AMK Hub Official Opening
22 September 2007
Media Release
1. The NTUC Family has come together under one roof to serve the Ang Mo Kio community. AMK Hub, the newest “mall-on-the-block”, is home to seven NTUC social enterprises – NTUC FairPrice, NTUC Income, NTUC Foodfare, NTUC Healthcare, NTUC Childcare, NTUC Eldercare and NTUC Club.
2. AMK Hub is jointly developed by the Singapore Labour Foundation (SLF), NTUC Income and NTUC FairPrice and houses some 200 commercial tenants. Complementing the diverse mix of retail, food and beverage, entertainment and self-enrichment outlets, the seven NTUC social enterprises add a social dimension to AMK Hub, touching the lives of Ang Mo Kio residents and bringing them cheer.
3. NTUC social enterprises have scored many firsts to become household names in providing quality products and services at affordable prices to help working people stretch their hard-earned dollar. At AMK Hub, they provide one-stop convenience and cost savings to the Ang Mo Kio community, offering residents of all ages and all walks of life, an array of products and services, in a holistic way. The NTUC Family is proud of this collective initiative under one roof.
Official Launch Ceremony
4. Speaking at the official launch ceremony of AMK Hub this morning, Guest of Honour, Mr Lim Boon Heng, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Chairman of the NTUC Social Enterprise Development Council said, “Businesses exist to make profits for shareholders. However, beyond generating profits, businesses are expected to be of service to the community. A good businessman is honest in intent and socially responsible in deed. This is where co-operatives play a role. In the era of the free-market, co-operatives act as a counter-weight to for-profit enterprises to ensure that stakeholders’ interests are met.”
5. Some 400 guests, comprising NTUC Central Committee members, Chief Executive Officers and Directors of NTUC co-operatives, union leaders, Members of Parliament and grassroots leaders of Ang Mo Kio GRC, and representatives of the mall’s commercial tenants, witnessed the official opening ceremony.
6. Mr Lim declared the retail complex officially open by activating a launch mechanism that lighted up the AMK Hub logo. He was joined by NTUC Secretary-General Mr Lim Swee Say, Member of Parliament for Yio Chu Kang SMC Mr Seng Han Thong, and representatives of the three mall owners - Ms Adeline Sum, CEO of SLF; Mr Tan Suee Chieh, CEO of NTUC Income; Mr Tan Kian Chew, CEO of NTUC FairPrice; and Mr Seah Kian Peng, Managing Director (Singapore) of NTUC FairPrice.
7. Guests were also treated to a short video clip that chronicled Ang Mo Kio’s development from mature housing estate in the early days to freshly rejuvenated, hip-and-happening town centre, showing how AMK Hub has brought benefits to residents and businesses in the Town Centre.
NTUC Social Enterprises
8. The NTUC social enterprises had a chance to showcase their unique offerings when Mr Lim toured the seven-storey, 48,250 sqm complex.
9. Spanning more than 7,000 sqm, anchor tenant and main crowd-puller FairPrice Xtra is the flagship hypermarket of NTUC FairPrice. It offers a wide variety of products ranging from groceries to electronic items to the 250,000 customers who shop at the store each week. In line with NTUC FairPrice’s social mission to help moderate the cost of living for low-income households, FairPrice Xtra offers a diverse range of quality products at affordable prices, including its housebrand items. At the same time, it keeps pace with the changing lifestyle needs of Ang Mo Kio residents. The International Lane for instance offers products from countries such as Japan, Korea, Australia and the United States. The Wine section makes wine affordable for the man in the street. Kids-sized grocery carts to make it fun to shop as a family, and benches within the store for elderly shoppers to rest their tired feet, are all part of the hypermart’s popular pro-family features.
10. At NTUC Foodfare, residents can enjoy a sumptuous spread of hawker fare at affordable prices. Foodfare stays true to its mission of keeping cooked food prices stable. While Coffee and Milo prices have seen a spike elsewhere, at Foodfare, the prices of these essential beverages have stayed the same to help low-income residents. To create more value for customers, Foodfare has also set up in AMK Hub, its first retail shop, Cui Xiang Ting, which sells mooncakes and pastries.
