SMRT passing the buck?

BillyBong SG

Dhoby Xchange woes: Blame it on bad planning

I read the article, 'Dhoby Xchange - Not open for business' (ST, Feb 6), and empathise with the situation faced by the tenants at the Dhoby Xchange.
I understand that SMRT had wanted to launch an opening for the Xchange sometime in May last year; however, the opening was rescheduled three times and became an indefinite unknown thereafter. And I do not agree with the SMRT spokesperson who claimed that they had 'relentlessly' marketed the Xchange. There are still many people who do not know that Xchange exists.

SMRT, in opening a shopping mall within its own premises at Dhoby Ghaut, should know that there would be tough competition from its neighbour, Plaza Singapura. Thus in terms of crowd-pulling, it should work with Plaza Singapura to perhaps build a direct access tunnel from the MRT station to the Plaza basement which will make commuters walk through the Xchange.

It should also understand that the crowd at Dhoby Ghaut MRT are mainly working people from that area, or tenants and shoppers of Plaza Singapura... thus the set-up or decoration outside the station should be obvious enough for passers-by to notice that there is another shopping haven within.

SMRT has failed as a landlord to channel its commuters through that shopping arcade.

Its claim that sales have grown by 70 per cent since May last year is interesting, so what were sales figures like in May last year? From what I understand, the Xchange had only a few shops open in May last year.

As a businessman myself, and comparing the rental in many areas in Singapore, Dhoby Xchange definitely does not command the kind of rental I read in the papers.

If we do a 'crowd to rental' ratio comparison with other malls in the town area, the rental is over-priced... SMRT made a very bad decision, or I should say bad planning, in the setting up of this shopping arcade. To be fair to the tenants, they have no ability to attract the crowds to the location by their own means.

Alan Ng Wee Ping

BillyBong SG

The only outlet that seems to be performing on average is pepper lunch express.

The rest are either dying or out of business soon.

Complacency and lack of competition seems the cause for weak marketing and promotion by SMRT. These seem to be all the hallmarks for govt-run operations.

ditzy SG

I didn't know about that place until I passed through it by accident some time this year. Laughing The arcade is always near empty, so I get to play my favourite machines minus the queue.

Lowclassman SG

Originally posted by BillyBong:
[b]Dhoby Xchange woes: Blame it on bad planning

I read the article, 'Dhoby Xchange - Not open for business' (ST, Feb 6), and empathise with the situation faced by the tenants at the Dhoby Xchange.
I understand that SMRT had wanted to launch an opening for the Xchange sometime in May last year; however, the opening was rescheduled three times and became an indefinite unknown thereafter. And I do not agree with the SMRT spokesperson who claimed that they had 'relentlessly' marketed the Xchange. There are still many people who do not know that Xchange exists.

SMRT, in opening a shopping mall within its own premises at Dhoby Ghaut, should know that there would be tough competition from its neighbour, Plaza Singapura. Thus in terms of crowd-pulling, it should work with Plaza Singapura to perhaps build a direct access tunnel from the MRT station to the Plaza basement which will make commuters walk through the Xchange.

It should also understand that the crowd at Dhoby Ghaut MRT are mainly working people from that area, or tenants and shoppers of Plaza Singapura... thus the set-up or decoration outside the station should be obvious enough for passers-by to notice that there is another shopping haven within.

SMRT has failed as a landlord to channel its commuters through that shopping arcade.

Its claim that sales have grown by 70 per cent since May last year is interesting, so what were sales figures like in May last year? From what I understand, the Xchange had only a few shops open in May last year.

As a businessman myself, and comparing the rental in many areas in Singapore, Dhoby Xchange definitely does not command the kind of rental I read in the papers.

If we do a 'crowd to rental' ratio comparison with other malls in the town area, the rental is over-priced... SMRT made a very bad decision, or I should say bad planning, in the setting up of this shopping arcade. To be fair to the tenants, they have no ability to attract the crowds to the location by their own means.

