HONG KONG — Asian brands were out in force at The Hub, a trade show started by Richard Hobbs and Peter Caplowe to introduce emerging Western brands to Asian consumers.
Having completed the two-day run of its fourth edition on March 13, the trade show featured European brands hoping to catch a piece of the growth in Asia as well as Asian labels — from mainland China, Hong Kong, Korea and elsewhere — hoping to make further inroads in the region.
“Asia is an interesting market not only for financial reasons but because the whole multibrand store concept is so new,” said Nick Hayes of Rack and Ruin, a U.K.-based denim brand. In the U.K., Hayes said, the midmarket has been taken over by high street brands, making it very difficult for smaller, independent labels to gain a foothold.
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“The market in Europe today is not good,” said Kristina Kartashova, a manager for Ukrainian women’s label Alonova. The brand has been around for 10 years but was exhibiting in Asia for the first time through The Hub.
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The number of multibrand retailers in Asia is growing, although stand-alone stores remain extremely important to branding. The growing popularity of multibrand stores is giving smaller labels an opportunity to display their wares.
There were an increased number of Korean labels this year, a testament to growing popularity of Korean fashion, particularly in Asia.
“I think it’s getting more popular than before,” said Sohyun Park, assistant manager of People of Tastes, which represented four Korean labels at the show. Park noted that the popularity of K-pop as well as Korean dramas and movies has been a boon to Korean fashion. One of the labels was Hong Kiyoung, a Korean men’s wear brand popular with K-pop stars. T-shirts retail for about $200 to $400 while jackets run about $500 to $1,000. Park also pointed out Sley, a younger streetwear label started in 2013. Another Korean label drawing attention was Skog, a homeware maker that produces pillows and bags. Skog bags became very popular after being featured on a popular Korean drama.
Just as designers in the U.S. and Europe use celebrities to promote their clothes, so too are Asian designers reaching out to stars — both local and international. Chinese designer Zhang Jingjing set up a showroom in Hollywood and has gotten her clothes on Katy Perry, singer Bleona Qereti as well as Chinese actresses and socialites. The designer currently has a store in Shanghai but is looking to expand.
“It’s a good market in the U.S.,” she said, adding that she viewed The Hub as a good way to gain exposure to different tastes.
Another Chinese designer at the show was Eric Zhang, who has two labels: K-Men, which makes T-shirts that are popular in Korea, a well as a higher-end namesake label called Eric Chang. Zhang said he is hoping to make inroads with his labels in Hong Kong and Taiwan.
There were 80 exhibitors at the show, down from 100 a year ago. Though foot traffic at D2 Place in Lai Chi Kok was light, exhibitors said they were happy with the buyers they met, many of whom were from China.