Chinese Designers on Finding Their Voices on the Global Stage
For Chinese designers Chen Peng, Yushan Li, Samuel Yang and Rui Zhou, finding their voices on the global stage means showcasing how diverse and refined Chinese creativity can be today.
Chen Peng, who founded his namesake brand seven years ago, is widely known for creating Cardi B’s showstopping Met Gala look this year. He was also a semifinalist of last year’s LVMH Prize. Chen carved out a path for himself by owning the designer puffer jacket segment and letting his ideas run amok.
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“If you want to show your collection all over the world, the most important thing is to focus on crafting an identity in an iconic category,” Chen explained at the WWD x SKP CEO Summit in Chengdu, in conversation with WWD London and China market editor Tianwei Zhang.
“We only have one collection each year, but for the one season that we produce, we communicate in the most powerful format possible,” added Chen, who began presenting his collections during Paris Fashion Week last March.
For Yushan Li, who is one half of the Chinese menswear label Pronounce founded in 2016, high-profile partnerships with Diesel, Puma, H&M, Lanvin, as well as a two-year tenure as Lacoste consultants in China, helped the designer boost his confidence in the rich culture that he came from.
“I’m wearing a changshan today because changshan is a part of the DNA of Pronounce and of myself and Jun Zhou, the cofounder of the brand,” said Li, pointing to his purple changshan with abstract prints on it. As the male version of qipao, the Chinese long robe first became popular as a type of formalwear in the Qing dynasty.
“We were both educated in the West, where we learned to speak confidently about ourselves and our country of origin. In a way, wearing a changshan meant that I don’t have to explain myself too much. I want to let my style speak for itself. It is pronounced clearly in an international language,” Li said.
For Samuel Yang, one half of the London-based Samuel Gui Yang label, finding a global-minded Chinese community, especially in the art world, has helped him cast a fresh view on traditional ways of Chinese dressing in the modern world. Founded in 2015, the brand has fostered a fruitful partnership with Chinese apparel brand Icicle and Chinese cloth shoe label Neiliansheng.
“I strongly agree with what Yushan just said,” said Yang, who, alongside Li, studied under Louise Wilson at Central Saint Martins.
“We were a generation fortunate enough to study abroad and receive a fantastic education. I decided to stay in London after graduation, where I also found my creative community over the years,” said Yang.
“That’s how I built a collection. It’s a way to document how I’ve lived and enjoyed the culture around me, wherever I am, either in London, Shanghai, or Chengdu,” said Yang of his approach.
For Zhou, who graduated from Parsons School of Design in 2019 and founded Rui the same year, celebrating body positivity across the board is more important than parading her own identity as a Chinese woman. Rui’s signature cutout knits strung together via intricate beading have since liberated the likes of Dua Lipa, Jennie of Blackpink and Lily-Rose Depp.
“My brand is about showing people’s identity and embracing body confidence and their imperfections,” Zhou explained.
All four designers came of age amid China’s designer fashion boom in the past 10 years, as the country’s Millennial and Gen Z shoppers began to develop a more daring sense of style and sophistication different from their parents.
Take Samuel Gui Yang as an example. By working alongside his Swedish partner Eric Litzen, the brand is able to infuse Swedish modesty within traditionally ornamental Chinese design. “Maybe because I’m living abroad, I’m always trying to find something different than what I’ve learned from my parent’s generation,” Yang said of his creative process. “I’m always trying to figure out what it means to be a modern Chinese today.
“I’d like to think that my version of the Chinese aesthetic is something that can be enjoyed globally and even by non-Chinese, it’s not something exclusive to us,” Yang added.
For Pronounce’s Li, the spiritual aspect of Chinese philosophy is what he wants to explore on a deeper level. “In China, there’s a saying called’ qi,’ or an energy and life force. We want to say that Pronounce is an oriental ‘qi’ that can inspire people spiritually and let you forget about your gender and age because you have a particular ‘qi’ within you,” Li explained.
With recent collections that melded Chinese culture and traditional Indian and Moroccan culture, the label is quickly expanding its sartorial language with an experimental bent. A soon-to-be-opened studio in Bangkok proves that the designers are more than comfortable with venturing outside their comfort zones.
“We are really interested in the topic of being a world citizen. To be able to find beauty in everything everywhere all at once is what fascinates me and Jun the most now,” Li said.
For the equally ambitious Chen, having the world embrace the style and silhouette of Chen Peng that has come to define a youthful Chinese identity is his end goal. “We don’t want just to show a collection with a bunch of phoenixes or dragons that decorate the clothes. We are ready to define a really contemporary Chinese aesthetic because we have that confidence now,” Chen said.
To facilitate the next stage of growth, Chen wants to collaborate with more brands, both in China and abroad, to enrich his branding and production know-how.
The same goes for Zhou of Rui, who became the first Chinese designer to collaborate with Victoria’s Secret last August, followed by a capsule collaboration with Adidas.
“Collaborations really help me understand the market and how to design more practical and wearable pieces,” Zhou said. “To be able to serve a larger audience means understanding desire on a practical level. It’s about what our shoppers look for when picking out tops or leggings.”
For Yang, working with Icicle helped him reach a broader audience — the Icicle x Samuel Gui Yang collaboration was stocked at over 270 stores in China — and enriched his manufacturing knowledge. “It was the first time that we combined our iconic pieces, such as the Lee Jacket, with Icicle’s signature double-faced wool. I can’t wait to continue our collaboration,” Yang said.
Yang also shared that he recently created a “loan deck” to seek investment opportunities. “We’ve been patient for a long time, focused on building a brand, but I think it’s time to explore next steps,” Yang said.
Li and other designers agreed that they still have a long way to go in terms of business development.
“We are still young, we are creative, but we don’t really have a sense of how a mid-sized company should operate,” Li said. “But in 30 or 50 years, we will have a Chinese luxury brand, and I think Pronounce will have that chance.”
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