Commercial History
The late 1990s saw the building first becoming a nightclub and later a number of restaurants. In 2000, the building was acquired by Tung Lok Group and the building became a restaurant known as Jing. Not long after its opening, the group revamped its concept and named it Asian. Both restaurants proved to be unpopular, and it closed down in 2003 due to SARS outbreak. The building was unused for around two years and it was converted into its current use in 2005.
The building is currently owned by Forever Living Products Intl, a healthcare company that uses purely aloe vera for its product. They are the world largest grower, manufacturer and distributor of Aloe Vera.
They bought over the building from the government in 2005 for SGD7million. The furnishing and such cost the company an additional SGD3million as they imported the antique furnitures from Malaysia and China.
Read more about this topic: Old Thong Chai Medical Institution
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