Despite 1880 closure, private members' club 67 Pall Mall is expanding
[SINGAPORE] Private members' club 1880 may have suddenly closed and gone into liquidation this week, but that is no dampener for another player here. 67 Pall Mall, which started operating in Singapore from 2022, has just signed a lease to expand to Shanghai – its first Chinese outpost.
The private members' club with a focus on fine wine will open next year at 7 Donghu Road, in Shanghai's historic Xuhui district. It will occupy the 100-year-old French Renaissance-style Grand Mansion – or da gongguan – built by British businessman Raymond Joseph.
Grant Ashton, who founded 67 Pall Mall in London in 2015, said that opening a club in Shanghai allows it to connect with the wine community in China, which 'has long been one of the most dynamic and rapidly growing wine markets in the world'.
On entering the country despite its economic woes, Ashton said the club's business model offering access to 'one of the largest lists of wines in the region at reasonable prices' has withstood economic ebbs and flows, including extended closures during the pandemic.
'Our proposition is new to the market in Shanghai and China – one that represents unprecedented value and access to fine wines.'
He is not concerned about the sudden collapse of 1880 either. The club had also abruptly closed its Hong Kong branch on May 30.
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'Our membership model has served us well for 10 years,' he told The Business Times. 'We are a very different club with a singular focus, and everything about 67 Pall Mall revolves around the appreciation of wine.'
In Singapore, the club occupies 15,000 square feet (sq ft) across the 27th and 28th floors of Shaw Centre in Scotts Road. The space used to be the penthouse dwelling of the late movie magnate Runme Shaw, where he threw extravagant soirees and wined and dined luminaries and celebrities.
The club here is 67 Pall Mall's third, after London and Verbier in Switzerland. It had previously announced upcoming club openings in Melbourne, Australia, as well as in France's Bordeaux and Beaune. Members have access to its clubs around the world.
Entrance to the Grand Mansion. PHOTO: 67 PALL MALL
As for the Shanghai club, it will comprise around 14,300 sq ft and carry a wine list of 5,000 by the bottle and 1,000 by the glass from 40 countries. The mansion's grandeur will be showcased and it will include spaces such as a Grand Salon, a sunroom overlooking the gardens, a whisky bar and multiple private rooms.
The Grand Mansion is a former diplomatic landmark that has housed various bureaus and served as the residence of some of China's prominent magnates, including industrialist and banker Sheng Zhushu. It has also hosted several high-profile events, including negotiations between former US president Richard Nixon and former Chinese premier Zhou Enlai, as well as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in China in 2001 attended by then US president George W Bush.
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