Zhang innovates ‘Made in China’ branding
I want it to be personal because overall I’m serving my clients, so they’re going to be on the same journey as me. Zhang Huishan, avant garde fashion designer
BEIJING: From derivative to innovative. That’s the quantum leap in fashion that designer Zhang Huishan is taking the much- derided “Made in China” branding.
During London Fashion Week, Zhang made history on a catwalk near Bond Street.
Set to an eclectic mix of music, ranging from Brandy & Monika’s ‘ The Boy Is Mine’ to Faye Wong’s ‘Dream Person’, Zhang’s personal blend of Eastern and Western culture was evident even before the models sashayed down the catwalk.
Zhang showed his Autumn Winter 2018 collection in the lavish interior of the Savile Club, housed in a grand 18th century building in Mayfair. The collection had been inspired by the work of Asian film director Wong Kar-wai, particularly the films Chungking Express and 2049.
It sees black patent vegan leather paired against hand painted lace, bold graphics and blossom prints on dresses, and luxury satin outfits with crystal and pearl fringing. Throughout the collection, Zhang’s take on the Cheongsam is present.
Zhang said he has drawn on “the dark romance and the mystery of love” expressed through Wong Kar-Wai’s work to create his collection. “I want it to be personal because overall I’m serving my clients, so they’re going to be on the same journey as me,” he reckoned..
Zhang has had a meteoric rise since he first launched his brand in 2011, not long after graduating from Central Saint Martin’s prestigious fashion college. Born in Qingdao, Zhang left China at the age of 17 and lived in New Zealand and Paris before settling in London. While studying he was picked out by Delphine Arnaud to work at Dior Paris, in the brand’s leather goods department and in Dior’s Haute Couture Atelier.
Since then he’s been named in the Business of Fashion 500 twice, received the Dorchester Collection Fashion Prize, and has a dress in London’s V& A Museum’s permanent collection, the first Chinese contemporary fashion designer to do so. And he’s just opened his first flagship store in Mayfair.
But at the heart of Zhang’s work is the idea of culture, and a new take on the meaning behind “Made in China”.
Ten years ago, those three words would have been enough to conjure up images of sweatshops and low- quality or imitation products.
But for today’s consumers, the phrase is fast evolving.
This month research firm Kantar reported that the young generation of global consumers today see the brands coming out of China differently to previous generations, describing them as “innovative” instead of inexpensive or low quality, and younger consumers in Europe and other markets are now using Chinese global e- commerce platforms such as Alibaba and JD.com to shop from.
The higher ends of fashion have been helping push this trend too; Wei Lin’s innovative PH5 womenswear label, whose clothes are made in China, debuted at New York Fashion Week two years ago, bringing the designer’s brand of high quality knitwear to the catwalk. And at London Fashion Week this year, e- commerce giant VIP. com became the first Chinese retailer to officially sponsor the industry event.