A Day Out At Kapo Factory Building: The Underrated Creative Gem
Think you know Singapore? Think again. A vibrant creative community is quietly flourishing in Tai Seng's industrial landscape.
Enter Kapo Factory the 1970s‑built industrial building in the Tai Seng area has become an unexpected indie cultural enclave, thanks to the small yet big‑hearted community of design and lifestyle businesses that has made it home.
TREASURE AT HOME
Moving into Kapo Factory (Block B, #06‑13B) two years ago, Treasure At Home lives up to its name: It’s a real gem of a vintage store. The 1,700 sq ft space is crammed with charming pop culture and design memorabilia from a Singapore that no longer exists. The oldest item it carries at press time is an intricately carved Peranakan teak wood cabinet from the 1920s. There are also well‑preserved toys, magazines, hand‑painted signage and even glassware popularly used at coffee shops before plastic cups became a thing – all idiosyncratically local and lovingly sourced by owners Wak Sadri and Nur Aryana. The husband‑and‑wife duo’s passion for things from a time past is infectious: The business was born out of Aryana’s own love of collecting retro porcelain wares, and Kapo Factory could not make a more appropriate location. Says Wak: “Nothing is modern here. I like it because it takes me away from modern times and brings back happy childhood memories."
Silk crepe dress with satin lace‑up ribbon on back, and New Flex polyester boots, Balenciaga
On each model: Cotton hoodie and denim jeans, Balenciaga
KONSTRUKT LABORATORIES
The millennial‑run Konstrukt Laboratories (Block B, #01‑16) is one of the few silkscreen printing businesses in Singapore and is known for its fastidiousness, but those aren’t the only reasons why it’s so popular among the art and design crowd. After hearing how many of its clients don’t have a physical platform to showcase their works, owners Goh Zhong Ming and Debbie Lee transformed the mezzanine in their unit into Open Door Store, a lively multi‑label design store that spotlights local creatives. Their community‑mindedness extends to the building too: In February this year, they helped to organise Kapow!, a carnival‑esque weekend‑long open house during which various tenants at Kapo Factory welcomed visitors to explore their premises, and even came up with a poster and map for it. Says Goh: “There’s more to Kapo Factory than it being an old industrial building. There are many interesting businesses and idividuals here – the community is much more vibrant than many might imagine.”
Leather dress and nappa leather pumps, Tod’s
Cashmere sweater and New Flex Pantaleggings trompe l’oeil polyester‑blend boots, Balenciaga
RED POINT RECORD WAREHOUSE
A resident of Kapo Factory since 1999 (it was originally located on level four, but is now at unit #06‑11 in block B), Red Point Record Warehouse is a vinyl junkie’s dream. Previously a carpenter, its owner Ong Chai Koon, who’s in his sixties, is a walking music encyclopaedia who’s able to locate and wax lyrical about any of the 70,000 records he carries in‑store, whether it’s by Jisoo or a little‑known, now‑defunct local retro pop group specialising in Hokkien covers. International DJs are known to stop by for the wide range of genres (from jazz to trance to Motown, Red Point has got them all), obscure recommendations as well as a listening session. Ong’s a romantic audiophile who has collected some of the rarest record players and amps around, and their sound is like no other. “The vinyl listening experience is a process: from finding the records to playing them on a record player. It’s not immediate the way listening to music digitally is, and to me, that’s a lot more enjoyable,” says Ong. “Of course, I wonder how to keep my business going, but what’s even more important is that people keep the love of vinyls alive.”
On left: Denim jacket with satin lace‑up ribbon on back, matching skirt, and polyamide‑blend boots. On right: Cotton‑blend jacket with satin lace‑up ribbon on back, matching pants, Rodeo medium calfskin handbag, and polyamide‑blend boots. All Balenciaga
Celine by Hedi Slimane wool and silk mini dress, Celine Heirlooms Dome brass earring with strass (sold in a pair), matching ring, and Camille 16 small calfskin hobo bag, Celine
On left: Silk mesh T‑shirt, herringbone denim skirt and silk mesh briefs. On right: Silk mesh polo cropped top, matching cropped top (worn underneath), herringbone denim pants and silk mesh briefs. All Hermes
URTH&PHIRE
One of the newest kids on the block (or more specifically, block A, where it takes up unit #04‑01), Urth&Phire is a pottery studio that could double as an art gallery. Founder Alvin Leow is a ceramic artist whose elegant, surrealist sculptures – think orb‑like vases and displays that look part fossil, part alien – are prized by collectors. Both the space and on‑site classes, which are also conducted by Leow’s business partner Darren Wee, possess the same cool and sophistication. The gentle‑mannered duo specialises in schooling students on wheel‑throwing techniques, allowing them to create the likes of sensuous moonjars, Japanese‑style earthenware and more.
On left: Valentino by Alessandro Michele silk jacket and virgin wool pants; and Valentino Garavani VLogo Signature hemp straw sun hat, metal nose ring with Swarovski crystals, matching lip jewellery, and VLogo Signature lace gloves. On right: Valentino by Alessandro Michele viscose jacket, chiffon top and virgin wool pants; and Valentino Garavani Pas Plus metal hoop earrings with enamel and Swarovski crystals (worn on helix and sold in a pair), metal earrings with Swarovski crystals (worn on lobe and sold in a pair), and matching nose ring and lip jewellery. All Valentino
LOCAL LOCO
Step into Local Loco (Block A, #06‑05) and you’ll be greeted by a whole lot of ferns. They’re not just any ferns though, but those of the staghorn genus that aren’t parasitic and don’t need much sunlight to flourish, making them great for plant enthusiasts who lack outdoor space at home. The business is the brainchild of Alvin Tan and Jeremy Chia, who both have day jobs, but geek out so much over botany that they opened a greenhouse in the Henderson area before moving over to Kapo Factory last October. In its latest location, Local Loco is not just a plant shop, but also a cultural space that people can book to stage anything from dinners to pop‑up events – just wild.
Wool sweater, shiny calfskin skirt, cotton shorts (worn underneath) and brushed calfskin pumps, Prada
PHOTOGRAPHY STEFAN KHOO STYLING DAMIAN HUANG & PANG JIA WEI PHOTOGRAPHY ASSISTANT CHONG STYLING ASSISTANT TSOI HAIR EC TAN/KIZUKI + LIM MAKEUP WEEMING, USING NARS COSMETICS MODELS ALEXANDRA & JIALE/NOW MODEL MANAGEMENT
This article first appeared in the April 2025 Community Edition ofFEMALE