A tailor shop in Singapore’s Chinatown has been carrying a Scandinavian connection for nearly half a century.
ABBA’s Department Store, a 47-year-old tailor shop, was named after the Swedish pop sensation ABBA and still displays a welcome sign originally intended to attract Scandinavian sailors.
That is according to Tabla.
Outside the shop hangs a blue sign reading: “Velkommen Til Singapore Og Til ABBA’s Dept. Store”.
Owner Parkash Naraindas Budhrani told the media he put up the sign when the shop was located near Singapore’s harbour, where Nordic seafarers regularly passed by.
“I thought this sign would draw them in,” Budhrani said to the media.
The shop, which specialises in custom-made suits and traditional garments, has since become a fixture in Chinatown. It was recently highlighted as part of a heritage initiative celebrating long-standing local businesses in Singapore.
Today, tourists account for most of the shop’s customers, but the store’s Scandinavian roots remain visible nearly 50 years after it first opened.
