Things just got a whole lot more sophisticated for retail therapy and die-hard fashionistas in Bali with the launch of pioneering designer hub, TStore. By Katie Truman.
When hip TS Suites Bali Hotel launched in 2014 in southern Seminyak, the Indonesian TownSquare Group – owners and management behind such lifestyle developments as TS Suites Surabaya and Jenja Nightclub Jakarta – unleashed their distinctive lifestyle concept here too; TS Suites Bali Hotel courtyard complex earmarked as a Jakarta-style dining, entertainment and lifestyle hub, with a dozen or so carefully selected venues doing business alongside their star player, Jenja Nightclub Bali (still regarded as one of the island’s hottest nightspots) – an entirely new and exciting urban concept for our tropical island.
Fast forward to 2017 however and the TownSquare Group switched their attentions to the fashion world, with TS Suites Bali Hotel courtyard complex conceptualized as a sophisticated fashion and style epicentre, and launching in May, TStore: “A Designers’ Hub,” a whopping, 1,600-square-metres large, glass-encased store monopolizing most of the premises.
Super cool and uber-contemporary TStore offers a one-stop shopping experience and Designers Hub, the first of its kind in Bali, if not Indonesia.
“Bali’s first and most exclusive designer collection store with curated handmade fashion pieces, for the most prestigious evening wear besides timeless elegant casual daywear,” states the TStore blurb, and located in, where else, but Seminyak, the island’s forefront neighbourhood of cosmopolitan creativity and fashion cool.
Besides answering fashionistas’ prayers and the ultimate in retail convenience and style, with an endless array of apparel, accessories and jewellery all under one roof (not to mention, ample underground parking), TStore’s primary goal is to showcase Indonesia designers and their high-end designs besides promoting Bali and Indonesia’s fashion industry and increasing public awareness to a broader market – Bali the perfect fit for this, not only as an international resort destination, but increasingly, the haunt of jetsetters and the creative and fashion savvy. Plus, as the name implies, at this “Designers’ Hub,” fashion designers can meet with buyers, promote their designs and develop crucial business networks.
There are actually around 150 designers, an impressive mix of celebrated Indonesian designers, including Susan Budihardjo, Angeliqa Wu, Oka Diputra, Asti Kaleta, Monika Weber, Raramac, Ali Charisma, Neli Gunawan and Putu Aliki, and young Indonesian talents, just starting out on their fashion careers – many, members of the Indonesian Fashion Chamber (IFC) organization and originating from Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung, Semarang, Yogyakarta and of course, Bali. TStore also collaborates with a handful of Bali-based, international designers, with familiar names that include Milo, Espen Salberg, KMO and Nagicia.
What’s in TStore
TStore’s open-plan and vast retail space is conveniently divided into four retail zones – casual wear, resort wear, cocktail wear and evening wear – each stunningly showcasing the designers curated fashion designs alongside coordinating shoes, bags and jewellery pieces, displayed chic yet minimalist style on hanging racks, wall shelves and centerstage glass cabinets – along with a few sofas for retail time-out.
These eclectic collections are continually refreshed on a monthly basis keeping abreast of the latest trends; a brilliant kaleidoscope of colours and styles running from beach to ballroom that should accommodate even the most discerning tastes and fashionably challenged – and for a high-end designers’ hub, all surprisingly well-priced. Dresses range from cute resort-style sun dresses to formal style, red-carpet-ready evening gowns in frothy organza silks, sequined cocktail frocks and even divine bridal gowns – some of these super-elegant creations part of exclusive haute couture collections from prominent designers like Dimas Dwitanto, Ali Charisma and Oka Diputra. Day wear runs from multi-coloured, batik hand-stamped shirts and matching sandals to bold statement pant suits, while amongst the bag collections, snap-up anything from lurid-hued, ethnic print shoulder bags to smart leather totes and quirky numbers designed like a well-heeled boot. TStore additionally offers the ultimate fashionista fantasy, personalized shopping and styling services, what you’d normally expect in world-renowned high-class stores, the likes of New York’s Saks Fifth Avenue or Galeries Lafayette in Paris, but now, folks, available in downtown Seminyak – another Bali first.
Twice monthly on Friday afternoons, TStore hosts a two-hour “Fashion Friday” (by sought-after, personal invitation only), attracting a like-minded coterie of Bali’s fashion community – models, designers, industry movers and shakers et al. A fabulous opportunity over a glass of wine to catch-up, network and take-in a fashion show – a select number of designer collections modelled by snake-hipped, exotically tattooed lovelies sashaying down the improvised runway to infectiously catchy beats from the DJ deck. A fine way to sign-off the week. And if you can’t get your well-honed derriere over to this innovative hub, TStore is also available on-line – the hottest fashions a mere click away.
