As traditional Hong Kong tailors find ways to reach younger audiences, avant-garde fashion designers are reinterpreting beloved staples. Rebecca Lo turns the spotlight on the current state of the city’s rag trade.
A suit fitting at Ascot Chang; the high-end tailor was founded in 1953. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)
Deep within a Hung Hom industrial building, 50 staff members are preparing bespoke suits and shirts for some of the world’s biggest names. The boardroom’s photo gallery features architect I.M. Pei, former US president George W. Bush, and actors Aaron Kwok Fu-shing, Andy Lau Tak-wah and Leonardo DiCaprio.
All of them pose with a member of the Chang family, and many wear a tailored garment crafted by Hong Kong tailor Ascot Chang.
“I was not working in the store when Leo dropped by,” Justin Chang says while grinning.
Justin and his father Tony officiated at the opening of Foreign Fabric Local Looks: A Hong Kong Suit Story, an exhibition held last month at The Mills. Curated by Tinny Cheng, founder of The Culturist website and owner of Tai Yip Art Bookshop, the show provides a study in the menswear heritage of modern Hong Kong.
Dioramas show mannequins clad in vintage suits, as well as one particularly Asian power suit: the jacket-over-cheongsam combination favored by Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor. It is no coincidence that women’s blazers came into vogue with the rise of second-wave feminism in the 1960s.
The vault at Ascot Chang holds a vast array of paper suit patterns collected since the 1950s. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)
At the rear of the exhibition is a mock-up of a photography studio backdrop set up for wedding photos. “Bespoke Western-style suits were out of the price range of most Hong Kong men,” Cheng says during the show’s preview. “As part of a package, many studios loaned suits to grooms so they could take official photos with their bride.”
Second-generation tailor Tony Wong of Fu Shing & Sons sent an eight-foot-long cutting table from his Fenwick Pier store to the exhibition. The table’s lower shelf used to double as a communal bed for workers to catch up on sleep, during the heyday of orders from travelers demanding a suit made in the time they were in town.
“I am moving to Central,” Wong laments. “My shop in Fenwick Pier will disappear when the building is demolished. I have to move by the end of 2021.”
Roshan Melwani, the third-generation representative of Sam’s Tailor, removes his jacket to discuss his personal preference for wearing a silk vest over his shirt. “Hong Kong summers are very hot, and a vest looks formal while keeping me cool,” he explains.
Qipao, the traditional Chinese women’s dress, is upcycled into scarves by the designer label, Blind by JW. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)
Boom town
Hong Kong’s manufacturing industry flourished after World War II. The lure of better prospects drew tailors from Shanghai, including Ascot Chang, to the city. They were soon joined by Indian families such as the Melwanis and Harilelas. In his biography, Hari Harilela: Made in Hong Kong, the patriarch recounts his early days as a teenager selling suits in Tsim Sha Tsui.
Also a third-generation member in his family’s company, Justin Chang studied fashion merchandising at Cornell University. Following summer jobs on the sales floor at Ascot Chang’s Manhattan store, he joined his father back in Hong Kong full time in 2008.
While Tony Chang remains the company’s majority shareholder, his son is mindfully implementing ways to bring Ascot Chang into the 21st century — not an easy feat for a tailor that still relies on paper patterns for its legions of loyal customers. Recent changes include transitioning from handwritten orders to a digital system (which took two years to implement), launching a corporate website, and participating in events such as the recent exhibition at The Mills.
A traditional wedding portrait backdrop, designed for bridegrooms in hired suits, on display at The Mills’ Foreign Fabric Local Looks exhibition. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)
“My grandfather’s apprentice is still working here today,” Chang notes. “When I became the boss, there was a bit of pushback from staff members who’d been here since before I was born. I may not know how to hold a tailor’s chalk the right way, but I show them that I am just as passionate about our suits as they are.”
It’s late afternoon and, at the Hung Hom factory, one tailor is embroidering an intricate monogram on a shirt with colorful thread, while another is chalking fine Italian cashmere for a pair of pants. The shirt studio is filled to the rafters with bolts of fabric standing ready for a sharp pair of scissors.
“I love that Americans consider it a family event to get suits made,” Chang says. “These are nice relationships that we continue to cultivate over the decades.”
He recounts the memorable challenge of fitting the right jacket cut for a New York symphonic conductor. The key, it turns out, was to ensure the client looked flawless with his arms in motion. As Chang explains, “The jacket looks a bit odd when he lowers his arms, but is perfect while he is conducting an orchestra.”
(Left to right) Pictured at a recent exhibition at The Mills are (back row) Roshan Melwani, Tony Chang, Justin Chang, and (front row) Johny Chiu, Tinny Cheng and Tony Wong. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)
Fresh inspirations
While Ascot Chang continues its traditional tailoring, fashion designer Jessica Lau is engaging younger audiences in the process behind her work. Born and raised in London, and educated at Central Saint Martins Art and Design College, Lau credits her passion for fashion to her mother.
“When I was growing up, my mother did piecework at home with a borrowed sewing machine,” Lau recalls. “I grew up watching TVB, and I became very interested in how to combine Western and Eastern design elements.”
She has worked with high-profile brands, including Alexander McQueen in London, John Galliano in Paris, and Diane von Furstenberg in New York. “When I was at DvF, everyone told me that the best place to work was in China,” Lau says. “I thought I would give it a try as my mother is from Hong Kong.”
A suit worn by Li Ngaw, a pioneering Hong Kong radio broadcaster, as well as a lady’s suit, inspired by the cheongsam, on display at the Foreign Fabric Local Looks exhibition at The Mills. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)
After working for a Hong Kong label in the Chinese mainland, she quickly learned how to assemble a garment based on what best matches its intended market.
Lau established her own label, Blind by JW, with Walter Kong to explore different approaches to fashion and tailoring. She explains that their company name refers to a curtain being drawn to reveal something fun and fantastical.
“We started with a pop-up shop at Hong Kong International Airport in 2016 — three months there got extended to one year,” Lau recalls. Along with participating in events such as the Hong Kong Art Centre’s recent Transformative Chic exhibition, Blind by JW operates boutiques in PMQ and Central Market.
Lau sees Blind by JW as a platform for sustainable fashion, with its own ready-to-wear line alongside corporate project collaborations.
This DiScarvery scarf and bag by Blind by JW features QR codes linked to some of the city’s most Instagrammable sites. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)
For instance, Weaveasy is a pouch made from vegan leather that the DIY inclined can make themselves, either in workshops or as a takeaway kit to try at home. “Our customer base is between 35 and 70 years old, and Weaveasy allows us to reach the Gen Z audience,” Lau explains.
The brand’s upcycled qipao scarf combines the formality of the traditional Chinese garment with a contemporary nonchalance when paired with jeans. “Qipao is about confidence,” Lau states. “The seamstress who sews our qipao is a retired pieceworker, and we enjoy a collaborative process. For example, she suggested changing the cut to save on material costs.”
Blind by JW designed DiScarvery as a scarf with QR codes linked to different sites around town, enabling the wearer to discover the urban landscape while taking selfies. It led to a successful partnership with Hotel Icon, with the property offering the stylish map-meets-fashion-accessory to its guests.
“We love fashion that offers a degree of personalization,” asserts Lau. “We want customers to be part of the design process.”
