PUBLISHED ONApril 05, 2024 3:29 AMByLim Kewei[UPDATE APRIL 8] Responding to AsiaOne’s queries, spokespersons from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) said they are assisting eight employees of Love Nest Holding’s related entities — Hawk Eye (Singapore) and LNHG (SG) — with claims for non-payment of salaries.
TADM said it has advised affected employees to file their claims through the appointed liquidator for Love Nest Holding and has also referred those who require employment assistance to NTUC’s Employment and Employability Institute (e2i).
MOM is investigating Love Nest Holding and its related entities for possible offences under the Employment Act.
Employees who require assistance on salary claims should get in touch with TADM at www.tal.sg/tadm/contact-us.
Bride-to-be Chloe had been looking forward to her big day in November and preparations had been going smoothly.
Until she received a text from her friend on Tuesday (April 2) that left her with a pit in her stomach.
It led her to a forum on local wedding planning website SingaporeBrides, which was buzzing with news about the sudden closure of a bridal studio called Love Nest.
It was there that Chloe, who declined to give her full name and occupation, learnt that L'atelier — the bridal boutique that she and her fiance had hired as well as an associated entity of Love Nest — had also shut down.
The 27-year-old told AsiaOne that she and her fiance had purchased a bridal package — which included the rental of wedding attire, make-up and photography on the wedding day — for about $3,660 last December. The couple paid in full.
And at least more than 60 other couples have also been left in limbo by the shuttering of the two bridal studios and Love Story Wedding Boutique, another associated entity of Love Nest. All three are located at City Gate in Beach Road.
A check online by AsiaOne found that Love Nest Holding, whose business address is listed at Parkview Square in North Bridge Road, was issued a winding up order on Jan 13, 2023, and is listed as being in liquidation.
Losses incurred by the affected couples could amount to more than $250,000. Reports have been filed with the police, and complaints with the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case).
The police said a 36-year-old man is assisting with investigations.
Chloe and her fiance last visited L'atelier for a gown fitting session on March 10 and made several appointments for upcoming sessions on that day. They were next supposed to pick out the groom's suit on April 27.
Like most of the other affected couples, they tried in vain to contact their wedding coordinators after finding out about the bridal shops' closures. Chloe's father also headed down to L'atelier, where he found the lights on but no staff in sight.
Financial loss aside, Chloe, who has made a police report, said: "It's a bit bothersome to restart the whole search process for the different vendors."
She added that she and several other people who were affected have tried requesting chargebacks from their credit card companies. But she was unsuccessful as more than 90 days had lapsed since she paid for the package.
Another customer who has been stung is Ramsey Teo. He had made partial payment of around $3,500 to Love Nest for his $8,000 bridal package, which consisted of a pre-wedding photo shoot and photography on the wedding day.
The 30-year-old, who works in the cleaning services industry and is getting married in November, said that the first sign of trouble emerged in late March, when two employees from the studio's production team suddenly exited a group chat with him and his fiancee.
On Monday, another customer in a bridal group chat he had joined claimed most of the employees at the bridal shop had resigned as of March 31, and that the gowns and bridal displays in the store had been taken down.
Like many other Love Nest customers, he received a text message from the studio the next day, which said it was "temporarily closing its operations from April 2" because of "unforeseen circumstances and financial challenges".
The message also said all services will be temporarily unavailable, and that updates will be made via its website, email and social media pages.
According to a spreadsheet created by the affected couples, which AsiaOne saw, there appears to be more than 60 couples who have paid over $250,000 in total to Love Nest, L'atelier and Love Story Wedding Boutique.
Responding to AsiaOne's queries, Case said it has received 17 consumer complaints as of Wednesday night.
Case president Melvin Yong said consumers had engaged the companies for services such as pre-wedding photography, make-up and rental of wedding outfits, and had already made payment.
"However, they were notified on April 2 by Love Nest that it and its associated entities would be temporarily closed, without any clarity on when these companies would reopen and honour their contractual obligations," Yong added.
The total contractual amount for these affected consumers is over $58,000.
Several wedding service providers have stepped up to help, with some offering discounts to affected couples.
Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, Evan Ong, co-founder of integrated wedding company Knotz, said he has contacted affected customers to match them to service providers such as photographers and bridal studios.
"There are some vendors that are willing to offer 15 to 50 per cent discounts," he added.
"This is not the first instance of a bridal shop suddenly closing and we have previously helped other couples [in the same situation]."
The SingaporeBrides website has also curated a list of service providers who are offering discounts to affected couples.
But it appears that it's not just customers that the bridal boutiques have left in the lurch.
According to the Shin Min report, one employee claimed that the company owes some 20 staff members around $100,000 in unpaid wages.
As for himself, he has not been paid for two months and could not contact his boss.
Another employee also told the Chinese newspaper that the company owes him nearly $3,000 in wages and that some full-time photographers are allegedly owed two to three months' salary amounting to over $10,000.
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lim.kewei@asiaone.com