Interview: Joanna Chu Liao

Unless you were looking for it, you really would not notice Joanna Chu-Liao’s clothing store on Causeway Bay’s Lan Fong Road. Tucked into one of many low-rise buildings along the shop-fettered street, Jo’s Boutique is accessed via an old school elevator – complete with fat push buttons, swinging door and clangy steel shutters – that trundles slowly upwards to thefifth floor where, to enter, you must ring a doorbell and be let in.

Stepping inside, thoughts of dilapidated hallways and stairwells melt away as Liao’s boutique is welcoming and plush. Racks curl around the curves of the room, the hangers heavy with leathers, furs and delicate floral prints. As I later find out, this contradiction of femininity and a harsher, rock-and-roll edge is what embodies Chu-Liao’s design philosophy.

“It’s neo-romanticism,” she says of her new autumn/winter collection. “It’s a mix of flower-inspired couture that’s very elegant, and then we’ve mixed it with rock and punk elements, like leather and zippers.” For Liao, it’s all about expressing the aesthetic of the modern woman. “It’s more edgy. Cool, yet combined with something sweet.” Chu-Liao herself is a vision of cool elegance, dressed in a form-fitting jersey and leather peplum blouse (from her own collection, naturally), slim black trousers and black Roger Viviers.

Liao strikes me as someone who enjoys going against the grain, at least in her own way. Growing up, she was constantly surrounded by fashion thanks to the family business in garment manufacturing; dinners would involve countless clothing and retail bigwigs, and hours spent poring over her mother’s fashion magazines. “There was a lot of information since I was a kid,” she says. “[Designers] were always a part of my life. I got to see them and talk to them, and they really inspired me to become who I wanted to be.” Chu-Liao was drawn to designing from a young age, spending summers sketching and colouring beautiful garments – to her, drawing was a way to create her own tatler_stories, and to make life more interesting.

Read more about Joanna Chu-Liao, who is part of the Hong Kong Tatler 500 list

In early adulthood however, Chu-Liao was disenchanted by the industry, realising that to make it as a Hong Kong fashion designer was “nearly impossible”. She decided to go into business instead and eventually became a chartered accountant. “But after all that, I realised that it wasn’t what I wanted to do,” she admits. Chu-Liao quit business and started working with fashion designers, initially dealing with the administration side before working with Japanese department stores, eventually branching out to start her own clothing line. Over a decade later, she has built up a loyal clientele of socialites and even royalty (though she respectfully does not reveal names).

Of course, with her family being in the garment industry, she has felt the pressure of external scrutiny. “You just really have to persevere. When your father is such a successful garment manufacturer, people expect whatever his kids do, they must be successful,” she explains. “You will always fail [to meet these expectations]. But the only way to succeed is to be honest with yourself. You really have to reflect and learn from your mistakes and move on. That’s what I’m still doing, every day.”

Being a local Hong Kong designer, too, comes with its challenges. To Chu-Liao, the lack of a unique point of view within local fashion design is incredibly frustrating, not to mention a roadblock to worldwide success. “Hong Kong designers have to find their own identity and design clothes they believe in,” she insists. “They have to have more confidence in their designs, and stop mimicking this and that, and also stop compromising on quality.” The city is also strong on casualwear, but not so much higher end fashion. She cites local haute couturier Barney Cheng as an exception to the rule, and while Chu-Liao respects brands such as Blanc de Chine, she would rather see more successful designers that need not rely on orientalist themes. “Originality and creativity have to be there, but it doesn’t have to be strange or loud,” she explains.

Chu-Liao’s aesthetic certainly has a metropolitan flair, and this season “comfortable couture” is a common theme: sweatshirt material is fused with jaunty zippers, while tough leather is cut into feminine peplum curves. “I believe in subtlety,” she says. “I believe in clothes that make you feel very comfortable and confident in.”

We also spoke to Judith Milgrom, designer of Maje, on her luxury casualwear line 

Her ready-to-wear collection is aimed at a very specific clientele. “It’s for strong women, who have their own way of thinking,” Chu-Liao says. “They’ve travelled the world, and they know what they want. They love fashion and want to look chic, but at the same time they don’t want to be a victim of trends.” The flattering cuts of the jackets and tops in Chu-Liao’s current repertoire emphasise small waists and feminine curves, but keeps it edgy with ink, stone and sable shades. Liao emphasises that her strength lies in creating beautiful silhouettes – combined with a design philosophy that also favours comfort, her point of view is a very powerful one indeed.