase, did the tenants indicate their interest to come in" Ng reveals. You mean he went ahead with plans before he had any indication of interest? Yeah, well, he climbs mountains (without knowing the view from the top), remember?
"I knew the concept of turning these old houses into restaurants would work" he says confidently. His optimism was based on the success of similar projects in other parts of the world, notably Singapore, as well as Asian Heritage Row's location - next to a five-star hotel with ample parking space - and just off the mainstream of Jalan Sultan Ismail.
"But I also knew that because it was not located on the main thoroughfare, we had to be different. We had to become a destination location to offer something tasteful and interesting" he admits. Which meant no sports bars. Or fast food joints. Or anything else that would detract from the spirit of the place.
 Ng was convinced that having the right name to anchor the concept was vital to the street's success. In this case the right name was the Singapore-based IndoChine Group, which owns and operates a string of trendy restaurants and bars as well as art galleries under the IndoChine and Bar SaVanh brand names in Singapore and Hamburg, Germany.
"I went to Singapore and approached them about coming in but they were not interested. They said KL was too tricky a place to operate in" he relates. Again, Ng was not deterred. Each time he went down to Singapore, he made it a point to hang out at one of the IndoChine restaurants and talk about his plans for Asian Heritage Row.
"I threatened them that I'd take their concept and do it myself here even if they didn't come in with me" he recounts with glee. Finally, the group caved in and agreed to come in. Bar SaVanh opened for business less than two months ago and in Ng's words, has been "very successful, proving that it can attract the right clientele".
Fait accompli
The birth of Asian Heritage Row was not without its labour pains. Ng is a little disgruntled over the project's long gestation period, during which he had to endure tedious procedures and processes with the various government agencies involved.
"It took months to process the relevant approvals as each of the agencies involved had to inspect the premises. To get the F&B (food and beverages) approvals alone, we had to submit a long list of forms and documents, including tenancy agreements, and we had to wait five to six months to get it. In the meantime, the tenancy period begins to run…" he comments. In addition to al the running around, he had to see to other issues, from the renovation and refurbishment of the various units to basics such as garbage collection.
"Unless you have the stomach for all this, it's easier to give up. The idea was conceived two years ago and it took two years of labour pains. Of course, I was brash to start with; if I had known the complexities involved, I wouldn't have done it" he says matter of factly.
You don't quite believe him, though. Watching him against the backdrop of Bar SaVanh's elegant interior, you can't help but to detect the confidence and pride that comes from having created something out of nothing. He's too polite to gloat but it's obvious he feels an immense amount of satisfaction that his faith in the project has been redeemed. All the 12 units in the first phase of Asian Heritage Row's redevelopment have been snapped up by tenants who have no more doubts about the street's potential.
"I knew that the success of the street would depend on the tenant mix and how the various places adhered to the concept. I also knew that we needed a critical mass to support the concept, and a good night and day scene to create a vibrant atmosphere for the place" he says.
In addition to Bar SaVanh, Kristao, Vanilla Box and Saray, another outlet that opened recently is Senja, a traditional Malay restaurant that relocated from Suria KLCC a short distance away. Ng reveals that other outlets planned for the row include That Indian Thing, Bar Blonde, a wine and cigar bar and an upmarket foot reflexology place with a difference. He's currently on the lookout for a Japanese restaurant tenant to add to the street's "Asian diversity" and hopes to have all outlets up and running by the first quarter of next year.
"If you notice, we don't have a Chinese or Italian restaurant here because we want to complement the Sheraton next door, not compete with it" he points out.
A testimony to his efforts is the fact that other than IndoChine, all the tenants approached him for a place in Asian Heritage Row.
"The professional property consultant couldn't get me tenants to start with. They came through my other contacts. They are all people who appreciated what I was trying to do with the place. Now others are beginning to show interest" he says. But of course, success begets new tenancies in the entertainment industry.
You would think that Ng would be content to sit back and relax a little after successfully birthing one baby in the face of the sceptics. But you know how it is with mountain climbers - reach the peak of one mountain, look for another to climb. He's not done with just 12 units, thank you very much. His head is buzzing with more plans. Big plans.
Mining a heritage
Next year, Ng plans to add another 12 units to Asian Heritage Row. This time around though, he plans to turn them into offices and retail outlets.
"The owners have another 12 units in the next row. I'm thinking offices and speciality retail outlets because to get traffic here (during the day), you need to have these. We're targeting ad agencies, galleries… we don't want too much competition between the F&B outlets" he reveals.
Of course, the retailers have told him he's crazy. Déjà vu.
"We'll see who's crazy. It works in Bali, Chieng Mai and so on. If the concept is going to spread to KL, why not here?" he questions. Why not indeed. The current rental rate he is charging his tenants works out to under RM10,000 for a whole unit measuring 20ft by 100ft. Two whole floors for 10 grand. You'd get only three quarters of a ground floor shop lot in Bangsar's Telawi area for that.
"Which is why retail would work here. They won't be paying a fortune in rentals" he points out. He hopes to have the units in the second row ready by the end of next year.
