What Hong Kong fashion can do to raise its global profile – some hopeful signs
Designers applaud government-backed initiatives and events, but say more collaboration is key to the next generation producing another quintessential local brand such as Shanghai Tang, Vivienne Tam or G.O.D.
A dance performance by Bouboo The Crow at the recent Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) Centrestage catwalk event threw a spotlight on the collaborative creativity the city’s fashion scene needs if it wants global recognition.
Headlining the event were noted Korean brand Juun J. and Hong Kong/Shenzhen-based Ffixxed Studios, and the show featured local labels such as Loom Loop and Kenax Leung. Other highlights included the annual Young Fashion Designers’ Contest and the Fashion Farm Foundation’s FFFriday series of local designer showcases in galleries around Central.
A post shared by FFIXXED STUDIOS (@ffixxed_studios) on Sep 7, 2017 at 4:19am PDT
Such clustering of events, and teaming up to make greater collective noise about Hong Kong fashion, is what the scene needs to grow and command sustained business.
The question of what defines Hong Kong fashion has been pondered for years. There are designers such as Polly Ho, creative director of Loom Loop, who have their own interpretation – for the Centrestage collection Ho collaborated with local drinks brand Vitasoy (cute, kitsch and clever, reminiscent of the pop-inspirations of Anya Hindmarch and Jeremy Scott).
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But for Kain Picken, co-founder (along with Fiona Lau) of Ffixxed Studios, a fixation with pushing “Hong Kong identity” means that “some of the young designers have a pressure to show this, sometimes quite unnaturally ... Hong Kong’s insularity might hold itself back ... in a lot of creative spheres.”
Government-run catwalk shows staged in conjunction with a huge manufacturing fashion trade show at the Convention Centre have their own limitations, says Picken. A “trade show” is hardly alluring and it’s little wonder these catwalk shows have struggled – but there is hope if the organisers continue to push boundaries and take risks.
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Various government-funded initiatives are helping. For example, Loom Loop and Ffixxed are supported by the newly inaugurated Fashion Incubation Programme (FIP) run by the Hong Kong Design Centre (disclosure: I’m a mentor and judge on the programme). Fashion Farm Foundation, likewise, supports local brands such as Injury, Modement, and Ffixxed, at a group show for Paris Fashion Week as well as local publicity.
“We’ve been a bit conscious about establishing our presence in Hong Kong; being part of the FIP programme has helped.”
As brands such as G.O.D., Shanghai Tang and Vivienne Tam show, there is a place and a taste for Hong Kong designers. Younger brands have struggled for similar levels of recognition and the question is, who from the next generation can show the way for home-bred style?