Divine inspiration drives fashion mogul Boby Chan Yum-kit

For Boby Chan Yum-kit, building a fashion empire all came down to timing. The chairman and managing director of Moiselle International Holdings and his wife Shirley saw their opportunity in 1997 and seized it.

"It was easy to build the brand in the late 1990s because many fashion stores had to shut down due to the economic tsunami," he says. "Positive thinking is important to being a success in life - it makes you notice and seize opportunities when they pop up."

The brand, which is also the exclusive distributor for international accessories brands such as Coccinelle and Sequoia and British fashion brand Reiss, now has more than 120 retail stores across Asia.

The brand listed on the main board of the Hong Kong stock exchange in 2002, a move Chan says "proves that Hong Kong's fashion industry can allow homegrown brands to develop."

Chan sees the fashion industry in Hong Kong as tougher than before because global brands have hiked up rental prices. But he is ready to face the competition head-on.

"These mega brands have the advantage of resources and a rich history behind them but we have the advantage of time because we are hours ahead of them," he says. "We also have our own factory and design crew which I believe give us our competitive edge."