The Profile of Parisilk

Owned and Operated by the Primalani Family

Parisilk started out as Paris Silk Store in 1952 at No. 22 Transit Road, located along Sembawang Road, Nee Soon. This was located directly across the present row of shops there. Then, it was a sole proprietorship owned and operated by Mr Gulabrai Primalani. It started out selling textiles, mainly silk, hence its name. This was shortly after the end of the Second World War. Mr Gulabrai had just gotten married and decided to bring his wife to Singapore, from India, in search of a new and better life.

During that period, there were many British soldiers based in Singapore, with Singapore bring a British colony. The majority of them lived in the northern part of Singapore, around Sembawang, which is a short drive from Nee Soon. Nee Soon in its heyday was lined on both sides of the street with bars, nightclubs and rows of shops selling anything and everything under the sun. These shops ran all the way from Mandai Road to the present Sembawang Shopping Centre. This, and the setting up of the Sembawang Shipyard, led to the opening of Paris Silk Store there.

After Singapore gained independence in 1965, many of the British soldiers were slowly transferred out of Singapore until there was only a handful left. However, the place still remained very lively with the many British, Australian and New Zealand naval ships which used to call at Sembawang Shipyard frequently.

Mr Gulabrai Primalani had six children, four sons and two daughters. In 1973, he handed the business over to three of his sons, Andrew (Chandru), Larry (Kumar) and Kevin (Prem). His fourth son, Kishin, ventured off to set up his own company.

The new blood in the business brought with them many fresh and enterprising ideas. The brothers were not satisfied with the progress of the firm and with the path the textile trade was taking it. In 1974, the three brothers realized that the textile business had little potential for expansion and envisioned greener pastures ahead if they were to convert to selling consumer electronics instead.

Thus, in 1974, Paris Silk Store made the switch to selling electronic goods. The name, however, was not changed as it had been long established and was widely known. The brothers thus saw more good than harm in keeping it.

Unfortunately, there were several fires along Transit Road in the mid-1980s. These fires burned down the majority of the shops on each side of Transit Road. The fires wiped out many businesses and most never recovered well enough to relive their former glory. The fires led to the construction of the present row of shops along Transit Road. Paris Silk Store thus moved across the street in 1986 to occupy the first shop along that row, No. 7 Transit Road.

In July 1986, Mr Gulabrai Primalani passed away after a long battle with various illnesses. He left behind the legacy of Paris Silk Store for his sons to further build on. In 1988, the second retail outlet, Paris Silk Brothers, was set up at No. 11 Lorong Liput, in Holland Village. This was with the aim of tapping into Singapore’s rapidly growing expatriate population, many of whom reside in that vicinity. The company has been quite successful in doing so with the excellent personalized customer service offered coupled with the best prices available in town.

In 1991, Paris Silk Brothers moved to its present location at 15A Lorong Liput. In 1994, an Export and Mail Order Division was set up to deal with the many customers who had first visited us as tourists or expatriates to Singapore and who wished to make repeat purchases with us from overseas. As such, our prices are not only known to be competitive in Singapore but also in various other parts of the world. A Corporate Sales Division was also set up to concentrate solely in giving our corporate buyers more attention and better service. These two divisions went by the name of Paris Electromart. This helped us build another niche in which we are now very strong in; in sales to organizations for corporate events and redemption programs.

In 1996, Computer Division was set up. With the emergence of the Internet and the Government’s vision to make Singapore into an Information Technology hub, the market for the retail of computers and related peripherals was growing rapidly. We decided to make an attempt for a slice of that pie and sought to tap into the retail computer market.
In November 1997, another chapter in the legacy of Paris Silk was opened. Paris Silk Store, Paris Silk Brothers and Paris Electromart were merged to form Parisilk Electronics & Computers. This was to allow our clients to better identify us with the line of trade that we are in, while at the same time keeping with the name our clients the world over knew us by.

In May 1999, we took another big step in Parisilk’s restructuring process. The company was incorporated and converted from a partnership to a Private Limited Company. Parisilk Electronics & Computers thus became Parisilk

To cater to the increase in the number of customers who visit our two stores from the east, in August 2003, we opened our third retail outlet in Bedok Central. The store is prominently located, facing the Bedok Cinema, which is known for showcasing the latest in Bollywood films. This outlet also aims to serve the large number of organizations currently based in the east, and which are shifting their operations to the east, especially with the recent construction of the Changi Business Park.

The latest step in Parisilk’s expansion is the incorporation of Parisilk Global Pte Ltd. This company will focus on the import and export of products and the distribution of products locally and regionally. It will also focus on paying more attention to Parisilk’s corporate clientele. Many organizations have supported us over the years and we see the need to give them more attention and take better care of their needs.

Over the years, very good rapport has been fostered with corporate organisations such as Government Ministries, Foreign Embassies and Consulates, Multi-National Corporations and Educational Institutions, both local and foreign. We have had the pleasure of dealing with many clients over the years, many of whom have become very close personal friends. A few of the more prominent ones include the former British Prime Minister Mr John Major, New Zealand All Blacks star Mr Jonah Lomu, Bollywood star Mr Vinod Khanna, His Majesty King Abdullah II, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, a whole host of local government ministers and television celebrities.

Parisilk was recently featured in the Shin Min Daily News (16 May 2002) The New Paper (June 2002) and Productivity Digest (July 2002), a publication by Spring Singapore. All three articles centered on how Parisilk has been able to ride the economic downturn and how we has been able to come out of it stronger, focusing on its excellent customer service and the high level of satisfaction our customers have derived from it.

Excerpt from article in Productivity Digest:

“Our goal has always been to provide our customer based on his needs at the best possible price; not to simply sell to them what we have. We feel that it is important that at the end of the day, the item that they purchased satisfies their needs. There is no point selling someone something complicated when he just needs the item for its basic functions. In the new economy, our company continues to study the needs of consumers and to make shopping for electronics an easier and more pleasurable experience for them”

Andrew Primalani

After over half a century in business, Parisilk has created a tradition of providing its customers with the best personalized service possible coupled with the most competitive prices available in town. All products are guaranteed original; all of which come complete with product warranties from the respective agents, unless otherwise requested by our customers.

We leave you with only one thought. The only way we can prove ourselves to you is if you give us a try. So give us a call, send us a fax, drop us an e-mail or pay us a visit with your enquiry. Find out the reason why our clients keep coming back to us.

We offer you all the best for less, under one roof.