KEH FORME is a young Chinese designer brand started in New York. The brand has enjoyed a rapid rise since being founded in late 2018, receiving praise from top international fashion media and winning awards at Shanghai Fashion Week SS2020.

Backstage at KEH FORME FW2020

After releasing its 2020 Fall/Winter collection in February 2020 in New York, the brand was identified by T Magazine as one of “Six Emerging Designers to Know This Fashion Month”. It also drew praise from WWD for its “standout presentation” at last season’s New York Fashion Week season thanks to its “modern blend of tailoring, cool experimentation and sophisticated silhouettes”.

 

 

"Our intention from the start has been to express an appreciation for aesthetics in our daily lives.”

 

On the back of well-deserved praise from the fashion media, KEH FORME came to Shanghai to partner with ROOMROOM, Ontimeshow’s in-house showroom. It is one of ROOMROOM's youngest brands and is the only brand run by two co-designers: Wei Ge and Aoyu Zhang.

KEH FORME Co-Designers Aoyu Zhang & Wei Ge ▲

Creating a designer brand that can express an original aesthetic point of view is the lifelong dream of many designers, and this holds true for Wei and Aoyu. As designers, they have had similar experiences: both have loved painting since their childhoods, and as undergraduates they both at the Academy of Arts and Design at the prestigious Tsinghua University in Beijing. Having been trained in the same discipline, they are able to communicate seamlessly.

Backstage at KEH FORME FW2020 ▲

After graduating from Tsinghua, Ge studied Fashion Design at Parsons and worked as an assistant designer at the Chinese brand Zuczug, while Zhang went on to receive an MBA from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. The two merged their rich experiences in design, business, and entrepreneurship to create a new designer brand, where they found their different professional experiences to be highly complementary.

Backstage at KEH FORME FW2020 ▲

In 2017, fate brought the two together at none other than the opening of the Dover Street Market store in Singapore. They got talking in the queue, and fittingly, surrounded by an eclectic mix of the world’s top independent designer brands, the idea for their very own designer brand came to fruition. They wanted a means to express their life experiences of travelling and learning about the world, using aesthetic elements that they shared an appreciation for.

KEH FORME FW2020 ▲

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted their plans to continue growing KEH FORME internationally. Faced with such circumstances, they decided to return to their roots in China to grow their brand at home.

 

 

"Understanding and expressing conflicting aesthetics through artistic tailoring is our core strength."

 

Drawing upon the work that Ge had already done in New York, KEH FORME established a unique deconstructionist design style. The brand proposes a modern interpretation of masculinity and femininity through an exploration of different elements within menswear and womenswear.

KEH FORME FW2020 ▲

KEH FORME draws inspiration from architecture, sculpture, painting, and art in a rational and poetic way to create unique fashion designs. Through sophisticated cutting techniques, experimental structures, distinctive silhouettes, high-quality fabrics and innovative uses of clothing technology, KEH FORME is able to create original and beautiful pieces.

KEH FORME FW2020 ▲

The Washington Post noted KEH FORME’s “skilful execution of roomy tailoring, his quiet use of color, and a well-edited point of view,” and described his theme as “menswear with just enough sensuality and experimentation to excite the senses.” Clearly others’ understanding of Ge’s strengths match his own; that of “expressing conflicting aesthetics through artistic tailoring”.

 

 

"Investigation of the charm of sex mixing and flower form"

 

For its Fall/Winter 2020 collection, KEH FORME was inspired by legendary fashion photographer Nick Knight’s photographs of roses from his exhibition "Florist". In Knight’s work, the fragile elegance of the flowers contrast with sharp lines, and serve as metaphors for each other. KEH FORME, through blurring gender traditions, using irregularly-shaped flowers and rich layering, seeks to re-interpret womenswear in a more modern way.

Photo: Nick Knight for SHOWstudio ▲

Nick Knight's photograph of roses from "Florist", the SHOWstudio exhibition in London.

The Fall/Winter 2020 collection revolves around two major themes: the charm of blurring gender and the exploration of floral patterns. KEH FORME uses the technique of deconstructing men's and women's clothing, blending wide shoulders and waist designs in the classic suits; using traditional trouser stitching in the folds of skirts; bright-colored shirts and wide-leg tweed trousers. The symmetrical cutting, linear divisions and layered structures echo the shapes of the flowers from Nick Knight's works.

KEH FORME FW2020 Sketches ▲

For anyone curious and passionate about culture and art, particularly young, urban people, this KEH FORME’s aesthetic feast is well worthy of attention.

