When Hong Kong endured a decade-long fashion drought, until Australian designers George Gross and Harry Watt ended it in style with parade of ‘sophisticated chic’
- It had been 10 years since couturiers regularly showed collections in Hong Kong when George Gross, and Harry Watt of label Harry Who, put on a fashion show
- Among the models would be the reigning Ms Hongkong, Robin Lee, Post readers were informed, and the pair’s collections promised ‘elegance and sophisticated chic’
“Fashion extravaganzas are pretty much a thing of the past in Hongkong,” reported the South China Morning Post on September 21, 1986.
“Not since the mid-seventies have there been regular gala events where couturiers showed off their seasonal sensations and where local ladies could show off their sensational ensembles while purchasing more of the same with some pretty sensational cheques.
“But later this month there is the chance to bring out both the chequebooks and the couture clothes and contribute to charity as well.
“Presented by Mosaic Designs Limited with the support of the Australian Trade Commission, the show will also mark the launch, in Hongkong, of the collection of two of Australia’s leading designers, George Gross and Harry [Watt, the designer behind the Harry Who label].
“Both hail from Adelaide and both will attend the function, along with a choreographer and a dozen quite spectacular models. Although this is a lunchtime show, Mr Gross has designed an exclusive evening gown which will be modelled by Ms Hongkong, Robin Lee.
“He regards himself, he says, as a ‘technician’, an adult among juveniles in what is a fairly volatile profession in any case.
Harry Who’s ranges consist “largely of coordinated sportswear that progress from daytime garments right through to evening separates”.
“Mr Gross and Mr [Watt], while sharing the top spot in Australian fashion design, are the best of friends, and only casual rivals on the fashion front.
“They work well together, and apart, in projecting the image of both Adelaide and Australia in their new focus on elegance and sophisticated chic.”
