Two years ago, Andrew Li, the CEO of ZOUK Group was interviewed saying he was planning to expand the nightlife powerhouse into Vegas. Frankly, we thought it was a little strange because Las Vegas is after all, the city where you can quite literally be entertained 24/7. If you’re not in one of the 150 casinos, you’re probably wandering about in one of their 147,238 hotel rooms. Or if not, you’re probably ruining your life by eloping in… a Denny’s (fyi, prices start at $199 which includes a champagne toast and breakfast).
We’ll leave it to Li to tell us what he likes the most about Las Vegas, just in time for their expansion in partnership with Resorts World Las Vegas.
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For some of us, we think of Vegas as a place to elope or how it’ll take 288 years for one person to spend one night in every hotel, but we’ll have your thoughts on it instead — what excites you the most about Las Vegas?
There is a palpable energy in Vegas that I don’t think you will get anywhere else in the world. The entire city is built on having a fantastic time, from the amazing concerts and acts, to the huge hotels and the incredible entertainment options on offer.
There are very few places in the world where you can eat at a Michelin star restaurant, see Bruno Mars in concert, stand five metres away from Tiësto DJ-ing at a club before going to bed in your own private villa with an attached swimming pool. That could be any given weekend in Vegas.
Photo Credit Kohjiro Kirro for Hilton
It seems hard to make something like nightlife truly global as opposed to perhaps, skincare or tech — how have you engineered the ZOUK Group to be truly global without diluting the brand messaging too much?
I do not see ZOUK Group as a nightlife group anymore. In the last few years we have transitioned from just nightlife to lifestyle and F&B, and in the future we will be diving into hospitality. The addition of Five Guys, FUHU (a vibe dining concept), Sushi Ichizuke (fine dining Omakase), and not forgetting, Famous Foods Street East (food hall with award-winning hawkers) to our portfolio, is a testament that we have evolved past just nightlife now.
However, we still believe in experiences being the forefront of everything we create and this is still the case. Whether or not you come in for a burger, have an Edo-style omakase or listen to Zedd or Tiësto, we want you to walk away with a memorable experience similar to the many guests that have memories of Jiak Kim.
Just out of curiosity, what are some little known places you’d encourage someone to go to in Las Vegas?
Here Kitty Kitty is our hidden Speakeasy in Famous Foods Las Vegas, which is located behind an Asian convenience stall inside the food street. If you didn’t know, you would never tell it was there but it serves some of the best cocktails on the strip.
I also very recently went to 8oz Korean BBQ and I was pleasantly surprised how authentic the experience was. I would definitely recommend it if you are looking for a meat fix but be warned, you will leave with the meat sweats and smelling like BBQ.
To be honest, Vegas seems like a natural next step because of their nightlife, what have you done differently with the ZOUK Group when it comes to the Vegas outpost?
I think one of the main advantages we have is that we have partnered with Resorts World Las Vegas, a USD$4.3 billion integrated resort that has just opened on the strip. The biggest resort opening in more than a decade in Las Vegas with three hotel brands, 3,500 rooms, a state of the art theatre, casino and multiple F&Bs.
We see ourselves as part of the spectacular resort and with so many touch points, everything we have done complements the resort and vice versa so when we look at ourselves that is how we differentiate.
Photo Credit Megan Blair
What exactly is the Ayu Dayclub? What makes it so different from Sapphire or Go Pool?
Ayu is our Day Club brand that we started in Awana, Malaysia. Ayu Vegas is our second reiteration. The concept behind it was to transport you to the idyllic islands of Southeast Asia. Coming from Asia we wanted to bring something that was different but at the same time familiar. Hui, our Executive Chairman and myself have seen and experienced the wonderful Islands like Bali, Phuket and Bintan, and we wanted to bring that inspiration to Las Vegas. And so far from what I have seen, our guests love it!
Photo Credit Megan Blair
This might be a bit of a loaded question, but with Famous Foods Street Eats, how truly authentic is it — Considering how most Americans can’t take Asian heat? What is the price point of the food there?
Each of our Asian hawkers have worked tirelessly over the last year and half with the team in Vegas to perfect the recipes showcased. Unfortunately, due to the travel restrictions this had to be done over Zoom and Microsoft Teams, but after spending two months in Vegas with countless tastings, I can honestly say that the food is extremely close to the original. We even had a few Hawkers form Philippines and Thailand fly into the US for the opening and I will be looking to bring a few more very soon.
Chilli wise, some of the dishes have been toned down but the flavour profile is still there. We also have many Asians coming as well which is testament to the authenticity. At opening week, we sold over 65,000 plates of food, with over 11,000 of them coming from popular Singaporean eateries such as Boon Tong Kee, Geylang Claypot Rice and Springleaf Prata Place.
What about Singapore then? What are the ZOUK Group’s future plans here — let’s say, what do you think will happen in the next five years?
I am based here so I will always want to expand in my hometown. We have just opened a new cocktail bar called Here Kitty Kitty in Clarke Quay as well as Sushi Ichizuke, an Edo-Style Omakase. Another Five Guys will also be completed by the end of the year and I am now looking at a new retail concept as well.
So as you can see, we’re definitely not taking our focus off domestically but rather diversifying in a very real way.
Lastly, I usually like to ask this — if you could put a song to your year so far, what would it be?
I’ve never been asked this question, though a song that I have been listening to recently is “Industry Baby” by Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow. Jack Harlow is one of our residents in Vegas but after listening to the lyrics, it talks about proving disbelievers wrong.
In some ways when we acquired ZOUK, many believed we would not succeed in growing the brand and keeping the DNA intact but I think the last few years have proven that not only in the face of extreme adversity we have been able to pivot, adapt and overcome but also grow and expand in a sustainable way.
Once you’re done with this story about Andrew Li and the ZOUK Group’s expansion into Vegas, click here to catch up with our August 2021 issue.
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