What inspires you to choose a leap of religion, to go after a aspiration that feels out of get to? What pushes you to persevere via difficulties in pursuit of a passion, even when the odds look to be stacked from you?

For two homegrown brands, it’s all the aspects of a tale as aged as time: great aged-fashioned love, and an enduring faith in the stories they notify as a result of their items.

In the 1970s, young scientist Dr Lee Kum Tatt, fuelled by his need to fulfil a guarantee to immortalise orchids for his wife, identified a way to encapsulate purely natural orchids in gold that would afterwards grow to be the legendary image of regional jewelry and way of life brand name RISIS. At the brand’s original start at CK Tang in 1976, 3,000 gold-plated orchids have been offered out inside a handful of mornings, hence planting the seed from which RISIS’ enterprise would prosper over the upcoming three decades.


RISIS and Scent by 6 were being proven by men who needed to preserve memories of their love. Dr Lee Kum Tatt (remaining) desired to immortalise orchids for his spouse, when Mr Jason Lee (proper) was encouraged to get started his business enterprise soon after acquiring good responses from a scent he established for his wife. Pics: ST FILE AND SCENT BY Six

Similarly, the commencing of fragrance model Scent by Six can be traced back again to the day founder Jason Lee proposed to his girlfriend with the first perfume he designed. This scent which experienced hints of environmentally friendly tea and lavender as an homage to their holidays in Hokkaido, together with a 2nd just one, ended up also gifted to their marriage attendees, and the favourable reception gave him the self esteem to give up a promising vocation at one of the world’s most significant fragrance providers and begin his have small business.

Manufactured with passion, sustained by dedication

The compelling origins of these two makes have propelled them into an indelible aspect of nearby heritage.

RISIS and Scent by 6 are two of the 64 models newly recognised under the Created With Passion initiative that was launched in November 2020 by the Singapore Manufacturer Office and Singapore Tourism Board and supported by Company Singapore. The initiative aims to encourage client recognition and push support for community brands that are strong representations of Singapore’s varied way of living sector, across the four way of life categories of elegance & wellness, fashion & extras, homeware & décor, and packaged F&B.

Through this, Built With Passion also hopes to inspire model proprietors and Singaporeans to go after their dreams with passion, and empower collaboration chances amongst the makes to stimulate additional merchandise innovation. A overall of 111 models has because been recognised underneath the initiative.

While passion may have presented the original spark for the inception of RISIS and Scent by 6, it’s the determination to excellent handle and consistent innovation that have sustained them as iconic house-developed brands with quality products, and aided them get paid the Built With Passion recognition.

At the heart of RISIS’ very recognisable jewellery and life style pieces is a painstaking manufacturing course of action to immortalise the precious orchids at ideal bloom.


A single of the first collection of orchids that RISIS plated in gold was the Aranda Deborah. Given that it discovered a unique plating method that preserves orchids, the manufacturer has managed its status by continuously presenting excellent-high quality merchandise. Picture: RISIS

This signifies buying fresh orchids in a local climate-controlled facility, deciding upon only the fullest orchids with sensitive varieties, preserving these beautiful flowers in a high-quality layer of copper, in advance of the piece de resistance: the course of action of 24K gold plating, which dusts the orchid in a shimmery gold hue. It’s a labour-intensive, but vital aspect of RISIS’ brand identification, a special strategy that it applies to the preservation of other organic material like roses, ferns, seeds and foliage to create goods like brooches, earrings, necklaces and other ornaments.

The best examination of longevity for a brand name having said that, is its means to stand up to problems, so as to supply a regularly good solution, whilst remaining correct to the Produced With Passion ethos of protecting a excellent standing and possessing a loyal consumer pursuing.


Each RISIS piece is produced through a meticulous process that consists of employing a particular approach to protect the flower or other organic content in a fine layer of copper before they are plated in 24K gold. Photo: RISIS

At the onset of the pandemic, Ms Verene Ng, main government officer of RISIS, had to steer the enterprise by means of supply chain issues although embarking on a rebranding exercise to market RISIS toward a younger era. To breathe new daily life to the orchid patterns, RISIS collaborated with four community manner designers, which includes a person from a brand name recognised under the Made With Passion initiative, and plans to launch the new solution lines in the to start with quarter of 2022. Operate to further increase the consumer knowledge on its e-commerce platform to time it with the rebranding exercising is also presently underway

Perseverance in the encounter of worries

For Scent by Six, the challenge stems from getting a way to stand out in a crowded marketplace dominated by European perfume brands. To do this, Mr Lee’s set of 6 perfumes employs the key components in every perfume to highlight the tales and inspirations powering each variant. In this fashion, it invitations the person on a journey of self-discovery and exploration.


One of Scent by SIX’s main choices is the Hikaru selection, which was co-established with beneficiaries from the Singapore Affiliation of Mental Health and fitness. The uplifting scent has Japanese yuzu as one particular of its prime notes. Photo: SCENT BY Six

For illustration, the Hikaru scent, co-established with beneficiaries from the Singapore Association of Psychological Wellbeing, has new Japanese yuzu as one particular of its best notes, a critical component that Mr Lee claims is “instrumental to evoking thoughts of joy and joy”. It’s also a tribute to the scent’s co-creators – in Japanese, “hikaru” suggests “to shine”, a thing that Mr Lee hopes the scent has afforded the co-creators amidst a challenging 2020.

In the early times of the business enterprise, to make headway in the retail place as a new area perfume manufacturer, Mr Lee used hours at flea marketplaces to give out samples of his perfumes, and taking part in bigger-scale fairs like Boutique Fairs to hobnob with industry players like accommodations, airlines and departmental stores.


Mr Lee started off providing his solutions at flea markets and the Boutique Fairs. Currently, the manufacturer has 3 standalone retailers in 313 @ Somerset (previously mentioned), Bugis Junction and JEM. Photograph: SCENT BY Six

He caught his initially split following the spa director of Equarius Hotel found out Scent by 6 at Tangs, and invited him to curate a scent for the lodge. Extra not too long ago, in a landmark achievement for the manufacturer, Scent by Six collaborated with Singapore Airways to build a distinctive signature scent for the airline that provided floral notes from bouquets depicted in SIA’s new batik motif.

By regularly refining their procedures and innovating their items, RISIS and Scent by 6 are ready to produce high-quality products and solutions recognised by most Singaporeans. And it is as a result befitting that they are now attained the Made With Enthusiasm accolade.

As the Created With Enthusiasm tagline “You know it’s fantastic, when it’s Created With Passion” goes, the enduring quality of RISIS and Scent by Six is testament to the ambition, resourcefulness, optimism and resolve that forms the enthusiasm that in switch, drives just about every facet of the brands’ functions.

For Ms Ng and Mr Lee, this passion is closely tied to function and determination.

“Passion to me is being legitimate to our main values, to produce on our motivation to our consumers,” says Ms Ng. “​​We firmly believe that passion never goes out of model, and it starts off from household – from celebrating the exceptional Singapore spirit.”

Mr Lee sums it up: “When you wake up in the early morning, enthusiasm aids you appear ahead to carrying out what you do, but purpose retains you going. That is the most crucial for any profession or brand name.”

Shop Produced With Enthusiasm brands at krisshop.com/madewithpassion and shopee.sg/m/mwpshopee, or uncover much more at visitsingapore.com/madewithpassion.