Aside from extending Asian Heritage Row, Ng is talking to DBKL about closing the road in front to traffic on weekends so it can be turned into a handicraft bazaar. He's also eyeing other streets in the area, beginning with Jalan Kamunting, with a view to extending the concept.
Is he thinking of an entire Asian Village for the area then?
He hesitates for the fraction of a second and nods, "Yes I am". But he is quick to add that he doesn't intend to "corner the whole business here". He confides that the houses in Jalan Kamunting are owned by the YTL Group.
"I need to talk to (Tan Sri) Francis Yeoh to get him fire up the row. And do you know that Bob Wong has an office here? He's an entertainment person, it won't take him long to come up with something. If YTL agrees, the whole area can come up sooner…" he muses.
Man for all seasons
Watching Ng as he enthuses about his future plans, you wonder where he's coming from. Perhaps it was growing up in Penang that nurtured his love for old buildings and his Asian heritage, although he shakes his head to this. Maybe it was the years spent in reading philosophy for his degree in Singapore, where success of adaptive re-use for heritage buildings has set a precedent for many other Asian countries.
"Philosophy doesn't pay the bills, obviously. So I did an MBA at the University of Chicago”, he explains. Now working with a multinational company, Ng has been given the opportunity to travel around the globe. Along the way, he's acquired a love for "old buildings, art, cigars, eating, drinking and travelling".
 "There are a lot of people in KL with the same tastes, but they don't know where to go. We're trying to create a destination here for both day and night" he says. So that's it then - Asian Heritage Row is just one big place to party for him and his ilk.
Old buildings and fast cars. Asian heritage and fine wines. A bit of a contradiction in terms, but they co-exist happily in the soul of Mr. Ng. He's a bit of an enigma though. But the measured way in which he weighs what to say and not to say hints at the caution that is a standard CEO characteristic at an interview.
He doesn't like a heritage conservator, either. There's an elusive quality about him that suggests more to him than meets the eye. A bit of devil may care attitude that he keeps well hidden behind his controlled façade.
"I'm into extreme sports" he admits unabashedly when you comment on this. He's climbed Kinabalu in Sabah and had planned to climb Kilimanjaro, but a leg injury sustained three months ago while skiing in Australia has put paid to his ambition for the time being. He's also into racing, and has taken part in support races for events like Formula 1 but has given that up because "I realize that I may like fast cars but I'm a slow driver".
Obviously he likes life on the fast lane. And views risk as challenge. He's always on the go, cramming more living into a single day than most people do in a week - and this after working for 18 hours by day and on Asian Heritage Row by night. In between, he adheres to a strict exercise regime and tries to squeeze in some reading - "nothing heavy, just some self improvement stuff and health material".
One of his icons is flamboyant British billionaire Richard Branson, who has built his company (Virgin) into one of the world's biggest brands.
"He's a maverick. I am nowhere near him, but he's somebody I admire" Ng reveals. Why are we not surprised?
He may not be in Branson's league, but he's a maverick in his own right. Call him mad or call him foolhardy but you must admit, he deserves the last laugh.
Asian Heritage Row
This row of refurbished pre-war houses is set to become the most happening street between the Golden Triangle and Bangsar. Located just next to the Sheraton Imperial Hotel, it has been conceptualized with an Asian theme, as its name suggests.
Anchoring the row at the corner of the street is Bar SaVanh, operated by the Singapore based IndoChine Group, which runs a chain of successful restaurants and bars based on an Indo Chinese concept. Bar SaVanh's décor is quite exciting and can best be described as cutting edge tropical with Indo Chinese accents. Downstairs, water features and sculptures from the various countries of Indo China reflect its aspirations and add an ethnic flavour to the modern tropical setting of the bar. Upstairs, the ambience is more elegant, bringing to mind an avant garde version of a colonial Indo Chinese restaurant. The restaurant offers authentic cuisine from Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam in a classy setting.
Beside Bar SaVanh is the more sedate Saray, a Turkish restaurant. The restaurant offers a warm, unpretentious ambience for those wanting to sample the intricacies of Turkish cuisine. Saray is flanked on the other side by Vanilla Box, a bakery cum café with the most divine cakes and wholesome "homestyle" food like sandwiches, pastas and the like.
Next door to Vanilla Box is Kristao, offering authentic Malaysian Portuguese food. The place has a bar downstairs, but currently only serves beers pending the issuance of a liquor license. It's simple and unpretentious but cosy and welcoming. Besides traditional Malaccan Portuguese dishes, you can get light meals such as pies filled with devil curry, lamb curry and the like.
Asian Heritage Row also has a Malay restaurant Senja, that serves Malaysian and kampong favourites between 7am and 2pm. The place attracts a good breakfast and lunch crowd including tourists from the Sheraton Imperial next door who want to sample authentic Malaysian food in a decent environment.
The good thing about Asian Heritage Row is that all the outlets have a patio area that's conducive for al fresco dining. More outlets are expected to be opened in the next three months, including a couple of bars, an Indian restaurant and reflexology centre.
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