What Is This Crap?

Today a very honest Chinese woman who was discovering Far East Living for the first time walked in and asked if we carried items from a particular Asian designer who, although I’ve never personally heard of, apparently is quite popular throughout Taiwan and China. She grew up in China, absolutely loves this designer, and expressed how much she wishes she can purchase this designer’s items here in the U.S. without having to take a long flight back home. She then proceeded to share how she would NEVER wear any of the types of items that we currently carry and how she wishes we would carry lines that are less traditional and more fusion in inspiration.

That comment baffled me as everything I do is a fusion of my eastern heritage and my western upbringing. Nevertheless, her comments intrigued me. I appreciated her candor and it was clear that she was not at all trying to be rude or offensive, she simply wanted to share her opinion and give us guidance on what she felt we should do if we wanted to win her business. She continued to express her displeasure in what she saw and stated that everything appears so ordinary, too traditionally Chinese, and completely lacks distinction. I didn’t bat an eyelash at any of her comments and remained very interested in hearing what she had to say (again, because it was clear that her intentions were not to be offensive, she was simply being candid) so she continued to, well…... basically rip me to shreds!

It wasn’t until she expressed that she wishes we would carry items made out of silk instead of polyester that I felt compelled to correct her. We in fact only use the finest silks. Our woolens are mostly cashmere and our embroidery is all done by hand with very fine silk thread. We do not currently have the ability to create and offer original prints but we do have some wonderful hand painted Qi Paos/Cheongsams (traditional Chinese dresses) and in addition to our custom tailoring service, we also offer a high level of customization especially with our hand embroidered and hand painted offerings. I certainly didn’t hold that comment against her either. After all, who among us can say that they’re a textile expert? I’m always appreciative of everyone’s unique, individual perspective and sense of style but I did feel the need to correct factual inaccuracies.

Surprised by my correction of her inaccurate assumption of the quality of the materials that were used, she asked, “How long have you been around?” “Almost four years,” I said. “That’s surprising!” she replied. To which I couldn’t help but to ask her if she plans on watching the Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco next month as we’ll be dressing Julie Haener, the host and Emmy-Award-Winning news anchor, again for the 3^rd year in a row. She was again surprised by this fact so I couldn’t resist pointing out a few of our other notable clients. Finally, she asked, “Which lines DO you carry?” “We currently only carry our own original collection,” I replied. “Well who designs it?” she asked. When I confessed that I am the designer, she became both visibly and verbally apologetic and then proceeded to attempt to find items that she could pay a compliment to. Funny enough, I found the first half of our conversation, the part where she ripped me to shreds, much more enjoyable. Could it be that I’m just a very self-deprecating type of person that actually enjoys verbal punishment? Or, maybe it was because the compliments that she struggled to fish out were very disingenuous, although an earnest attempt to apologize for her candid comments earlier in our conversation. I however, very much appreciated her honesty and in the end, couldn’t stop laughing about it with my sales associate Patty.

I did look up the phenomenally talented designer that she was referring to at the beginning of our conversation which helped me to understand why, contrary to the reaction of most who see my collection, she felt that my work was too “traditionally Chinese”. Although the designer that she likes is Chinese, her work includes almost no Chinese or Asian influences at all. Though I too am now a huge fan of this designer, I don’t plan on changing my design direction anytime soon. After all, my business is based here in the U.S., not in China, and including hints of my Asian heritage in my work is what sets me apart from the thousands of talented designers here. Just because one person who grew up in China is tired of seeing Asian cultural influences, doesn't mean that the rest of the world doesn't desire to see and to learn more about the Asian culture that this one person is trying to get away from.