Singapore’s leading hospitality-led co-working space, The Great Room, has opened its sixth location at 269 South Bridge Road, The new location occupies a stunning 22,000-square foot 1910 conservation property that was once the medicine hall for Singapore heritage brand Eu Yan Sang. The building, designed by Alfred Bidwell of Swan & Maclaren, who also designed Raffles Hotel and Victoria Memorial Hall, holds a BCA Green Mark Platinum status, showcasing its commitment to environmentally sustainable practices and innovative green features.

Led by Tamagin Blake-Smith, Design & Strategy Director of The Great Room, the design team approached the restoration of the century-old building with a desire to transform it into a shared economy space while preserving its unique historical features. To achieve this, The Great Room design team and local design agency, Kulor Group retained existing fixtures and fittings, repurposed older window frames and screens, and sourced furniture, tiles, fabrics, and art from local suppliers to limit the carbon footprint of the materials used.

The result is a stunning co-working space that blends heritage and modern design elements, creating a unique and inspiring environment for members to work, connect, and collaborate. The space boasts 11 dedicated offices that can accommodate between five to 70 members, one work hall, and four meeting rooms for two to 12 guests.

In addition, the location features a rooftop alfresco restaurant and bar, set to open later this month. It will serve as a modern-day hub for coffee meetings and power lunches during the day, and remaining open to the public in the evening, extending The Great Room’s message of “It’s all work, it’s all play,” and providing members with a flexible and comfortable space to connect.

The Great Room, South Bridge is designed to cater to the evolving needs of the modern workforce, with a focus on flexibility and community-building. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the shift to flexible work and the use of flexible spaces; and The Great Room is committed to enabling this flexibility for its members while creating vibrant spaces through the adaptive reuse of conservation buildings that hold importance to Singapore’s architectural heritage.

Related: Building conservation: Its necessity in Singapore’s changing urban landscape

The Great Room, South Bridge reflects the building’s rich history in nuanced ways, merging heritage and modern design elements to create a truly unique co-working space. The main hall welcomes members and guests with a 5-foot way lined with black and white tiles, reminiscent of the shophouses in the area. Behind the concierge counter and resource alcove, apothecary drawers, reminiscent of those found in traditional medicine halls, cleverly conceal storage space. Handcrafted blue and white ceramics adorn the display unit, paying homage to the building’s history.

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Throughout the common areas, vintage historical items such as a custom chess board, an abacus-inspired wooden chair, and traditional woven baskets, curated in collaboration with Vermillion and the design team, add a touch of nostalgia and charm.

A large historical map of central Singapore that blends the old and new is displayed o­n the first-floor common space, showcasing the storied history of the area. The back feature wall boasts a full-height mural that creatively represents the shophouse and the surrounding area, blending past and present in a narration of South Bridge Road and Ann Siang Hill’s history.

Accessible via its own public lift lobby, the restaurant and bar located on the fourth floor features colonial-inspired black and white tones, rattan finishes, whimsical lamps, breeze blocks and reclaimed pots. Urban sketches within the elevators narrate the history of Chinatown, so does the gallery wall of archival images and historic materials on the fourth floor foyer.

The Great Room, South Bridge is truly a unique coworking space that celebrates heritage preservation, sustainability, flexibility and autonomy for the modern workforce. With a calming palette of dark blues and browns, the hospitality-led co-working space appeals to creatives for inspired work.

Photography courtesy of The Great Room

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