Hong Kong co-working outfit Campfire Collaborative makes Singapore debut; leases all 16 floors at 139 Cecil St

HONG KONG-BASED co-working outfit Campfire Collaborative Spaces (see amendment note) is muscling in on Singapore's shared office space, with the startup announcing it has leased all 16 floors at 139 Cecil Street.

The site is currently an 11-storey building undergoing major renovation to add five more floors, which Campfire said includes a roof terrace with an "industry-first sky pool, rooftop bar, outdoor dining area and cabanas" for members.

Upon completion in the third quarter of 2019, its 85,000 square feet of space will make it Campfire's largest site globally.

The mixed-used development will also house food and beverage and retail outlets, a full-service gym and car parking spaces.

Events, conferencing, education, well-being and recreation facilities will also feature, in addition to a wide range of private and shared offices.

Campfire was founded two and a half years ago, and now has 20 co-working sites across four countries occupying over 580,000 sq ft.

The firm's press statement made no mention of its lease duration at Cecil Street, but previous reporting by The Business Times early in October noted it had most likely signed a six-year contract.

The signing of a binding lease agreement was announced on Oct 9 by mainboard-listed Vibrant Group, which holds a stake in the property's owner, Ececil.

Campfire's co-founder and chief executive Wang Tse said the startup was looking forward to opening in Singapore and "bringing something completely new to the sector".

"Cecil Street is a total integration of all aspects of what we offer at Campfire and it's really exciting to have finally found a site that can showcase and deliver this fully integrated lifestyle platform to the community, offering work-life balance, wellness and convenience, all under one roof," said Mr Tse.

Campfire offers an international network of collaborative spaces, from industry-focused co-working platforms to co-living, co-retail and a number of co-learning operations.

The announcement of Campfire's Singapore office comes after it announced it had taken up 80,000 sq ft of commercial space within The Harbourfront Landmark luxury residential development in Kowloon, in what Campfire said was one of Hong Kong's biggest co-working deals to date.

Amendment note: The story above has been updated to reflect that the startup's name is Campfire Collaborative Spaces, and not Campfire Collective as previously reported.