American dream, designed in China

Luo Zheng, China's award-winning women's wear designer, was all smiles as she heard the applause for her clothing collection at this year's Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York, which was held on September 5-12.

After the lights had gone out and the runway was silent, Luo told Beijing Review that she was not expecting such a warm reception for her OmniaLuo range. She said that not only did the audience give her a big ovation, but there were also people already starting to show an interest in her plans of opening stores in the United States. "It really surprised me," she said.

Luo was the first women's wear designer from the Chinese mainland to present her designs, called "Beauty Blossoms," at the prestigious New York fashion event, which brings together the world's top fashion designers.

A blog entry posted at a website called The Shophound,a website about the shopping and fashion scene in New York, said that the OmniaLuo fashion collection "turned out to be a lovely surprise. We can't tell if OmniaLuo will make any inroads with American retailers, but it shows promise."

The words were encouragement for Luo. She was trying to get her brand on the list of participants in the New York Fashion Week, which focuses more on commercial aspects than the fashion events in Milan and Paris. Luo said that she hoped her design ideas would find some business opportunities in the United States.

This is the first step for the OmniaLuo brand to penetrate U.S. market, said Pamela A. Solly, Partner of Cirrus Financial Communications, which handles the investor relations in the United States for the Shenzhen-based OmniaLuo Inc.

"I think there is great potential," Solly told Beijing Review after watching the OmniaLuo show. She said that Luo's designs, which incorporate Chinese culture, are "sophisticated, elegant and feminine." She expressed her confidence in OmniaLuo's market prospects, saying that it would be "well received" in the United States.

Expanding in China

While working toward establishing itself in the United States, OmniaLuo is still aiming at the domestic market as the battleground to grow its business and expand its market shares.

Established by Luo with the initial start-up capital from her family in 1996 in south China's Shenzhen City, the company has witnessed a rapid growth in the past 12 years and opened more than 200 stores throughout China, Luo told the audience at the China Impact Forum organized by China Institute on the eve of her first New York show.

According to Luo, the rapid growth of her company benefited from the rapid development of China's clothing industry, which grows steadily after constant restructuring and upgrading.
"The market is getting more mature with more diversified consumption demands," Luo said. She pointed out that the Chinese people are becoming more brand conscious and favor clothing that shows off their individuality.

Luo said that a survey done by her company showed that young Chinese women are willing to spend over 40 percent of their income on things they like, including clothes. "So the market is huge," she said.

Currently, OmniaLuo targets businesswomen aged 25 to 35 with a monthly salary of around 5,000 yuan ($714) to 20,000 yuan ($2,857).

The high-end clothing market in China is still dominated by well-known international brands such as Boss, Burberry, Chanel and Gucci, Luo said. But her company plans a push into that market segment next year by promoting a line of high-end tailored garments to "golden-collar" women aged 35 to 45.

"Chinese designers know better about the consumption habits of women in China, as well as clothing styles that better suit their figures," Luo said, talking about competing with international brands for customers. "And we have more competitive prices," she added. But she also admitted that there is still a long way to go for domestic brands to gain the same recognition even in China.

Born to design

As the founder, chief executive officer and chief designer of OmniaLuo, Luo has no formal design training. When she launched OmniaLuo, five years after graduating from Shenzhen University in 1991, where she majored in international trade, the young lady, with a head full of dreams, wanted to try something new.

She did not expect to go as far as she has, and neither did her parents. "My parents thought that I wouldn't keep the business for more than three months," Luo said.

Luo said that she has been exposed to a lot of Western culture ever since she was a child. In her design, she often tries to combine the traditional Chinese elements with the modern Western style of expression. For her, the perfection of human nature, no matter whether it is in the East or West, is driven by the desire to capture beauty.

"Believe it or not, I think I was born to be a designer," Luo said. Since 2002, Luo has reigned as the top designer among the 10 fashion professionals voted by the China Fashion Designer Association. She has also won a series of international prizes, the highlights of which include the Most Outstanding Asian Designer Award presented by Louis Vuitton in 2004 and the Golden Peak Award-the most honored professional award in China's fashion design industry, in 2006.

Going global

Luo's high profile and the public presence of celebrities dressed in OmniaLuo collections, including famous film star Zhang Ziyi, have helped the company attract U.S. investors who are looking to capitalize on the growing brand of Chinese fashion designs.

In December 2006, OmniaLuo linked up with U.S.-based Keating Securities, LLC. The latter took the former public on the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board after completing a reverse merger in October 2007, which helped OmniaLuo raise $6.15 million.

Luo said that she was not familiar with the capital market when she first met U.S. investors. But she soon caught up. "I found that while I was working hard for my dream, capital can help me diversify," Luo said.

She took a big step forward to promote her brand to the international market by listing her company in the U.S. capital market. And later this year, the company is planning an upgrade to the NASDAQ.

The company now has buyers from Middle East countries and Russia. Luo told Beijing Review that she will start to think of opening stores in the United States only after the number of OmniaLuo stores reaches 300 in China. "I don't want to be eager for quick success and instant benefit. There is still a lot to learn," she said.

Opening the U.S. market is a "great idea" for OmniaLuo, said Solly. And she pointed out that the idea might not simply mean opening stores but also to look at strategic partners who might carry OmniaLuo lines, such as the high-end boutique and department stores.