![](\"http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/TOTP10201.png?fit=526%2C369\")
\nZuo against the model of his latest collaboration, Thomson Impressions. (Photo: Chang Hui Chew)
\nIn Singapore since 1998, Zuo Haibin has worked on several projects that dot our skyline, building homes for many. PropertyGuru speaks to the man at the showroom of his latest collaboration, Thomson Impressions.
\nby Chang Hui Chew
\nAs we sit down for our interview, I see a glimpse of Mr Zuo Haibin\u2019s working style as he wraps up a conversation with his staff \u2013 firm, no nonsense and straight to the point. He comes across as a man of force, with his large frame, salt-and-pepper hair and deep voice.
\nAs he speaks, his thick, beetling brows waggle animatedly, as if to emphasise his points. Zuo is indeed an interesting character and the story he tells of himself and his business enterprises is one of challenges overcome.
\nZuo, a native of Shandong, China, owns Yihe Investments with his wife, Li Ming Hua. The majority shareholder behind Thomson Impressions, Nanshan Singapore, partnered with Yihe to form the vehicle NS Property (Thomson), to develop their maiden residential project here in Singapore.
\nUnlike many developers who depend on outsourced construction companies to build their towers of glass and steel, Zuo is involved with the development, marketing and construction of Thomson Impressions. Aside from being a partner in the project development, Zuo is also a director of Vico Construction, builder behind the project.
\nFor an Internet company like PropertyGuru, it can be easy for us to get lost in the almost overnight successes of many startups. A story like Zuo\u2019s brings us back to earth. His journey here in Singapore has indeed been one of ups and down, and provides several lessons and an inspiration to those looking to set up business in a highly competitive landscape.
\nSelf-made man
\nWhen Zuo first arrived in Singapore in 1998, he was an employee of Qingjian. While it has become one of Singapore\u2019s most prolific developers today, both Qingjian and Zuo were newcomers to this Southeast Asian red dot at the time.
\n\u201cWe arrived in Singapore with just USD300,000,\u201d Zuo told PropertyGuru. It also turned out to be one of worst times to start a business in Singapore, due to the recession brought about by the bursting dot-com bubble.
\n\u201cIt was a difficult time, and we faced many challenges.\u201d Businesses were in trouble, and \u201csome of the people we worked with reneged on their payments\u201d. Fortunately, \u201cSingapore is a place with a strong rule of law and one where businesses are encouraged to thrive and grow.\u201d
\nFocus, Zuo recalls, was a key reason for his previous employer\u2019s success.
\n\u201cWe started out building HDB flats in Sengkang, and in time, we became known as the \u2018King of Sengkang\u2019 because all the flats along the stretch were built by Qingjian.\u201d
\nWhen Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced plans for Punggol 21+ in his National Day Rally speech in 2007, the company also chose to expand in the area, and to start developing executive condominiums (ECs).
\n\u201cIn Singapore,\u201d Zuo chuckles, \u201cYou\u2019ll never go wrong by following the government\u2019s plans.\u201d
\nFocusing on the priorities
\nIn Nanshan, Zuo also found a partner with the same conviction in focusing on specific areas. While Thomson Impressions is Nanshan\u2019s first residential endeavour, it is not their first project in Singapore.
\nIn two deals brokered by Cushman and Wakefield, Nanshan bought Irving Industrial Building in March, and led a consortium to purchase Harper Kitchen. Together with Thomson Impressions\u2019 Lorong Puntong site, the total investment for these sites just east and north of Singapore\u2019s Central region run north of $380 million.
\nWith the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) recently releasing the H2 2016 Government Land Sales, Zuo and his partners might have another target within their sights.
\n\u201cI think the Bidadari site will be of interest to many developers,\u201d he says. \u201cIt is probably going to be quite hotly contested.\u201d When asked if there were intentions to bid for the site, Zuo\u2019s reply was a simply a twinkly smile.
\nThe site Zuo is referring to lies on Upper Aljunied Road, a mixed-use Commercial and Residential site next to Woodleigh MRT. URA has indicated that the site could yield over 800 housing units and 15,000 sq ft of commercial space.
\nOne of the reasons behind Zuo\u2019s focus on this particular region of Singapore is due to his familiarity with the area. Most mornings, Zuo can be found taking an early morning stroll around Bishan Park, while on the weekends, he takes longer walks around MacRitchie Reservoir with his wife and some friends.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s a really beautiful, peaceful place, and if you\u2019re lucky, you can even get to see some of the rarer waterfowl that nest around the reservoir.\u201d As one gets on in age, he says, \u201cit becomes even more important to take time to be active\u201d.
\nMaximal returns
\nKeeping his stakeholders satisfied is important to Zuo.
\n\u201cFirst you have to do things to make the government happy. Then you need to make the citizens happy. Finally, you need to do things that would make your employees happy.\u201d Doing so, he believes, would be key to maximising one\u2019s returns, and making investors happy.
\nOne of the strategies he employs to provide value to investors and other stakeholders is a focus on speed. Speed, Zuo tells us, allows businesses to gain maximum returns and reduces risk. As a builder, completing projects quickly and safely reduces overhead and labour costs, and also provides buyers with homes that they can move in to earlier.
\nDespite his accomplishments, Zuo still has ambitions. They include being part of a commercial development in the city, and to help Shandong and Singapore build bilateral relations.
\nBut Zuo is no dreamer with his head in the clouds. A key lesson that he learnt as an undergraduate studying real estate is that \u201cbusiness is business, nothing else\u201d. It is a pithy phrase that exhorts one to consider the facts of the matter while leaving emotions aside and it is also a phrase that has served him well.
\nFinal impressions
\nAs we walk around the project\u2019s showflat looking for spots to photograph Zuo, he waxes eloquent about the project, and the rationale behind its name. It took inspiration from the labours of another Mainland Chinese export, famed director Zhang Yimou\u2019s impressionistic work. The team behind Thomson Impression felt that the idyllic, dreamy nature of the nearby reservoir and parks are evocative of this particular art form.
\nAs Zuo speaks, one can almost imagine the completed Thomson Impressions rising over the area, an edifice of mirrored glass and steel that reflects the verdant greenery, the wispy mists over the reservoir in the pre-dawn light.
\nYes, Zuo is a man whose words have painted pictures and he has made a strong impression on me. I also believe that there is still a trove of stories he has yet to tell. As Zuo tugs and smoothens his jacket between clicks of the camera, he makes a comment about the formality of the interview: \u201cNext time\u201d, he says, \u201cLet\u2019s do this over a drink instead.\u201d<\/p>\n