Muji to open second cafe in Raffles City this month

SINGAPORE - The way to the hearts of Singaporeans is through their stomachs. And beloved Japanese brand Muji knows it well. It is opening its second Cafe&Meal Muji in Raffles City on July 28. Besides offering familiar items such as the popular butter chicken curry with rice, managing director of Muji Singapore and Malaysia, Takuo Nagahara revealed that new dishes such as donburis would be introduced at this outlet, which will be bigger than its first cafe at Paragon.

The opening of the second Cafe&Meal would certainly help contain the wait for the upcoming Muji flagship store, which was first announced in March by Masaaki Kanai, chairman of Ryohin Keikaku Co Ltd, the parent company of Muji when he was here as part of Singapore Design Week. One key highlight of the flagship store Kanai spoke about is the community-based design team, which would interact with consumers to create designs of their own.

Nagahara confirmed that Muji hopes to realise this “all-round lifestyle retail concept store” within one to two years. In the meantime, the brand is looking at “various ways to make improvements” to woo consumers, especially the younger ones. For instance, its Ion Orchard outlet will close from August 1 before reopening on September 22 with a new look; the brand has also held workshops and launched concept services such as the made-to-order service for Muji fabric and furniture, and consultation services for doing up your interiors. Muji die-hards will be pleased to know that new products, including Muji bicycles and the Found Muji collection led by industrial designer Naoto Fukasawa would be available in time too.

 To adjust to Singaporeans’ tastebuds, tweaks are made every three months to Cafe&Meal Muji. In May, the cafe combined three popular flavours to create the matcha cheesecake with black sesame ice cream. It also introduced alcohol in April for customers to unwind with after a hectic day.

These are all efforts for Muji to “rise to the customer’s demands” here while staying true to its ethos. “Our products benefit daily life and embrace innovation so that they become a need more than a want,” said Nagahara. “We are confident that people would still spend at Muji stores despite experiencing the ‘tightening of one’s belts’.”

For a listing of Muji stores islandwide, log on to http://www.muji.com/sg.