Event brief
German luxury fashion house MCM approached Amara Sanctuary Sentosa with a creative brief for an event to deliver a multi-sensory, immersive brand experience that extended beyond traditional fashion presentations.
The market activation followed the global debut of MCM’s collection with Pet Therapy at Milan Design Week 2025 in April. The collection captures a vision of modern luxury, one that embraces comfort, creativity, and the emotional bond between people and their pets.
The event called for a joint effort by MCM, its PR agency, Directions Group Inc, and Amara Sanctuary Sentosa to deliver brand consistency and seamless execution across all guest-facing experiences beyond the main showcase days.
Anthony Lim, general manager of Amara Sanctuary Sentosa, told TTGmice that his property is one of Singapore’s first luxury pet-friendly resorts, and it offers “a setting where thoughtful design and pet-inclusive hospitality come together, making it an ideal space to showcase MCM’s vision of contemporary living with pets”.
Lim added: “Our role was to co-create a series of curated experiences that brought the MCM vision to life in a meaningful and engaging way across multiple guest touch points, including an immersive two-day pop-up event at the Glass Pavilion, a lifestyle villa adorned with MCM’s exclusive pet and home accessories, and a specially curated MCM-themed afternoon tea experience.
“Each element was designed to reflect the evolving intersection of fashion, hospitality, and pet-friendly living.”
The hotel was given 10 weeks to bring ideas to life.
Event highlights
The activation in Singapore was set for July 2025, and was MCM’s first stop in the Asia tour, preceding launches in Malaysia and Hong Kong.
There were three components of the event, with the first being the MCM Weekend Pop-up Showcase at the Glass Pavilion. This took place across three days – July 11 for the media, and on July 12 and 13 for members of the public.
During the MCM Weekend Pop-up Showcase, guests explored MCM’s Autumn/Winter 2025 collection in a tranquil resort setting. The showcase comprised the MCM x RawRow collaboration, an interactive fragrance discovery bar, and a display of pet accessories.
“The experience was brought to life with joyful, pet-centric moments like pet photography sessions, pet-friendly frozen yoghurt, and symbolic adoptions of MCM Animal Articles, with 100 per cent of proceeds donated to Voices for Animals (VFA) Singapore,” recalled Lim.
Lim said the hotel’s front office, F&B, and security teams worked closely on logistics to ensure efficient crowd control of guests and their pets.
“Safety and cleanliness standards were upheld throughout the event, with a dedicated bin for pet waste, as well as additional poop bags, pee pads, and pet diapers thoughtfully provided. These measures ensured a clean, stress-free, and pet-friendly environment for all attendees, allowing guests and their furkids to fully enjoy the experience with comfort and ease,” he detailed.
The three-day event welcomed over 60 guests, including key fashion and lifestyle journalists, editors, and influencers on July 11, and another 350 hoomans and 80 furkids on the two public days. More than S$16,000 (US$12,330) was also successfully raised for VFA Singapore.
The other two components of the MCM activation were longer-lasting.
The MCM Experience Two-bedroom Villa, available for stays from July 12 to August 10, 2025, combines luxury accommodation with fashion and lifestyle. The villa is thoughtfully styled to feature the brand’s signature home and pet accessories, including designer poufs, pet bowls, limited-edition lifestyle pieces, and the complete MCM Parfum collection.
Guests are welcomed in style with a ride to their villa on an MCM-branded buggy. They also get to take home a special MCM gift set comprising fragrances and an MCM shopping voucher.
The luxury hotel also crafted the MCM x Amara Sanctuary Afternoon Tea, a limited-time experience that will end its run on August 10, 2025. Available only on weekends at the Sanctuary Tearoom, the experience is inspired by MCM’s latest fragrance collection.
“The hotel’s culinary team conducted extensive research and development to translate fragrance profiles into edible and flavourful afternoon tea. Sanctuary Tearoom team members were also trained to share the scent behind each item,” said Lim.
Challenges
Reflecting on the project creation and delivery, Lim said one of the challenges for his team was the process of translating MCM’s fragrance profiles into edible concepts for the afternoon tea menu.
“The brief was to reflect perfume notes from MCM’s latest fragrance collection, which meant our culinary team had to interpret abstract scent elements – such as citrus woods, fruity florals, and musks – into flavour pairings that were both palatable and elevated.
“To do this, each fragrance was broken down into its top, mid, and base notes, which were then carefully mapped to complementary ingredients. For example, pineapple and basil were selected to represent fresh, uplifting, citrusy top notes, while truffle and sesame reflected the deeper, more sensual base accords.
“The process involved extensive research and development, tasting sessions, and collaborative discussions between the MCM and our culinary teams. The final result was a cohesive and immersive dining journey that not only echoed the spirit of each scent but also reflected MCM’s signature brand colours and aesthetic, blending the worlds of perfume, flavour, and fashion in a sophisticated, multi-sensory experience.”
Amara Sanctuary Sentosa’s other challenge was to transform one of its two-bedroom villas into an experiential lifestyle space that would reflect the MCM’s Autumn/Winter 2025 collection – blending elements of fashion, fragrance, homeware, and pet-friendly luxury.
“The challenge lay in balancing aesthetics, functionality, and brand storytelling, all while maintaining the comfort and flow of a true guest stay,” reflected Lim.
To bring this to life, both MCM and hotel teams worked closely to plan the layout, styling, and guest touch points. Iconic MCM pieces such as the one-metre tall Bunny, Bear, and Pup, signature luggage, pet poufs, trays, and fragrances were placed with precision to create a cohesive and visually striking environment.
Furthermore, in the lead up to the launch of the MCM Experience Villa package, the hotel had two hours to complete styling and photoshoot of the room. The exercise required precise coordination between both teams, overnight preparation, and real-time responsiveness to ensure the villa was perfectly staged and captured without disrupting resort operations.
Lim noted that logistics and timing were critical in ensuring operational readiness for arriving VIPs, members of the media and public guests on event days across July 11 to 13.
He said his team had to uphold service standards while safeguarding the privacy of in-house guests.
Event MCM Autumn/Winter 2025 For Cyber-Galactic Nomads & Their Pet Companions – MCM Weekend Pop-up Showcase
Dates July 11 (media preview); July 12 to 13 (public event)
Organisers MCM, Directions Group Inc, and Amara Sanctuary Sentosa
Venue Glass Pavilion, Amara Sanctuary Sentosa, Singapore
Number of attendees 60 pax on July 11; 350 pax and 80 pets on July 12 and 13
His previous roles include area general manager and regional commercial director of Southeast Asia, which highlights his deep understanding of regional operations and commitment to customer service excellence.
