First published on 21 Jul 2011. Updated on 21 Jul 2011.
Hip bunker-like one-stop-shop for affordable local designers
To paraphrase Wendy Cope, concept stores in Shanghai are like buses: you wait for about a year and as soon as one arrives, two or three others appear. Swelling the ranks of SVS, Alter and their ilk is The Hive, which opened the doors to its bunker-like space on Fumin Lu last week.
Lining the concrete walls are the latest collections from two of Shanghai’s hippest labels – Time Out favourites JL and threeSociety Homme - plus a handful of items from exciting new womenswear collection Xiao Zhi by George, who forms one half of the design duo behind threeSociety. Reflecting the functional chic ethos of its sister label, the autumn/winter collection features slouchy striped knit jumpers (795RMB) - perfect for throwing over leggings or skinny jeans as the weather starts to cool down.
The store is the pet project of Gary Yip, PR manager for threeSociety, whose aim is to provide a one-stop-shop for affordable local labels: ‘There are these great Shanghai-based designers, but they’re scattered across town or only sell stuff online. What I wanted to do was bring them under one roof.’
Despite the range of designers stocked, all the clothes share a common ethos - simple cuts, natural fibres and quality finishes – which makes mixing and matching pieces from different collections easy. The muted pastel shades of JL’s ‘Chinese Chess’ collection, for example, pair well with threeSociety’s preppy striped shirts, while the ‘70s style button-front skirts (495RMB) from Xiao Zhi by George would look great with JL’s white cotton tees emblazoned with kooky prints of shrimps, cranes and dragonflies.
Another advantage of the comfortable, non-frills look and feel of the collections is their unisex appeal – the most popular items for women, according to Yip, are threeSociety’s button-down shirts with contrasting colour-blocked torso section (545RMB) and layered cotton tank tops (295RMB).
Yip is on the hunt for another collection to fill the store’s remaining rail-space, though it’s proving difficult in light of the all-too-common quality control problem: ‘We see all these interesting designs, but then the quality of the fabric, or a poor finish lets them down,’ he explains.
In the meantime, keep an eye out for the range of women’s accessories due to arrive in September – from a new label so hot it’s yet to be named.
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Selena Schleh
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