As the dust settles on the 12^th Season of Ontimeshow, we can happily report that over the past two months, we have been able to once again see friends and family, return to work, and hold our AW2020 event. We reflect on what was a successful event amidst difficult circumstances, the completion of which gives us hope that the fashion industry across the world will recover with renewed vigour.

NUMBERS

The Preview event from 8^th-15^th April and the main exhibition 26^th-30^th April lasted a total of 13 days. Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the brands participating in this exhibition were almost exclusively designer brands from China and around Asia; these included ANGEL CHEN, ALPHASTYLE, YES BY YESIR, CONCISE-WHITE, WAN YI FANG, HAIZHEN WANG and others. Brands like MUZKIN, ZESH, and GE 3.21 also held order fairs through Ontimeshow at separate venues.

A total of 2765 people attended this season’s exhibitions, including 1082 buyers, 548 brands, and 185 retailers; these three key demographics made up close to 70% of attendees. The number of brands and visitors this season was, as expected, lower than in recent seasons, but one positive of this was that we were able to get more detailed and specific feedback from our attendees.

PERSPECTIVES

"The Cloud"

The most obvious change the crisis has accelerated is digitisation. From digital runway shows and live cloud-based shopping exhibitions, designers across the industry have gone through great lengths to ensure that they can show their season’s collections. These shifts have created new opportunities, and brands paying close attention to market trends and customer needs have seen success when exploring new online channels.

 

Ontimeshow has also worked to move to the cloud through live broadcasts and Vlog-style content. In addition, we have taken the initiative to develop Ontimeorder, a digital wholesale order platform, in anticipation of growing future demand for online wholesale ordering.

"Designer brands are no longer merely niche brands"

Consumer-facing livestream sales have also become far more common in recent months. An increasing number of boutiques are using live streams to showcase products to their customers, and through this, they and their brands have succeeded in reaching wider audiences. For example, Yu Xiaoyue’s brand CONCISE-WHITE has expanded beyond its original niche customer demographic of arty young people.

"Designer brands must not sacrifice creativity when growing commercially”

With the growing spending power of Gen Z consumers and the emergence of new, highly creative designer brands, the creativity we are seeing has not been limited to clothing design, but extends to unique cultural references, innovative product displays, and playful ways to interact with the collection; all things that Gen Z customers love.

 

Charles Yaoyu Wang of Dongliang told us that they update their brand selection every season. In selecting new brands, they consider not just style, quality, and price, but also the cultural characteristics and overall creativity of the brand.

During the pandemic, consumers have become more conservative with their spending, and in this environment, the designer’s originality can have a greater impact on whether a customer ultimately purchases a piece; Wang noted that Dongliang’s customers will not buy brands that seem too plain or commercialised.

Originality and creativity are what motivate designers to establish their own brands in the first place, and this should also be the basis for how designer brands approach expanding commercially. For LOCAT, a Hangzhou-based buyer store, the originality of the product is a key factor for their buyers. Their customers are particularly averse to pieces that look like imitations of other brands. They believe there is a lot of room for original designers in the future, and consumers also prefer clothes that are made with a design-minded aesthetic.

The curtain has closed on the 12^th Season of Ontimeshow, but we continually strive to explore and serve the fashion industry. We hope to continue discussing these topics further with people across the fashion industry, even after the pandemic subsides.

Even amid this pandemic, both designers and buyers alike showed great enthusiasm for this season’s trade fair. There were 1764 buyers at the 8-day PREVIEW exhibition, and the WeChat Mini Program had more than 20,000 click-throughs.

 

This season's PREVIEW exhibition took place at the TX Huaihai | Youth Energy Center at 523 Middle Huaihai Road. The format was different from a traditional trade show, as the brand-new venue integrates a retail experience, giving buyers a feeling of being in the brands’ brick-and-mortar stores.

This was the first time Ontimeshow has held a trade show in a shopping centre, but the brands that participated believed that this retail-style presentation created a good atmosphere. As expected, there were far fewer brands than normal at this event, but it was executed with the usual high standards of professionalism.

 

As a bridge between brands and buyers, Ontimeshow is constantly improving and evolving to address problems and provide support for designer brands, so that brands can sustainably develop their businesses. In the same vein, this exhibition also brought brands and buyers a novel experience that enabled them to conduct business within the constraints of the current outbreak.

