Stephanie Chu is Hong Kong I.T’s Senior Buyer. Wearing a Comme des Garcons scarf, she agrees with my assessment that people living in HK might be more fashionable than their Mainland neighbors but sees this as the result of historical developments. Mainland customers are now shifting from glamour and brand-obsession to a more individual style. She also explained that I.T customers are from the “younger generation†that uses the internet a lot, therefore I.T is concentrating on creating a strong identity concept involving music and web presentation and an original shopping experience in each branch.
To understand the history of I.T, have a look at this interview with brand founder Sham Kar Wai from the WSJ.
Originally from Taiwan, Homer Chou is Chief Stylist of Beijing’s IT Store. Wearing a Junya Watanabe hat, Thom Browne Shirt, Acne Jeans and N.D.C. shoes with Fred Perry dotted socks. He believes that Chinese customers are very intrigued by Japanese style and labels and that they are slowly turning towards a more avant-garde, designer-esque, and individual style of clothing. However, he acknowledges that bigger and more traditional brands like Burberry and Prada still have a larger influence and will continue becoming more popular with Chinese customers, even though their mainland prices tend to be very high due to import taxes and shipping costs.