11. At AMK Hub, NTUC Healthcare has worked in collaboration with partners to expand its healthcare services. It collaborates with Thomson Medical Centre to teach parent craft to new parents, with plans in the pipeline for a women’s clinic. It also collaborates with the National Healthcare Group (NHG) to set up a foot care service as part of the national diabetic management programme. To meet increasing demand for alternative medicine, NTUC Healthcare has also started up a Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic. AMK Hub also houses NTUC Healthcare’s megastore, The Living Pharmacy, a one-stop family health store with a modern lifestyle interior and expanded product range. The Living Pharmacy features a health kiosk to inform and educate customers, a soundproof room for hearing tests, a consultation area, and a “Living Café” which serves natural and organic foods to the health-conscious customer. While NTUC Healthcare keeps in step with the lifestyle needs of Ang Mo Kio residents, it stays true to its mission of providing quality healthcare products and services at affordable prices.
12. NTUC Income has brought the benefits of insurance and financial planning to people from all strata of society. Its Insurance Business Centre at AMK Hub offers a full suite of insurance servicing facilities. Residents are able to carry out all their insurance transactions and financial planning at stone’s throw convenience.
13. Under the auspices of NTUC Childcare, The Little Skool-House At-The-Hub brings premium childcare and pre-school services to Ang Mo Kio. Parents with young children, especially working mothers, can better manage their time and enjoy peace of mind, knowing that their children are engaged in professionally-run, fun and stimulating activities, while the parents are at work or running errands. The pre-school’s one-stop concept comprises a full-day and half-day programme (from Toddler to Kindergarten 2) and a suite of enrichment programmes in literacy, music, art and fitness to develop the fullest potential of children from 18 months to 6 years. The Little Skool-House At-The-Hub was officially opened by Mr Lim on the same day as the official opening of AMK Hub. It complements the existing network of affordable childcare centres provided by NTUC Childcare in Ang Mo Kio.
14. NTUC Eldercare manages The Platinum Lounge. This is a platform for union members above the age of 50 to meet, interact, network and form interest groups within the warm and cosy setting of the lounge premises. The Platinum Lounge helps bring the experience of active ageing to its patrons.
15. Two offerings by NTUC Club at AMK Hub are nEbO and Scarlet City. nEbO, a club for the young by the young, engages the youth to help them develop and realize their potential in their areas of interest, be it entertainment, sports, arts and culture, or entrepreneurship. Scarlet City offers a whole new clubbing experience with its oriental-themed setting and live-theater-cum-concert entertainment concept. An eight-screen cineplex complements NTUC Club’s offerings to keep Ang Mo Kio residents entertained and achieve better work-life balance.
16. True to the Labour Movement 2011 vision of “Labour Movement for All, All for Labour Movement”, the NTUC social enterprises at AMK Hub offer something for everyone, enriching the life of residents of all ages and all walks of life, at work, live and play.
Mall for the Community
17. Speaking on behalf of the Ang Mo Kio community, Mr Seng Han Thong, Member of Parliament for Yio Chu Kang SMC said, “In 2004, we set in motion redevelopment plans for Ang Mo Kio Town Centre. Today, it is heartening to see Ang Mo Kio residents and businesses enjoying the fruition of those plans. AMK Hub has transformed our estate. There is buzz, vibrancy and a mood of celebration in the air. This is truly a community space that has put Ang Mo Kio back on the Singapore map.”
18. Some 70,000 visitors step into AMK Hub on an average day, from the time it opened its doors in March this year. Visitors flock in not only from Ang Mo Kio but from surrounding estates as well, thanks to seamless access provided by the integrated air-conditioned bus interchange and underground link to Ang Mo Kio MRT Station.
19. AMK Hub has engaged residents and businesses at various stages of its development. The official launch was no different. Living up to its spirit as a mall for the community, residents, shoppers, schools and businesses joined in for two weekends of fun-filled fiesta which included the AMK Race and the AMK Family Look-alike Hunt. Celebrity-led performances and activities, and a pyrotechnics fireworks display on the night of the launch, added to the festive mood.
Mall with a Heart
20. Amidst the celebrations, AMK Hub also showed itself as a mall with a heart. Charity fund-raising activities comprised outright cash donations by tenants, contributions of sales proceeds over the launch weekend, an outdoor charity food street and lifestyle zone, and a charity auction. Proceeds from the charity fund-raising will go towards three beneficiaries in the Ang Mo Kio area – the Ang Mo Kio Family Service Centre, MINDS Yio Chu Kang Gardens School and the AWWA Elderly Services.
21. Speaking on behalf of the mall owners, Mr Seah Kian Peng said, “As a mall that is closely associated with the labour movement, it is only natural that AMK Hub shares in the labour movement’s caring ethos. We are very grateful for the generous support of many of our mall tenants and residents towards this charitable cause.”
