I don’t know about you, but for me, 2023 feels like an exciting year for Beijing. I am constantly hearing about new openings, creative ventures, cultural festivals, and more, so was very intrigued to hear about one such venture: Roots Café and Culture (RC&C) Lifestyle Hub.
A new concept created by Tinashe Chidodo in collaboration with four others, RC&C Lifestyle Hub aims to create cultural, and artistic leisure activities and exhibitions on a regular basis. This Sunday (Jul 2) is the official launch of the Lifestyle Hub and I was lucky enough to have the chance to meet with Tinashe ahead of the opening and visit their event space in Shang 8 Design and Creative Park.
Originally from Zimbabwe, Chidodo has had an entrepreneurial spirit from a young age, telling me that the initial idea for RC&C dates back to a business set up years ago by him and his brothers back in Zimbabwe. That being said, he adds, the current concept of RC&C has changed a lot since then.
RC&C is a brand which Chidodo plans to grow in the future and the Lifestyle Hub is the first step towards this. In a nutshell, Chidodo says that “The Lifestyle Hub is a collection of products and services that we believe tend to the 21st century professional… we try to provide for them, the aspects that we think that matter most in their life, so that, in essence, means that this place is family-friendly.”
The Lifestyle Hub is made up of six pillars: Lifestyle Market, Culture Café, House Café, Fitness Culture, Cookout & Vegan Café, and Photo Studio Sessions. Lifestyle Market is like your typical market with merchants exhibiting their products and services, however, Chidobo says that it will be in a more curated way to ensure there are more unique and high-quality products that you won’t necessarily find elsewhere. Culture Café will focus on cultural and artistic activities such as art exhibitions, wine tastings, coffee workshops, cultural exchange programs, and more.
House Café is all about music, and Chidodo speaks excitedly of the project. “Frankly, I haven’t been happy in Beijing with the music scene…You go to these very popular places, for two days in a row and you’re going to hear the same playlists and that bothers me, that really bothers me. So we came up with this idea to say we should have a pillar that is specific to music, we give all our attention to finding the best musicians, the best DJs. And also, we can also play our own music that we feel is good.”
Fitness Culture is about both mental and physical health and will involve a variety of fitness sessions ranging from things like Yoga or Pilates to Muay Thai or Jiujitsu. These will be run by a variety of fitness studios and instructors from a whole range of countries so that each time is a different experience.
Cookout & Vegan Café focuses on inviting chefs and restaurants from all parts of the world to exhibit their food. The cookout part is based on a classic American barbecue out back, but they also wanted to make it inclusive to vegans and vegetarians which is where the Vegan Café part comes in. Lastly, Photo Studio Sessions which Chidodo says is all about photography and also fashion design using the Lifestyle Hub’s own photography studio.
The Lifestyle Hub is planning on putting on a full weekend of events every two weeks which will encompass all six pillars. They’re based in Shang 8 Design and Creative Park, having partnered with Shang 8 who Chidodo says have been hugely supportive of their ideas. Showing me around the place, there is absolutely tons of room to play with and you can tell that it’s going to be a perfect event space, especially when you consider the fact it doesn’t have any residential buildings nearby, which means no noise complaints. We here at the Beijinger we can really relate to that one.
Their grand opening is happening this Sunday (Jul 2) and they have a great line up of activities, workshops, and food. There will be an hour workout session by SOG followed by an hour Pilates session – choose one or do both! The Beerpong Spot will be taking over the Games Room to host a beerpong tournament along with other party games.
There will be a “Velvefication Session” hosted by Velveteen’s Secret Potions (VSP) where self-care will be paired with Chilean wine. A cookout from the braai master ‘D’ from Ribs by D serving Southern African style BBQ, My Vegan Provence will serve French vegan food and for those with a sweet tooth Lief & Tree will bring a range of American and South African desserts.
Serbian photographer Tacinamo will be in their photography studio, inviting patrons to have either black and white or color dark-space photography portraits taken. Finally there will be DJ sets by Zhang Lin, the owner of Zarah Cafe and creator behind Zarahmusic; DJ Ennoe and DJ 3.141.
During the entire day, there will, of course, also be a range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks available to sip on. Tribute Pub will be serving mixed drink cocktails and U!Bro (aka URBREW) will be serving a wide range of craft beers. There will also be wine from Ma ChouPette & ChouPinou.
Now, that sounds like one fun jam-packed day! If you want to join, you can see details in the poster below and to keep up to date with all things related to RC&C Lifestyle Hub you can follow their official WeChat account by scanning the QR code below.
The Lifestyle Hub’s Grand Opening Party will happen at Shang 8 Design and Creative Park on Jul 2,11am-11pm. Entry is RMB 88 and can be purchased by scanning the QR code in the poster above.
Shang 8 Design and Creative Park 尚8设计+创意园
1 Shengoucun, Chaoyang District
朝阳区-深沟村1号
READ: Beijing’s Best Rooftops and Terraces Pt. 3
Images: courtesy of The Lifestyle Hub