VOICES

The COVID-19 outbreak has shocked everyone, and was what led to the new format of this season’s showcases. However, in the midst of every crisis there lies opportunity, and it was encouraging to hear positive feedback such as: "the attendees are more targeted" and that the event "exceeded expectations". At any point in time, we can merely do the best we can with what we have, and believe that positive outcomes will follow. We have gathered comments from brands and buyers to illustrate the response to this season so far:

 

Deepmoss

Liu Xiaolu, Principal

“This is our first time at Ontimeshow, and the overall atmosphere of the exhibition is particularly good. Unlike traditional trade shows, TX Huaihai's venue and space give the brand a lot of room to display and play, making buyers and designers feel as if they are in a multi-brand boutique.”

 

“Although the epidemic prevented some buyers from coming to the market, we still had 90% of our regular buyers come to our booth. In addition, we met new customers every day. It’s worth mentioning that the quality of the new customers this year is also very high. During the event, we added more than 15 new sales channels, and buyers’ order volumes did not shrink in spite of the current climate”

 

ZII CI IEN

Zhi Chen, Principal

“Ontimeshow responded very quickly to the epidemic. The exhibition site was thoughtfully located in TX Huaihai; the location is easy to find, and very friendly to buyers and designers. It is also our first time participating in an exhibition in a shopping mall, which gives the event a retail feel.”

 

“The length of the PREVIEW was eight days, longer than in previous seasons, but this gave brands and buyers more time to meet. Although the foot traffic at the exhibition was affected by the epidemic, the demographic of attendees was very relevant. Compared with the past, where many attendees merely came to look at the booths, almost every guest who walked in came to place orders, and the rate which we increased new channels by was higher than expected.”

 

SND Showroom

Will, Principal/Buyer

“From a buyer’s perspective, Deepmoss, Angel Chen, and Feng Chen Wang are currently among the hottest brands in China, and the fact that they all participated in Ontimeshow this season was very convenient for buyers. In addition, thanks to the effective management of foot traffic at the fair, as a buyer it was comfortable and easy to select pieces for orders.”

 

“SND Showroom also participated as a brand, and we were pleasantly surprised by how it went. We expanded our client base by 50%, buyers’ order volumes were not reduced, and our on-site transaction rate exceeded 80%. We’re very much looking forward to seeing how the market fares this Autumn/Winter.”

ON/OFF

Bund Financial Center (BFC) Store Operating Director

“The first thing we noticed about Ontimeshow this season is that it felt so real: designers that were genuinely committed to their products, and showrooms that were genuinely committed to acting as bridges. Although the new venue is not as large as the old one, it still effectively showcases the story behind each brand’s collection.”

 

“The brand selection covered all categories, and the mix of both mature and young brands was a pleasant surprise. This season of Ontimeshow genuinely provided a complete platform for designers and retailers even during this epidemic. The interaction between these three groups presents a great foundation for the recovery of the industry.”

ROUNDROUND / NOUNDNOUND

Guo Ziyi, Founder

“Many of the brands at the exhibition are the main brands in our store. There are brands from all categories and styles, so our ordering needs were met. The ordering experience was also great; the space was very comfortable, and the coffee area outside was great for meetings. The location of the exhibition was more convenient than in the past, which saved buyers a lot of time. In terms of space, each brand had its own independent area where they could give buyers a feel for their season’s collection, and the space is large, making it easy for brands to talk to buyers and allow buyers to try on pieces.”

The Balancing

Echo, Buying Director

“Ontimeshow successfully adjusted to TX Huaihai, having moved from the West Bund. The staggered arrangement of the floors and the decoration gave us the feeling of being in a boutique, which made for a special ordering experience.”

 

“In addition to the brands in ROOMROOM, Ontimeshow added XIAOLI, FENG CHEN WANG, and ZI II CI IEN, among other new brands and showrooms, giving a rich selection of brands.”

 

Zeli-Boutique

Li Hua, Principal

 “The brands selected by Ontimeshow this season were high-end, and well-balanced from both an artistic and commercial standpoint. The attendees at the exhibition were also very professional, which made the ordering process very smooth.”

GREENEXT X Ontimeshow

 

As an incubation platform for young designer brands, Ontimeshow is also focused on promoting sustainable fashion. Ontimeshow partnered with GREENEXT to hold an online seminar in conjunction with the 2020AW PREIVEW fair. The speakers included Ontimeshow Founder Yeli Gu, GREENEXT Founder Lu Zheng, WeDesign Founder Simon Collins, NEIWAI Brand Founder Xiaolu Liu, WGSN Trend Director Shuping Men, and Mei Li, chief retail consultant of Beijing Zuoyou Fashion Consulting. At the main Ontimeshow 2020AW event, we will continue to hold more seminars with GREENEXT to further the dialogue of sustainability for designer brands.