Heeton Project Getting The Starck Treatment

Source : The Business Times, July 29, 2008

His firm will design interiors of Grange Rd property

HEETON Holdings and its joint venture partner JPMorgan Global Special Opportunities Group will build the world's first Philippe Starck-branded housing in Singapore.

Mr Starck: His company yoo will not have an equity stake in 74 Grange Road

The project will be built on a site that the partners acquired last year at 74 Grange Road for $72.8 million.

The development, expected to be launched around year-end, will now come under the design, marketing and branding direction of Starck's yoo Inspired by Starck, a company co-founded with UK developer John Hitchcock in 1999.

While yoo has about 25,000 units of branded housing worldwide, it will not have an equity stake in 74 Grange Road. Nor will it be the architect.

Instead, it will provide interior design services and specifications for the interior finishes and fittings of the proposed 28-unit project.

It may provide landscape design, and buyers of the units may be offered furniture design packages for their homes.

The JV partners also hope to ride on yoo's marketing and public relations expertise, as well as draw on its pool of high net worth clients.

Heeton chief operating officer and executive director Danny Low said that yoo's services will cost about US$2 million, including the use of the 'yoo Inspired by Starck' brand.

The named of the development is yet to be finalised.

Mr Low added: 'This will be yoo's first residential design project in Singapore, and yoo's design services for the Singapore market will be exclusive to this project until mid-2009.'

Chris Boulton, CEO of yoo, said that it expects to announce more projects in the region soon. There are already yoo projects in Hong Kong and Phuket, Thailand.

Mr Boulton said that based on earlier projects, yoo developments can fetch 10-30 per cent more than market prices. According to him, yoo branding can help generate faster sales 'and sell in tough times'.

Prices for units at 74 Grange Road have not been confirmed. The break-even price was previously reported to be about $2,500 per square foot.