4 more tenants set to move out of Knightsbridge

Four more tenants will be moving out of Knightsbridge, after news broke earlier this week that a fitness club was vacating its space in the Orchard Road mall to make way for Singapore's first Apple Store.

They are clothing stores Tommy Hilfiger, Topshop/Topman and Brooks Brothers, as well as watch retailer Dickson Watch & Jewellery.

Brooks Brothers will move out by Dec 21, said its store manager Emilio Tan. The Straits Times understands that the other stores are likely to move out by year end.

Knightsbridge, which opened in 2010, now has eight tenants. The remaining three - CIMB Bank, American clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch and luxury watch retailer The Hour Glass - will stay put.

Fitness club Pure Fitness was told in the middle of this month that it had to hand back its 15,000 sq ft space on Dec 15, said Ms Hannah Yang, Pure Group's marketing manager. On Monday, the club broke the news of the gym's impending closure to its members via e-mail, adding that the short notice of seven weeks was "unfortunate".

The Knightsbridge gym has about 2,400 members. Some members have asked if its remaining gym at Asia Square, in the Marina area, can accommodate the surge in users.

A member of six years, advertising executive Daniel Goh, 45, said: "The surge in users is definitely a concern. I empathise with the management as they were given last-minute notice, but I hope they can give us some sweetener to make up for the inconvenience."

Ms Yang said members can get a full refund of their contracts "with no questions asked", regardless of the type of membership they have.

Or members can transfer their contracts to the group's three remaining facilities - the Asia Square gym, or the yoga studios in Chevron House and Ngee Ann City.

More classes, especially during peak hours, will be added to the Asia Square gym to take in the expected increase in users, she said.

Lawyer Emmanuel Sim, 32, paid for a pass that grants access to all four facilities. He posted on a Pure Fitness Facebook page asking if members with such passes will be compensated. Ms Yang said the club is still exploring compensation options for this group of customers.

See also: Apple Store in S'pore may edge resellers out

This article was first published on October 30, 2015.
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