Real estate might not be a sector that’s naturally associated with creativity, but for Samantha Tan, it was the opportunity to create that made the industry oh so appealing. “The real estate business is [about] having a chance to make a difference in the skyline and architectural landscape.”
Starting her career straight out of the National University of Singapore, Tan has been working with developers on various functions across different types of real estate. She now manages integrated development South Beach Consortium, a joint venture between City Developments Ltd (CDL) and IOI Group.
She’s also dipped her toes into entrepreneurship by starting her own business which lasted for two years. For someone who embraces challenges (she’d like to learn the violin given the chance), she applies a resilient attitude towards them. One of the hardest challenges, she shares, is to try to explain the importance of location to developers and owners. To her, success looks like a game of Lego, putting piece by piece or block by block together – it’s definitely not something that happens overnight.
Having had opportunities to travel far and wide, Tan would love to live in Japan given the chance. But at the same time, she is an admirer of China’s urban skyline, and if there’s one thing she’d like to change about her industry, is for Singapore to embrace advancement. “The architectural landscape in the world is changing very rapidly,” she reflects. “Singapore, as a global city, could be more vibrant and interesting.”
