Amanda Lie
Occupation: Owner Business: Kaleidoscope Event + Productions
“The traffic is very problematic, but the creativity makes the city grow”
Amanda Lie’s business thrives on hype and an edgy lifestyle, as her philosophy is not to go with the crowd but create something new or rare. Aside from running Kaleidoscope, she created FlipBuku and Sugar Lab.
“The globalisation era of West meets East is also where creativity and technology are integrated into an innovative world. The presence of the digital magazine is one example, and I really enjoy reading this paperless publication,” he said.
FlipBuku is like back-to-thefuture, simple frame-by-frame photography bundled into a book. “When flipped, it becomes a movie. It’s where old and new generations are integrated to create a fresh sight,” she says. “Sugar Lab is my passion for baking home-made, healthy cookies.” Amanda is amazed by the emergence of new “wine and dine” establishments in Jakarta.
Oriana Tirabassi
Occupation: Chef Business: Rosso Italian, Restaurant at Shangri-La
“Once I got accustomed to the traffic, I started to fall in love with the city”
Italian Chef Oriana Tirabassi has won the hearts of countless guests at Rosso with her magical recipes of Italian home-made dishes cooked in her own style. Among her signature eats are chocolate pizza, thin crust margherita pizza and angel hair pasta. In 1994, Tirabassi became the first woman working in this maledominated profession to win Pizza World Championship in Las Vegas.
In 2011, she came to Jakarta and joined Rosso. “I found Jakarta very interesting with what the city has to offer, from exotic hawker food to exciting traditional markets and high-end lifestyle centres. As for shopping, Plaza Indonesia is my favourite.”
Fergie Tan
Occupation: Creative director Business: Brown Fox Studio
“Plaza Senayan marries creativity and lifestyle”
The younger generation in Jakarta is looking forward to seeing Indonesia’s capital become a more modern and forward-thinking city. This is where Fergie Tan fits in. He and his partner, Yusuf Asikin, run Brown Fox Studio, a creative design agency whose portfolio included developing the unique concept at what Jakarta’s cosmopolites call one of the city’s funkiest coffee hangouts — Monolog at Plaza Senayan.
“We picked the name Monolog, which means a conversation with oneself, to convey the idea of ‘this is what we think is nice’. It’s not just coffee or food, but also the design that take guests to an unparalleled exciting space,” says Tan adding, “Living in Jakarta is about being part of a creative community that can make changes for a better future.”
