Nikoi and Cempedak are two sustainable private island resorts off the coast of Bintan, Indonesia, owned by a small group of investor friends who share a passion for the outdoors, nature, food and wine.
The inspiration to develop Nikoi & Cempedak into these private island retreats came through disenchantment with the standard of holiday accommodation on offer within easy reach of Singapore. It was either flea-ridden shacks or opulently garish five-star hotels; cultural sensitivity, vernacular design and simple luxuries were seemingly unheard of.
With that in mind, the concept of Nikoi came to life in 2007 and the island quickly became a popular destination for Singapore residents and visitors from further away. Many guests are regular returnees, making it their preferred escape from busy city life.
From the outset, building and operating Nikoi & Cempedak along strict sustainable principles has been at the forefront of development plans for the islands. Not only were the resorts built entirely with local materials, labour and services but they are also operated with the local community. Cempedak Island – opened in 2017 – is the world’s first private island resort to be constructed entirely from bamboo. Through time, many important trades and skills have been transferred to the islands’ contractors and staff.
About 10 years ago, Andrew Dixon and his partners also established The Island Foundation to help improve education standards amongst local Bintan children. They have established 6 learning centres and have over 500 children registered in their programs. Through their teacher training workshops, the programs impact more than 5000 local villagers.
“We started out by putting a couple of shacks on the beach, before deciding to open it up on weekends just to cover the cost. We weren’t focused on making it a business but it became very popular.”
Andrew Dixon, co-founder & director
Just Edo (previously Edenspiekermann Singapore) designed and built the new websites for Nikoi & Cempedak, bringing the relaxed and personal island retreat experience to life in the browser. Next to the obvious English language version of the site, we helped to bring a Japanese language version online, supporting the rapidly growing interest for the islands from this Asian nation.
Design & Development team: Venus Loh, Gladys Loh, Lubomir Georgiev, Dimitar Petrov, Edo van Dijk
We collaborated with Simon Wong and Marcel Heijnen of Chemistry on the brand refresh for Nikoi & Cempedak.
