FROM RUNWAY TO RETAIL

I catch up with FJ Benjamin CEO Douglas Benjamin at Paragon's 25th anniversary celebrations to discuss the ins and outs of bridging fashion labels to buyers.

- WORDS SUFFIAN HAKIM PHOTO PARAGON

LAST MONTH, PARAGON CELEBRATED its silver jubilee, marking 25 years of excellence and elegance as one of Singapore's pioneering bastions of luxury retail. Silver jubilees are especially significant; like the metal itself, a 25-year milestone represents something that has withstood the test of time, proving its strength, value, and lasting quality. In the case of Paragon, it has shown itself to be resilient, remaining relevant even in the face of online shopping, and the rise of other luxury retail spaces such as The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands and ION Orchard. It even survived Covid-19.

The celebration was fitting of a silver jubilee, as pillars built to look like silver ore, gleaming with mirrors and light fixtures, were built at the atrium on the ground floor. Celebrities, influencers, and several movers and shakers of Singapore's fashion world graced the event.

Among them was Douglas Benjamin. Bespectacled and with an air of calm erudition, the Group Chief Executive Officer of FJ Benjamin was greeted warmly by many of the attendees, such is his influence and popularity in the luxury fashion retail scene in Singapore.