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Pushing limits can lead to greater heights, believes Andrew Li, CEO of Zouk Group. So does Italian luxury watchmaker Panerai
Chief executive officer of Zouk Group Andrew Li is a firm believer in pushing limits in life and at work to achieve success. That never-give-up mentality is what drives him to constantly hitting new heights in his career. He is the one who brought the Zouk brand past local borders to other parts of Asia and even onto luxury cruise liner Genting Dream with Zouk at Sea. And with the Covid-19 pandemic, nightlife was affected, hitting Zouk's operations badly. But the group pivoted very quickly, offering its clients the chance to club virtually and transforming the club's main dancefloor into a movie theatre and spin studio when safe distancing measures were relaxed slightly.
"Whether it is during my Ironman triathlons or weathering the Covid storm, I’ve realised that the human mind and body are able to achieve much more than we believe we can," he says. "Only when we are at our lowest, and we think we cannot go on is the strength of the human spirit shown, and limits can be surpassed."
Also constantly pushing limits is Italian luxury watchmaker Panerai, which is well-known for its diving watches. Besides upholding its heritage and watchmaking know-how, it also breaks barriers when it comes to technology and materials. Take the Submersible BMG-Tech, for instance. It is considered a game-changer because it is the first mechanical watch made of BMG-Tech, a metallic glass of high strength and durability developed by the brand. Ditto the Luminor Marina Carbotech, which is crafted out of Carbotech, a carbon fibre composite material that boasts both high technical performance and unique aesthetics.
Inspired by Panerai's spirit in challenging the norm and conquering the odds, Li shares more about the challenges he faced last year and how he pushes himself to achieve greater success in life.
(Related: A Drink With... Andrew Li)
Tell us about some of the key challenges in the business that you faced in 2020.
Andrew Li (AL) The Covid pandemic created an almost perfect storm that shut down all our revenue streams, not just domestically but globally. From our business in Malaysia to the cruise ships and here in Singapore, we had a 95 per cent drop in revenue.
And what's the biggest takeaway?
AL That we must no longer allow ourselves to be in a position where we are too reliant on just one single business source; in our case, entertainment and nightlife have been our bread and butter for the last 30 years. Although we had already started transitioning into having an F&B and lifestyle portfolio, we were not at the stage yet where this could sustain the rest of the business.
How quickly and effectively did you pivot and navigate the business out of trouble?
AL With the government’s rhetoric reiterating that this was a long-term situation, we made sure that we started brainstorming very quickly into the pandemic. We also realised that as more businesses began to open, other bars and clubs would also pivot to F&B, so we had to continue to think of new ways to entice our guests, which is why we are still releasing new concepts. Just last month, we launched a pop-up omakase concept in Capital Kitchen.
