Victor Tong is an entrepreneur who is 31 years old and changed Singapore’s Streets Art scene by trading in his lawyer’s suit for a can of spray paint. Victor, who came up with the idea for Heaven Spot, Singapore’s first indoor graffiti studio, began his career as a lawyer. But his interest in businesses and being an entrepreneur pushed him into the fast-paced world of business.
Victor saw that people were becoming more interested in street art, which is how Graffiti for Everyone Heaven Spot came to be. He saw that Singaporeans needed easy-to-reach places to see and learn about graffiti. The school opened in April 2021 with the goal of giving people of all ages a fun and easy way to get involved with graffiti art.
Streets Art Scene: What Graffiti Is Really About
Victor picked the name “Heaven Spot” to show that graffiti is an exciting art form. A “Heaven Spot” in graffiti culture is a place that is hard to get to where artists do their work. Victor wants Heaven Spot to be more than just an art workshop. He wants it to be a lively place where people can use graffiti to express themselves.
Streets Art Scene: Break Even and More
Heaven Spot made enough money in the first eight months to cover its costs, even though the local graffiti scene was skeptical at first. Victor says that it was lucky that it happened during the COVID-19 peak, when people were looking for new and fun things to do. The studio now has a wide range of clients, from public school teams to teams from big businesses.
Getting Used to Things
Victor said he knew “next to nothing” about running a business, so he had trouble with things like marketing, accounting, and handling people. He was willing to learn, though, and found that the more he knew, the more there was to learn.
Including Everyone Despite Pushback
People in the local graffiti scene didn’t like Heaven Spot because they thought they were taking advantage of the art form. Victor, on the other hand, stresses that the studio is open to everyone and wants to bring as many people in Singapore as possible to graffiti.
Victor started a film photography business called Manual Focus and runs a bike shop called Unspokin. He is also the founder of Three Ventures Beyond Heaven Spot. And wants to use different situations to make Heaven Spot’s model work again. He stays busy running these businesses, and he takes pride in creating jobs through Heaven Spot.
Streets Art Scene: Goals for the Future
Victor is looking into the possibility of going global while also managing Manual Focus and Unspokin. His main goal is still to promote creativity and happiness through art and to make people feel stronger.
Victor Tong has gone from being a lawyer to a graffiti expert, making an indelible mark on Singapore’s art scene. He continues to encourage and help people find their artistic potential through Heaven Spot and his other projects.