Katong clinics shophouse on East Coast Road for sale at $9.8 mil
East Coast Road is an iconic part of Singapore’s heritage, with the traditional shophouses that have stood for decades. But in recent years, some of the businesses that had been there for decades have now closed as the owners have retired. 139 East Coast Road’s Glory Catering, famed for its Nonya cuisine, bid farewell in August 2019 after almost 60 years. Two years before, the shophouse was already sold to an undisclosed buyer. Continuing this trend, Ampang Niang Tou Fu – Yong Tau Fu – at 225 East Coast Road, closed at the end of May 2022 after more than 30 years.
On the other hand, some businesses have been granted second lives. Chin Mee Chin, a bakery and coffee shop that opened way back in 1925 and known for its kaya buns, sugee cake and sugar rolls, is a prime example. The Tan family, the original owners, announced its closure in 2018 due to succession and manpower issues. Yet, their long-time customer Lim Kian Chun of the Ebb & Flow Group took it over, reviving Chin Mee chin in 2021. The Tan family continues to own the shophouse at 204 East Coast Road.
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Opposite both Chin Mee Chin and the Holy Family Church, the freehold shophouse at 207 East Coast Road holds a ‘Commercial’ zoning. Dr Loh Hung Soo and his wife Dr Loh Pek Har have operated from this spot for over 35 years – the former operating a paediatric clinic on the first level, while the latter provided ophthalmologic treatments from the second storey. Their son Loh Lik Peng owns the Unlisted Collection hospitality group, which is responsible for the trend of transforming shophouses into trendy boutique hotels, as evidenced by 1929 on Keong Saik Road, the Majestic Hotel at Bukit Pasoh Road, and Wanderlust on Dickson Road. He extended this vision to F&B, opening Meatsmith, Burnt Ends, Nouri, and Kotuwa, now owning more than 20 restaurants around the world. Loh has also purchased iconic heritage buildings in Dublin, London, and Sydney, and opened the Michelin-starred Terre at the Castlematyr Resort in Cork County, Ireland.
Moreover, the area will become safer and greener, as the plan works towards increasing the public realm’s connectivity, and creating a sustainable ecosystem and greenery. The area around Tampines Ave 11 Condo will become more accessible with the addition of a cycling network and a new pedestrian network, encouraging residents to adopt more sustainable transport options.
207 East Coast Road is now up for sale after their parents’ retirement, with an asking price of $9.8 million ($3,630 psf). The joint marketing agents for the shophouse are Simon Monteiro of List Sotheby’s International Realty and Alvan Ng of SRI. The double-storey shophouse, built in 1929, sits on a 1,500 sq ft freehold site with a total built-up area of 2,700 sq ft. The road frontage allows it to be used as a clinic, vet clinic, pet shop, or gym on the first level, and the upper floor can be converted into a boutique co-living concept with URA approval. The owners have already done soundproofing for the new owners “to get it up and running.”
Further down East Coast Road, off Still Road, sits another row of shophouses, with an intermediate one at 288 East Coast Road on the market for $5.6 million ($2,240 psf). The shophouse is freehold, on a 1,353 sq ft site with a built-up area of 2,500 sq ft, and is zoned for residential use with commercial on the first storey. Provisional permission has been granted to use the second level as serviced apartments or a co-living space with 9 beds, and the ground-floor unit can be changed for retail or takeaway food. A five-storey extension can be built at the rear of the shophouses at 207 and 288 East Coast Road, and both are for sale by private treaty.
East Coast Road’s shophouses continue to inspire and govern the area, with traditional businesses sometimes closing but many more finding a new lease of life within them.