Theatrical Costume Shop in Henderson With 30,000 Costumes

Ministry of Costumes sits on the fourth floor of 217 Henderson Road, unit #04-04, inside the Henderson Industrial Park block in Bukit Merah, and it claims a stock of 30,000 costumes for all ages. It works more like a theatrical wardrobe than a party shop: you book a 30-minute costume selection slot, a staff member pulls racks for your theme, and you leave with a full look for a dinner and dance, a stage skit or a company parade.

The business was established in 2016, and its own homepage states the mission plainly, which was to bring a family-oriented costume place to Singapore. The front page groups stock by household, with a superhero family, a pirate family and an Alice in Wonderland family, so parents and children can dress as one cast. Staff will also source a piece that is not on the shelves. The shop says it carries licensed costume products, and it has been featured on Channel 8 news, including a 27 October 2019 segment.

The unit is an industrial flatted factory rather than a mall shopfront, so there is no window display to browse. That is why the appointment matters. With a booked slot, the team can have a theme laid out before you step out of the cargo lift, and you spend the half hour trying on rather than waiting while someone digs through a storeroom.

Opening hours on the official site are Monday to Friday 1 pm to 6 pm and Saturday 1 pm to 4 pm, with the line "By appointments only" printed underneath. The booking page lists a single service, Costume Selection, with the tagline "Let us transform you" and a duration of 30 minutes. Sunday is not listed, so plan a weekday afternoon or an early Saturday visit if you work office hours.

Calling ahead is the faster route for a big group, because a theme for 30 or 50 people needs the right sizes counted out, and some sets carry a notice period of days or weeks before they can leave the shelf.

The group costumes page reads like a casting sheet. There is a SWAT set for 30 people, a jungle theme for a table of ten, Alice in Wonderland for 10 to 12, a Stormtrooper theme for 15 and a Star Wars range for 10 to 20 that the shop pitches for dinner and dance or weddings, with Yoda and Chewbacca fitted with electronic masks. A Harry Potter set covers 100 people, with Dumbledore, a Dementor and McGonagall available on top.

Local themes are where this wardrobe stands apart. Journey to the West comes with its four main characters plus the white horse, Na Jia, an Emperor and Empress, eunuchs, the Goddess of Mercy and the White Bone Spirit. A God of Fortune set dresses 20 or more people as Fu, Lu and Shou, an Old Singapore range runs up to 50, and a China Palace theme is listed for 500 people and above. An outer space theme for groups of ten and above is marked S$110 and in stock.

Several themes need notice. The forest theme asks for five days, Descendants of the Sun costumes for ten people need two weeks, and a Thai tribal set for ten women needs three weeks. Customised capes, which can carry a logo, a company name, a team name or personal names for birthdays and team building, have a production lead time of three weeks, so the shop asks you to get in touch early.

For one-off characters, the shop produces an IT clown costume by special order, with the costume, mask and shoes in one set, three colour options, sizes S to L and a waiting period of one month from order. It also takes mascot commissions, customised at its facilities in Thailand and China, and promises a quote within three days of receiving your design.

Christmas is the heaviest season, and the group page says advance booking is required because of very heavy bookings. The Basic Santa Set with top, pants, belt, beard, hat and gloves is listed at $19.90 while stocks last, and the Deluxe Santa Set, which adds boot covers, glasses, a bell and a sack, is listed at $99.00 and was already marked sold out. A Super Santa with a cape and masquerade mask requires advance booking.

Children's groups for New Year are listed for up to 100 kids, again flagged as very heavily booked. A Money Heist set covers 10 to 30 people with mask, gun and overall, a Game of Thrones range dresses 20 with props, and a Greatest Showman theme brings a ringmaster, a bearded lady, clowns, a juggler and a muscle man for up to 50. The page tallies 1,875 best-dressed individuals and groups so far.

Arrive with a headcount, rough sizes and the event date, and if the brief is a corporate stage number, bring the theme name your organiser has already approved. Group sets are built for a table of ten, so a dinner and dance with 40 guests can be planned as four tables in four related looks rather than one giant order. Digital costumes are a newer line, with glasses, gloves, Tron outfits and capes whose text can be programmed.

The team leans on the phrase old school service, and the homepage says customers return because the shop will chase a missing piece through its suppliers. If your script calls for a specific character that is not in stock, raise it at the start of the 30-minute slot so there is time for the order to land before rehearsal week rather than the night before the show.

Henderson Road climbs south from the industrial blocks toward Henderson Waves, the wave-shaped timber footbridge that links Mount Faber Park and Telok Blangah Hill Park on the Southern Ridges. Late afternoon, after a 4 pm Saturday finish, is a good time to cross it, with the city skyline to the north and the port cranes to the south.

If you would rather eat first, Redhill Market and its food centre sit north of the industrial park toward Redhill MRT station, and Tiong Bahru's art deco estate is a short ride east. Both make easy stops for a costume committee that wants to talk through the fitting over kopi before the next rehearsal.

Ministry of Costumes, 217 Henderson Road #04-04, Singapore 159555. Hours are Monday to Friday 1 pm to 6 pm and Saturday 1 pm to 4 pm, by appointment only, with no Sunday hours listed. Book the 30-minute Costume Selection slot online. Prices quoted on the site include the outer space group theme at S$110, the Basic Santa Set at $19.90 and the Deluxe Santa Set at $99.00.