All I want for Christmas is ...
This year, we will be spending the holiday season with family. The current limit on household numbers suggests it’s likely to be an intimate affair; however, I’m happy to have a quiet festive season and feel very fortunate to spend Christmas together. At A Common Thread, we’re looking forward to 2022, which will kick off an exciting mix of new, global and local projects for the studio. With many of our existing Singapore projects currently on-site and under construction, we’re also looking forward to their completion and unveiling in Q1 2022.
Alexandra Beggs
Founder & Creative Director, A Common Thread
With the borders opening as Covid-19 measures relax, this is the first time in three years that I will be having my entire family — parents, younger brother based in Australia, and our wives and children — all under one roof and celebrating Christmas together. I am blessed to have such an opportunity with my loved ones to enjoy this season together, considering how challenging 2020 and 2021 have been, not just for us but for so many other families around the world. My wish for 2022 is for everyone to cherish what is most important: loved ones and friends. Also, be sure to let them know that you cherish them because as Asians, we tend not to affirm one another enough!
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Jeremy Foo
Founder & CEO, Elliot & Co.
This Christmas is extra special for us because we’re finally able to visit my husband’s family in Australia after two years (thank you, VTL!). If Covid has taught us anything, it’s that life is fleeting, everything can change overnight, health is the greatest wealth, and nothing is more precious in these unpredictable times than the unchanging love of family and true friends. I have many hopes and dreams for 2022 but my biggest ones are to visit my siblings who now live in Portugal and Tasmania. And also, to see Madly grow from strength to strength as we open our second store in Singapore: the first ice-cream-themed staycation on the island to offer a sweet escape, available from now till Nov 18 at both Shangri-La Singapore and Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa, Singapore.
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Maddy Barber
Founder, Madly
Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without family. We have simple traditions like having a late-night Christmas Eve feast and watching old black-and-white holiday movies like A Christmas Carol, It’s a Beautiful Life and Christmas on 34th Street. As 2022 approaches — and hopefully with the easing of restrictions — I hope we can consciously move forward with our lives and aspirations. I hope to create deeper bonds and reconnect meaningfully with friends, colleagues and family overseas. This new year is a special reminder that we can all contribute to making the world a more empathetic and compassionate place.
Maranda Barnes
Co-Founder & Director of Corporate Communications, TWG Tea
This Christmas, I’ll be back in Singapore and I cannot wait to savour all the culinary delights of Singapore that I’ve been missing this year. Most importantly, I’m looking forward to seeing my big family and catching up with old friends now that restrictions have been partially lifted. My partner and I recently bought a new place in Joo Chiat and we’ve been overseeing the renovations remotely via Zoom, so I also can’t wait to see how those are coming along. We love entertaining, so having a new place in Singapore that allows us to entertain family and friends at the end of the year will be exciting!
Mashizan Masjum
President & Creative Director, Mashizan
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We’re having a baby this December, which is the best Christmas and life present we could ask for. The house will be set for the festivities, with a real tree fully decorated along with new stockings, for the baby and our dog, with sounds of laughter and celebration. I imagine some cheers ringing through the place. Our wish for 2022 is to have the world open again and free of restrictions so we can see and spend time with our loved ones, family, and friends.
Rohit Roopchand
Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, The Dandy Collection
We’ve recently moved into a new home and will be enjoying a nice quiet holiday unwinding with our dog and cooking in our new kitchen. For 2022, like everyone else, we hope to see travel begin so we can spend time seeing all the people we’ve missed these past two years. We wish for health and safety for all our families afar, and we’re so thankful for our team, who have certainly become, more than ever, our new family here.
Michael Goodman
Co-Founder & Chief Visionary Officer, The Dandy Collection
All I wish for Christmas is a healthier world where we’re all safe and free; no pandemic and no climate catastrophe; a pollution-free world that we all can share; a greener world with clean energy and fresh air; a flourishing world with lush natural spaces; a caring world to all species and races; a beautiful world with hope and cohesion; and a happier world celebrating this festive season!
Esther An
Chief Sustainability Officer, City Developments
My wish for Christmas has come true — that we can now welcome groups of five to The Elephant Room to celebrate the festive season. I’m also looking forward to dining out with my team after so many months of dining restrictions. Next year is going to be all about catching up to make up for the past two years. And more importantly, also raising the standards of our bar with only good vibes and positivity!
Yugnes Susela
Co-founder & Head Bartender, The Elephant Room
