THE 'MADE IN CHINA' label is commonly found on shop items around the world, but 'designed in China' has not quite caught on. Hong Kong-based DMC Products wants to change that. A relatively new company founded in 2003, DMC is an exhibitor at the Hong Kong Gifts & Premium Fair. The company's name stands for 'designed and made in China'. 'Our production and factory are in the mainland, and our design is done both there and in Hong Kong,' Paul Chung, founder and creative director, said. 'Besides, Hong Kong is part of China, much as some people don't want to admit it.' The company has three designers, including Mr Chung, who create new designs every fortnight. At the fair the company will be showcasing a range of 'flower containers'. 'They are called flower containers because they are for holding flowers but they do not look like flower vases,' Mr Chung said. 'We wanted a breakthrough because we have already designed so many flower vases.' Mr Chung, a Canadian citizen, taught fine arts and sculpture at a school in Canada before relocating to Hong Kong to start up DMC. 'The objective of the company is to create alternative products that are design oriented, with a lot of mix-and-match materials,' Mr Chung said. 'I always encourage the design team to get out there and look at things, like those shops on Lockhart Road and Portland Street for interior decoration materials. You can't get inspiration for your designs by sitting in the office.' Although young, DMC is already a rather successful company - its designs having been sold to more than 30 countries. It has agents in Japan and Korea, where a 700 sqft store specialising in DMC's products opened this month. Europe and the United States are the company's other major markets. There is also a DMC shop in the mainland. DMC has participated in many overseas trade fairs, including the famous Ambiente and Tendence shows in Frankfurt, Germany. But Mr Chung said the Hong Kong Gifts & Premium Fair attracted more major buyers from around the world. 'A lot of visitors we met in Frankfurt were from individual retail stores. 'The Hong Kong Gifts & Premium Fair is visited by buyers from many of the major department stores in the world.'
