SINGAPORE – Hong Kong art logistics company Eythos is opening a 22,000 sq ft to 25,000 sq ft space in Singapore come January 2027, in a positive sign of the growth of the Republic’s art scene in recent years.
Eythos founder and chief executive Lewis Cheng told The Straits Times in an exclusive interview on June 30 that the decision was made after “very sophisticated questions” were asked by collectors and galleries at Singapore mega fair Art SG in January.
It is the third city that Eythos is opening in after Hong Kong and Seoul, South Korea – both front-running art hubs in Asia. The location in Singapore is being finalised, but will be smaller than Hong Kong’s 65,000 sq ft and Seoul’s 35,000 sq ft facilities.
The development also rides on the recent announcement that Eythos is partnering the Hong Kong Airport Authority to open a two-storey, HK$300 million (S$50 million) art storage facility at the Hong Kong airport in 2027.
Over Zoom, Cheng, who heads a global team of 55, says: “Singapore has always been part of the story. It’s just the right timing right now.
“We are looking at locations that will allow us to expand. Singapore could be the hub for South-east Asia, so we need to leave room to ensure we’re not restricted if things go well.”
Founded in 2024, Eythos is an up-and-coming name in the art moving and storage industry known for its commitment to net-carbon-zero processes. An official partner for major art fairs including Art Basel Hong Kong and Frieze Seoul, it handles various aspects of storage, logistics, installation, framing and conservation.
For the first time in 2026, it was invited to support Art SG, one of a trio of logistics partners including Helutrans Artmove and Lotus Fine Arts Logistics. It has stood out with its maverick methods of transport and storage of works, substituting bubble wrap and crates with paper and corrugated cardboard, for example.
In issuing quotations to clients, it breaks costs down into a financial cost and carbon emission cost, which takes into account everything from the usage of materials to the energy and emissions associated with moving people around a city. This has become increasingly appealing to museums, galleries and collectors seeking transparent carbon reports in their own calculations.
Cheng says: “Our way of working is not very common. It’s very difficult for large companies with legacy systems to backtrack and rethink and rejig their systems to accommodate this.”
The wisdom of conventional ways of protecting artworks has been taken for granted, Cheng adds. “We don’t use any one-time plastic. If works are wrapped in bubble wrap, you’re basically suffocating them and not allowing them to take advantage of all the climate-control systems that you put in place.
“It’s part of our job to educate. Instead of going back and redoing all of it, we know all the costs from the beginning, and so we calculate both (the financial and carbon) costs at the same time. That’s become part of an integrated process.”
Cheng wants Eythos, which has been carbon-neutral since its founding, to have bases in eight to 10 cities around the world. A facility in the United Arab Emirates was proceeding apace with that in Singapore until the war in the Middle East broke out.
Eythos founder Lewis Cheng wants the firm to have bases in eight to 10 cities around the world.
PHOTO: EYTHOS
Eythos is looking at locations in Singapore that balance being close to the airport with where their clients are, and is in the final stages of deciding among options.
The head of operations in Singapore will be Bernie Oo, who is founder of Singapore art logistics specialist Genesis Artech, a five-man team based in Loyang, with clients including the Singapore Art Museum and Changi Airport.
Oo says he was convinced by Cheng’s vision and was especially touched by Cheng’s promise that “if the next pandemic comes, you are not alone”, after business suffered through the Covid-19 years.
The art-handling scene is Singapore is “definitely not overcrowded”, Oo adds. “It’s very competitive and boils down to trust as well as price competitiveness.”
Cheng’s plans are grander and go beyond borders. “We can think about Jakarta, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur. We want to ensure we have a good physical base in Singapore to serve the more sophisticated clients first, and when these markets are ready, we’ll have a local team that can go in. Bernie’s coming on not just for Singapore, but also for the entire South-east Asia region.”