Futur:st is not just the bar we used to flock to in Poblacion. It has adapted and grown into something more rooted in arts and dining which its founders are proud of! Read on to learn about their many projects:
Futur:st, one of Poblacion’s nightlife hot-spots was known for some of the best DJ music in town. With the new normal putting an abrupt halt to dancing, late nights out and bar hopping, its founders Samantha Nicole, Leah Castañeda and Sharon Atillo had to make a big and meaningful pivot.
“Futur:st is a collective term for the family we have generated the last [around] 13 years, which is rooted in Today x Future [Cubao]” co-founder, Samantha Nicole shares. “Futur:st is also our second home. We opened it two years ago with the same sensibility and perspective but with a bit more maturity” she tells me.
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Pre-pandemic, the bar was actually already rooted in art. Be it the art form of making music (as Sam, aka DJ Samantha Nicole is one of the country’s best) or art hanging in the establishment’s walls, it has always been at the core of the brand. She says that it made sense for them to highlight their roots during a time of great change. “Sure, we miss the sweaty dance parties where no one will ever accept that it’s time to go home. However... we also realised how much we missed the other equally essential things like artistic outputs and collaborations that we’ve always practised since Today x Future opened in 2008,” she explains. Now, the new Futur:st is almost paying homage to its origins.
While most of us immediately think bar and club when thinking of Futur:st, Sam is quick to say that it “was never meant to be solely a club or restaurant. We wanted to position it as staying true to how we’ve done things from the start, by putting the arts and culture on the same level of importance”.
To her, culture is critical to an individual and its communities - and I agree. As part of the creative industry, Sam and her partners try their best to support in many ways. “Now more than ever, we are more intentional when looking for ways to grow the industry in terms of creating more channels for long term collaborations”.
