--- title: "‘Are the people of Tampines getting richer?’: Man questions growing presence of luxury brands at heartland shopping mall" url: "/trending-now/are-people-tampines-getting-richer-man-questions-growing-presence-luxury-brands-heartland-shopping" published: "2026-10-27T06:56:32.000Z" updated: "2026-10-27T07:17:55.000Z" section: "Trending Now" authors: ["Trixy Toh"] tags: ["TNP News","Tampines","Tampines Mall","Luxury brands","heartlands","Isetan","branded goods","heart"] --- # ‘Are the people of Tampines getting richer?’: Man questions growing presence of luxury brands at heartland shopping mall *Citing the growing presence of luxury brands in Tampines Mall, a man has raised a question: Are Tampines residents “getting richer”?* A man took to social media to question whether Tampines residents are getting richer, citing the growing presence of luxury brands at Tampines Mall. In a TikTok video posted on Oct 24, user @uzentan shared about changes he recently spotted at the mall, pointing out several higher-end brands in the heartland shopping centre. “These brands DO NOT belong in Tampines Mall,” the on-screen caption reads. ## ‘Reminds me of the basement of Ion’ Describing Tampines Mall as a suburban mall, the user, who goes by Uzen Tan points out that it now houses luxury brands such as Yves Saint Laurent, Chanel, and Dior, as well as beauty stores such as Sephora and Aesop. He also noted jewellery retailers such as SK Jewellery, Goldheart, and Lee Hwa Jewellery. “Kind of reminds me of the basement of Ion or Wisma Atria,” he says. ![Tampines Mall luxury brands](https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/stomp/11df026532008c49137c666873fd575a54f7b73d4603c53e379462f59946e115) *He points out that the mall now houses luxury and beauty brands.* Tan adds that the mall has a City Chain Primo outlet, a premium brand under watch retailer City Chain. “These are brands that you should be seeing at places like Ion right? Not at Tampines Mall,” he reiterates. To Tan, the growing presence of such brands suggests that residents in the neighbourhood “might be getting richer”. He believes the influx of luxury brands reflects increased spending power among Tampines residents, making the neighbourhood an attractive market for retailers looking to draw in big spenders. According to the Capitaland website, Tampines Mall has an annual shopper traffic of 25 million. Tan ends the video by posing a question: Are the people of Tampines residents really getting richer? If not, why are luxury brands coming into Tampines Mall? Stomp has reached out to Tan for more details. ## Netizens divided over TikTok user’s claims The video has amassed more than 133,000 views and 200 comments, sparking debate among netizens over Tan’s claim. Several users agreed with Tan, while others said they missed former tenants such as McDonald’s and Decathlon, which have since closed their outlets at the mall. “There’s literally no point in having multiple luxury stores in a suburban mall,” one netizen said. Another user said there was now nothing they wanted or needed from Tampines Mall. “I feel so off... When I was there,” a user lamented. Others pointed out that some of the brands featured in the video were previously housed within Isetan and only opened their own stores after the department store closed last November. One commenter pointed out that brands like Shiseido, Dior, Chanel, and Braun Buffel were long-time tenants of the department store. There were other users who pointed out that Tampines Mall enjoys high footfall, while another noted that housing costs in the area have been rising. “Bro I live in Tampines but damn poor,” a commenter said.