THE founder of Singapore-based conservation shophouse player 8M Real Estate has sold his stake in the company and stepped down as its chief executive officer.

Ashish Manchharam left a high-flying capital markets career at property consulting group JLL in 2014 to set up 8M Real Estate. From its maiden acquisition of five adjoining shophouses at 112-116 Amoy Street, the real estate investment company’s portfolio has grown to 70-plus assets worth about S$1.4 billion in Singapore.

These comprise mainly conservation shophouse properties in the Boat Quay and Chinatown historic districts. The portfolio also includes assets in Dickson Road in Little India, Jalan Besar and Holland Village.

About half of the portfolio’s floor area is leased out for food and beverage (F&B) and retail use. The rest is for office, hotel and residential uses.

When contacted by The Business Times, Manchharam, 45, confirmed that he has sold his stake in 8M Real Estate to the majority owner of the company, Crane Capital. The Hong Kong-based real estate investment company has an international investor base.

The transfer was completed on Sep 30, the same day Manchharam stepped down from the CEO post.

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Said Manchharam: “In just under a decade, 8M has grown into an institutional-grade platform with an experienced team of over 20 professionals who are entrenched in 8M’s investment and operating philosophy encapsulating tenant curation, design and placemaking in addition to restoration of heritage properties.”

Asked why, at this juncture, he is leaving an enterprise and property segment he has so much passion for, Manchharam said: “The portfolio is largely stabilised and the company well positioned for diversification and growth. I am confident in handing management over to the current team and Crane Capital as they embark on the next phase of growth for 8M Real Estate.”

On his future plans, he said: “My passion remains in property and building lifestyle-led real estate businesses with a focus on niche trends and adaptive reuse.”

He recalled that back in 2014, the strategy that 8M adopted, of repositioning Singapore’s iconic, historically significant shophouses, was considered unorthodox for institutional investors. Today, however, conservation shophouses have gained more acceptance as a real estate investment asset class, he added.

Rejuvenating landscapes

“We have helped to rejuvenate the landscapes of some of Singapore’s most recognised streets such as Keong Saik Road, Gemmill Lane, Amoy Street and Tanjong Pagar Road.”

The group’s biggest asset is 15 to 43 Tanjong Pagar Road, comprising 15 shophouses acquired through four transactions between 2016 and 2022. The shophouses, which have four storeys and a mezzanine level, have a total floor area of about 75,000 sq ft, with F&B space on the ground floor and offices on the upper levels.

The portfolio also includes three boutique hotels (which have substantial F&B spaces): Wanderlust, a conserved commercial building in Dickson Road; Kesa House (comprising 10 adjoining shophouses in Keong Saik Road); and Ann Siang House (comprising three shophouses in Ann Siang Road). The hotels are operated by Ascott under The Unlimited Collection brand.

A fourth hotel, 21 Carpenter, is set to open at the end of this year. The property, at the corner of New Bridge Road and Carpenter Street, is within a secondary settlement conservation area. The asset is a four-storey conserved block with a new rear extension of six storeys.

The group’s residential assets comprise fully-furnished apartments on the upper levels of 5 Gemmill Lane and 31 Hongkong Street. Both are operated by co-living operator Cove.