Helping Brands Find Their Place – Esther Wong

As more international brands look to Singapore as a gateway to Southeast Asia, successful market entry requires far more than a good product or a well-executed campaign. It demands a deep understanding of the local market, the right partnerships and a clear brand strategy. In this interview, Esther Wong, Founder of Bleu Marketing Studios and Marketing Partner at ML Alliance, shares her journey from retail to entrepreneurship, her philosophy on market entry, and why helping brands find their place is the foundation for sustainable growth..

"Market entry isn't just about getting into the market. It's about being ready to stay and grow in it."

1) Esther, you transitioned from managing retail malls to founding Bleu Marketing Studios. What inspired the move, and what were your biggest early challenges?

I spent many years on the mall side of retail, where my work covered pop-ups, mall spaces and short-term leases, as well as tenant support, partnerships and joint marketing collaborations. That gave me a good understanding of both the commercial and marketing sides of retail, and how brands and landlords work together.

Over time, I became more interested in what happens before a brand gets to that stage — why a brand wants to enter Singapore, how it should enter, where it fits in the market and what it needs to build a presence here.

That eventually led me to start Bleu as a brand house focused on market entry.

The early years were really about building trust. We were small, and I was doing almost everything myself. Every project mattered because that was how we built our track record and relationships. Being small also taught me to be very clear about where we can add value and the kind of work we want to take on.

2) Bleu specialises in helping brands enter new markets. What challenges are your clients trying to solve, and how does Bleu help them succeed?

Many of the brands we work with are already established in their home markets, particularly Japan and Korea. But being successful at home doesn't mean the same approach will work in Singapore.

They need to understand where their brand fits, who their customers are here, which partners make sense and how they should introduce themselves to the market.

That's where Bleu comes in. We lead brands through their entry into Singapore — from understanding where they fit and how they should be positioned, to the retail, partnerships, activations, content or pop-ups needed to bring that plan to life.

Every brand is different, so we don't believe in giving everyone the same solution.

3) Branding and experiential marketing is a crowded space. What sets Bleu Marketing Studios apart?

Bleu is a brand house rather than a traditional agency. We don't start with a list of services. We start with the brand, the market and what the business is trying to achieve.

We don't begin by saying, “Let's do a pop-up” or “Let's run an activation.” We first look at what the brand wants to achieve in Singapore, where it fits and what will help people here understand and want the brand.

Sometimes the answer is retail. Sometimes it's an activation, content, a partnership or a pop-up. What we do comes from what the brand needs, rather than fitting every brand into the same solution.

Our line is “for brands who refuse to blend in,” and I think that sums up both the brands we like working with and the way we approach the work.

4) What has your recent market-entry work taught you about what it takes for a brand to succeed in Singapore?

One thing I've learnt is that getting the opportunity is only the beginning.

You can secure retail interest, get the right introductions and have a good product, but the brand still needs to be ready to follow through. Stock, marketing, operations and timing all matter.

Bleu can help a brand understand what the market needs, open the right doors and guide the process, but the brand also has to be ready when those doors open.

That's probably one of the biggest lessons from our recent work: market entry isn't just about getting into the market. It's about being ready to stay and grow.

5) Verre Haus is a distinctive concept by Bleu. What inspired it, and what opportunities does it create for brands?

Verre Haus came from wanting to do something different from the usual pop-up.

A typical pop-up is temporary by nature — a brand takes a space, builds it, sells for a period and leaves. I wanted to create something where brands could spend more time telling their story and letting people discover them.

That's why we call Verre Haus a brand residency.

For overseas brands entering Singapore, it gives them another way to meet the market. They don't have to start with a permanent store or a large retail commitment. They can introduce the brand, meet customers and understand the market in a more considered way.

For me, Verre Haus is really about giving the right brands a place to be discovered.

6) Bleu recently received a MUSE Silver Award for website branding. What does this recognition mean to you and your team?

Winning the MUSE Silver Award was special because it was for Bleu's own branding.

As a small independent company, we put a lot into building Bleu and deciding how we want the company to be seen. So having that work recognised internationally meant a lot to us.

It was also a nice reminder that being a small company doesn't mean we have to think small.

7) In less than three years, Bleu has expanded across Singapore, Korea and Southeast Asia. What has driven this growth, and what's next for the company?

Bleu is based in Singapore, but we've been building more relationships with overseas brands, particularly in Japan and Korea, that are interested in Singapore and Southeast Asia.

We've also become much clearer about the kind of company we want Bleu to be. We're not trying to take on as many brands as possible. We want to work with brands where we see a real opportunity and where Bleu can genuinely make a difference.

Next, we'll grow those international relationships, bring the right brands into Singapore, and keep building Bleu as a market-entry brand house.

We definitely want to grow, but we want to stay selective and make sure we can bring real value to every brand we work with.

8) Looking ahead, how do you see branding and experiential marketing evolving, and what advice would you give brands seeking to stand out?

Consumers see so many brands every day now. Doing something big or flashy doesn't necessarily make your brand memorable.

I think brands need to be clearer about who they are and why people should care. An event, pop-up or campaign should come from that, rather than doing something simply because everyone else is doing it.

I always think a useful question is: “What do we want people to remember about us after this is over?”

If you can answer that clearly, it becomes much easier to decide what you should actually do.

Follow Esther on LinkedIn.