Fashion People
Faking it's easy Don't envy the chic-looking tai-tai with the Fendi bag and Gucci shoes too much. According to our society sources, chances are such accessories are fakes. It seems even hardcore fashion snobs are nipping over to Shenzhen to buy the latest counterfeit goods - some reputedly go as often as a week. One socialite we lunched with the other day had just dropped $12,000 on bona fide Chanel handbags here but was going across the border to buy some $100 fakes. All very baffling. Still more puzzling is how the manufacturers of these fake products can keep the quality as high as it is; you can find packaging and guarantee cards identical to the originals.
So much so, we're told, certain naughty shoppers are taking their fakes to the original stores here and in Europe, requesting minor repairs or changes - and getting them! Another source tells us the fakes are so deceptive, a production executive from a top Italian brand flew to Shenzhen to see just how the counterfeiters do it. All very bad news for our beloved brand names ...
Heaven scent When they are not buying fake designer bags, local tai-tais have developed another pastime: soothing their poor shopped-out limbs. For this they have turned to Judy Hong, who has fused fashion retailing (Le Sportsac, Buccellati) with New Age health therapies. Hong recently introduced a line of products from San Francisco called Angel's Touch: soft, pillow-shaped pouches, back-pads and slippers filled with aromatic herbs are heated in a microwave before being applied to stressed or painful parts of the body. Hong unveiled the line at a high-society do at the Grand Hyatt a while ago, at which top-notch consumers like Sheila Poon - Dickson's mother - snapped the things up. They're well-priced enough, from around $300 upwards, for just about anyone to afford, and are effective for ailments like cramps, muscular pain and headaches.
A landmark success? How do you know you're in the middle of an 80s moment? When Christian Lacroix re-opens his Hong-Kong shop, sweetie darling. Through local retailers Swank Shop, Lacroix will open a 1,000-square-foot boutique in the Landmark in August, carrying his main line plus the younger Bazar sp?collection. The store will be where Ungaro is now, which in turn will be moved into Swank. So what's the rationale behind that, when the word from international fashion circles is that Lacroix is so five minutes ago? We asked Caroline Roberts, Swank's PR manager, who explained: 'Quite a few of our customers swear by it and faithfully buy the collection from Swank', where it has been for the past two seasons. On March 20, Roberts is organising an intimate trunk show for the autumn/winter 2000-2001 line, to which she is anticipating a favourable response.
But at Swank Inspiration's recent spring/summer 2000 instore show, where models tried to dance down the catwalk, the biggest sellers were Plein Sud, Roberto Cavalli and Chloe, which Swank is also distributing. As always, the event was heaving with social types, many of whom went back the next day to try on some of the glitzy clothes they'd seen. Also attracting lots of attention: Cavalli's menswear line, which is all bright colours and vivid prints. Scary.