YTL keen to launch Starhill brand in Singapore and London

SINGAPORE: After having successfully launched the Starhill brand in Dubai, YTL Corp Bhd wants to expand the concept to Singapore and London.

“We are being pursued by people from London. We also want to do a Starhill in Singapore and it can either be a greenfield or an existing property,” managing director Tan Sri Francis Yeoh said during the “The Luster of Luxury” forum at the Forbes Global CEO conference yesterday.

“Time is now a window for us and I can wait for 12 months to make a capital investment in Singapore,” he said.

YTL owns the Starhill brand concept. It first developed the concept in Kuala Lumpur and last April it launched the Starhill Gallery in Dubai.

Yeoh believes there is a booming market for luxury products and that “luxury should come to a person instead of the person going to luxury.” Malaysia will also be home to the “Forbes Asia Luxury Forum: The Art of Time” for the first time in Kuala Lumpur on Dec 5. It will examine the booming market for luxury timepieces in the region. A half day conference will also be held.

The event is held in conjunction with YTL’s “A Journey Through Time II” which kicks off from Dec 4 to 14 at the Starhill Gallery. It will be Asia’s largest watch and jewellery showcase. “YTL is an ideal partner for Forbes Asia in co-hosting this event given its expanding portfolio of luxury lifestyle resorts, luxury retail outlets such as the Starhill Gallery and other luxury-related projects,” Forbes vice chairman Christopher Forbes said.

By The Star