Alan Ng Wee Ping [/b]

Don't you know that this landlord is worst than blood sucking leech.

Atobe SG

The cold hard business response from SMRT - towards genuine problems suffered by SME's - reflect the typical arrogance and unfeeling attitude of those political appointees, who feel themselves blessed with immunity and the right to act as "little LKYs" .

To think that they have received years of education, groomed to adulthood by parents who have slogged through the 1950s, and yet once in high office they forget that there are those whose circumstances are completely different.

Even those born with a 'silver spoon in their mouths' will have rich parents who had to face the grind from the Ruling Party to repossess the family wealth - as evidence by the disappearance of some famous family names from the Colonial Days and the early 1950s.

More of such events will surely expose the true character of the system that this Ruling Political Party has created - a money driven, performance orientated machine.

One of the Founding Father of Singapore - the late Foreign Minister Rajaratnam - who coined the word : "Moneytheism".

ndmmxiaomayi SG

If you know about XChange, you take the trains too frequently.

The ads, as far as I know, appeared on trains.

I've never really seen them advertising anywhere...

hisoka SG

there were ads? i never look at the adverts on mrt b4 Laughing

ndmmxiaomayi SG

Anything that decorates the trains, I call them ads. Laughing

Kuali Baba SG

*Armchair suggestion*

There's plenty of traffic at this interchange, but that's because people need to switch lines. I wonder if business at XChange might've been better if people didn't have to pass through the gates to get to the shops. There's so much space along the route between the 2 lines that's taken up by just artwork and advertisements.

BillyBong SG

Your plan might have suceeded, if the EZ-link charging system did not take into account time durations, limiting the time consumers/commuters can stay within the confines of the station without gating out.

The whole point is that the Xchange is located in no-man's land; a deliberate diversion away from the main exit is required to enter this 'shopping haven'.

Now where's the planning in that?

Even the Raffles Place shopping arcade was much better in its advertising and location.

Kuali Baba SG

I'm not please with the way SMRT is acting as a landlord either. Will they even devote a part of the huge billboard next to the travellator to promoting Xchange? It was taken up by ESPN the last time I looked at it.

Atobe SG

Originally posted by Kuali Baba:
I'm not please with the way SMRT is acting as a landlord either. Will they even devote a part of the huge billboard next to the travellator to promoting Xchange? It was taken up by ESPN the last time I looked at it.

Either SMRT has engaged lousy Architects - who have not envisaged the shops as part of the overall plan, or that SMRT has merely carved out un-usable areas found in dead areas to be leased out to generate extra revenue to boost their bottom line performance.

Most of the shops found at MRT stations are poorly located and the trades that are allowed to operate will seldom meet any immediate needs of a traveller in a hurry. Most of the items sold are junklets, garments, airline travel services; and seldom of the variety such as general stores like 7-Eleven and Cheers which are located at above-ground stations.

Nothing is available for anyone in a hurry to grab a quick bite or a drink, which are such a common sight in the many modern subway stations in Germany.

This no food and no drink approach is due to SMRT paranoia to the possibility of rats being bred in the underground system, as if the rats will not find its way into the warm labyrinth of the cavenous tunnels.

blueheeler SG

i think that SMRT indeed has a duty-of-care towards the renters. But since SMRT dod not 'force' anyone of them to rent the space, the renters must somehow be a little more responsible. For eg. I tend to see so many shops selling the same stuff clustered together (i call it the buddle-tea syndrome), so how can all of them survive chasing that few customers?

maybe this setback will make our small-time business-people smarter: always be that little bit different in your business/service so that you stand out from the crowd, rather than competing with them using the exact same stretagies.

Kuali Baba SG

It's not just the rats. They'd have to provide dustbins, which they removed some time ago to prevent anyone from hiding bombs in them. That finished off any chance of a reversal in the 'no eating and drinking' rule.

ShutterBug SG

What a masterfully written post!
Smile