_________________
About National Trades Union Congress
The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) is a national confederation of trade unions in the industrial, service and public sectors representing 500,000 workers in Singapore. NTUC comprises 63 affiliated unions, 6 affiliated taxi associations, 9 co-operatives and 6 related organisations. NTUC’s objectives are to help Singapore stay competitive and workers remain employable for life; to enhance the social status and well-being of workers; and to build a strong, responsible and caring labour movement. NTUC's vision is to be an inclusive labour movement for all collars, all ages and all nationalities. For more details on NTUC, please visit our website at www.ntuc.org.sg
About Singapore Labour Foundation
Founded in 1977, Singapore Labour Foundation (SLF) was set up with the mission to improve the welfare of union members and further the development of the trade union movement in Singapore. SLF has 79 institutional members comprising NTUC affiliated unions, associations and co-operatives.
About NTUC Income
Established in 1970 in response to the growing needs for affordable insurance, NTUC Income has become a leading life, health and general insurer, earning the trust of 1.8 million customers. The $19 billion company has been rated “AA” by independent credit ratings agency, Standard & Poor's since 1999, the highest accolades to be given to a domestic insurer in Asia, reflecting a strong financial profile, flexibility and capacity to meet new challenges. NTUC Income's insurance plans benefit large numbers of Singaporeans from all strata of society, from the professionals and executives, to those with a more limited budget. It helps Singaporeans in difficult times by creating job opportunities and supports the community through financial contributions to charities and other worthy causes.
About NTUC FairPrice
NTUC Fairprice Co-operative Ltd was founded by the labour movement in 1973, with a social mission to moderate the cost of living in Singapore. From one supermarket, it has grown to become Singapore’s largest retailer, with a network of 216 outlets comprising 76 FairPrice supermarkets, 1 FairPrice Finest, 2 FairPrice Xtra, 2 Homemarts, 19 FairPrice Xpress and 116 Cheers convenience stores. NTUC FairPrice also owns a Fresh Food Distribution Centre and a centralised warehousing and distribution company. Today, with its multiple retail formats serving the varied needs and interests of people from all walks of life, the social mission of NTUC FairPrice has evolved to make the dream of living well accessible to everyone by moderating the costs of the good life.
About NTUC Foodfare
NTUC Foodfare Co-operative Limited was founded in 1995 with the mission to stabilize cooked food prices in Singapore. Today, Foodfare continues to fulfill this social role by keeping its prices for basic essential beverage and cooked food low and affordable. Foodfare now operates 4 food courts, 4 coffee shops and 1 food kiosk. It also caters food to 9 army camps and operates a factory producing retail packed frozen bakery items and local delicacies, sauces and pastes.
About NTUC Healthcare
NTUC Healthcare Co-operative Limited was set up in 1992 to help moderate the cost of healthcare in Singapore through promoting and providing quality healthcare services at affordable rates. Currently, the Co-operative operates 40 Unity Healthcare Pharmacies, 13 dental clinics, 7 medical clinics and 2 Traditional Chinese Medicine clinics.
About NTUC Childcare
The NTUC Childcare Group has 30 years of experience in providing quality early childhood care and education programmes, and has the largest pool of 18 full time early childhood professionals with Master and Doctoral degrees in Singapore. The Group focuses mainly on pre-school education and the training and consultancy of early childhood professionals. Under the pre-school education arm, the Group offers a range of services that suit the various needs of different parents with NTUC Childcare’s chain of 40 centres, the 4 centres by The Little Skool-House International, and The Caterpillar’s Cove.
About NTUC Eldercare
NTUC ElderCare Co-operative Limited was set up in 1997 to help the middle-income Singaporeans to care for their elderly dependents. It provides affordable, quality and value-added care services and facilities so that the elderly can be engaged meaningfully in terms of their physical, social and mental well-being. It currently operates 4 social day care centres and provides care@home service (non-medical home care).
About NTUC Club
Established in 1986, NTUC Club provides value-for-money entertainment and recreational facilities to all. Today, the Club has grown into one of the largest entertainment and leisure group in Singapore and has repositioned itself as a one-stop entertainment cum lifestyle provider. Over the years, it has expanded to include a world class theme park (Escape Theme Park), Singapore’s largest water theme park (Wild Wild Wet), three holiday resorts - Costa Sands Resort (Downtown East), Costa Sands Resort (Pasir Ris), Costa Sands Resort (Sentosa), five clubhouses (Happy Days, Jest D'Place, Union Square, DXO and Scarlet City), the Spa @ Aranda and a one-stop recreation cum lifestyle complex (Downtown East).
