The back of a taxi may seem an unlikely place for design maven Kelly Hoppen to find peace and quiet. But for now, that's all the 'queen of taupe' can hope for. After a whirlwind week, launching a home fragrance in Paris, wallpaper in Britain and a furniture collection in Hong Kong and the mainland, Hoppen still manages to sound hyped for this interview, conducted on her mobile phone while hurtling through Shanghai's streets.
'I really want to work out here - we've already done a lot of work in Bangkok and Singapore so I'm hoping a dinner at Hong Kong's China Club with some property people will be successful,' says Hoppen. 'People are really inspiring [in Hong Kong] and I think they're open to brands developing themselves much more so than anywhere else in the world.'
Hong Kong's breakneck speed is what Hoppen thrives on. Confident, and self-assured, yet chatty and personable, she was in town recently to show off her first consolidated home collection, to be sold at Indigo Living from this month. The 50 pieces in the Kelly Hoppen Home range, which includes everything from dining tables to paints and accessories, are classic Hoppen and come in all of the colours you'd expect: whites, taupes and beiges. 'It's a very easy collection. I don't try to dictate to people - you don't need to have the entire range. Whatever piece you pick, you don't need to be a brain surgeon. You can incorporate it into your decor and it will work with pieces you bought a year or two years ago.
'I always say the base colours need to be neutrals so we've got black, a lot of silver, gold, metal and some extraordinary antique glass. I think the bigger pieces of furniture should always be neutral and then you can add flashes of colour with your curtains, carpets and glass. That way you won't get bored with your interiors.'
Hoppen's life has been anything but boring. At age 51, she has just begun writing her autobiography - and it's been a cathartic experience. 'It's extraordinary when you go back in your life and look at things you've done - it's like clearing out the cupboard,' she says. Much of what is written about Hoppen's design genius also comes with a history of her 'colourful life'.
'I think your parents have a great deal to do with the way you turn out. My parents were extraordinary people,' Hoppen says. Her father, Seymour, heir to what was at the time the largest clothing company in South Africa, Rex TrueForm, died unexpectedly when she was 16.