Alldressedup and Going Places

FF Fashion

Fri, Dec 11, 2009
The Straits Times
By Esther Teo


BENEATH the alluring catwalk facade of immaculate models stylishly strutting their stuff lies a highly competitive industry that is relentless in its criticism of all those who dare enter.

That is what the co-founders of alldressedup - one of Singapore's best-known women's wear brands - Mr Lionel Leo, 53, and his wife of 17 years Mrs Tina Tan-Leo, 49, have discovered first-hand.

The Leos set up Fashionation International in 2005 as a vehicle to establish their own brand after 30 years of providing the platform for luxury brands to enter the local market via The Link Group. 'We felt that we couldn't always be selling other people's brands, so we took a very bold and brave move and decided to produce our own international brand instead... not just a local or regional Asean brand,' said Mr Leo.

While brainstorming for a suitable name, Mr Leo asked his wife when she started getting interested in fashion. She replied that she was 'all dressed up at six' - and that was how alldressedup was selected.

With the name chosen, the couple got down to work to make the brand a success. While her husband attended to the practical side of business expansion, Mrs Tan-Leo provided the creative direction, working closely with six designers from across the region to dream up the latest creations.

Almost five years of hard work later, the brand has become something of an international success, beating off professional hostility, a financial crisis and stiff competition from online retailers.

The alldressedup label is doing Singapore proud and has attained some international prominence.

It was at the New York and Paris fashion weeks in 2007 and has 63 stockists to its name spread across 20 cities worldwide - including American luxury department store Saks Fifth Avenue and Hong Kong's Lane Crawford. It has also notched up appearances in international publications such as Harper's Bazaar.

With such achievements under their belts, Mr Leo admits that it is easy to forget how testing it was to start a production business from scratch - especially given that both of their backgrounds were in retail.

They had steep learning curves, with challenges aplenty - from design, production and quality of output, to how to sell and market the product.

Design involved a lot of trial and error at first, as different markets were discovered to have markedly differing tastes.

Production was a bit of a headache, with it spluttering at the start as their initially small production runs gave rise to quantity and quality issues.

International distribution began in 2007 and proved to be one of their most demanding tasks, as they discovered that selling a little-known brand to overseas buyers and fashion editors was something of an uphill struggle. Although they followed the brand over past seasons at their Paris Fashion Week showroom, major US department stores Neiman Marcus and Barneys, for example, have yet to pick it up.

And although friends in the industry, such as the editors-in-chief of Female and Her World magazines, came to see what the line was about and to lend their support, there were those who were tough in their appraisal and who gave them the cold shoulder as well.

'Some (buyers) were probably thinking: What is this little brand from this little dot? Certain stores looked at us and asked: Who are these people - they're nobody. It wasn't an instant success... there was a lot of humble pie to be eaten,' Mr Leo admitted.

Some thought alldressedup was going to be another Asean brand with an ethnic element, Mr Leo said. However, to Mrs Tan-Leo, this was all part and parcel of the business.

'It has not been the bed of roses that everyone thinks. It's been a lot of hard work.. like catching a train all the time,' she said.

She recalled that they started out in a small showroom during the 2007 Paris Fashion Week, having to squeeze five buyers in at a time due to space and time constraints.

But things have since picked up and the showroom is now 50 per cent larger. Former Bond girl Michelle Yeoh - a personal friend of Mrs Tan-Leo's - dropped by the showroom during the Paris Fashion Week in October and snapped up seven outfits immediately.

'The fashion business is probably one of the most competitive and complicated businesses I've ever come across... harder than I first thought it would be,' Mr Leo said.

'When you have your own brand you're constantly running against the clock to produce this product. It's a very demanding business, with a million aspects to cover.'

Undeterred by professional knocks, the couple have used their years of experience in the luxury retail business and tapped into established networks to get a toehold in top department stores in the United States such as Saks Fifth Avenue.

Such tactics have slowly but surely raised the profile of the brand, but it has been the past year that has seen the biggest breakthroughs.

Besides snagging Francesca Versace, the niece of the late Italian designer Gianni Versace, to produce a capsule collection - a smaller complementary collection - for spring 2008, alldressedup teamed up with the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) in March to have its pieces featured in the finals of Germany's Next Top Model, hosted by supermodel Heidi Klum.

This series of successes has piqued the curiosity of the international press and buyers - especially those based in Europe - who are developing a keen interest in the brand. STB said that six million viewers across Germany, Switzerland and Austria watched the episode. This has helped to keep expansion on track, despite the global financial downturn.

Last year's turnover for alldressedup hit $10 million - some 30 per cent up on the previous year.

Plans to roll out a franchise business are being drawn up and discussions are already in the pipeline with partners in Japan and South Korea.

Mrs Tan-Leo believes the brand's key attributes are its versatility, fashion appeal and its 'great price point'.

The couple are planning to expand their bag and accessory lines. And, although having no concrete plans developed as yet, they say a foray into men's and children's wear remains a possibility.

'I think it'll be very nice... But we have a long way to go. We're still in our baby stage, just developing a line that suits the international market,' said Mrs Tan-Leo.

Veteran fashion director Daniel Boey thinks that the key ingredient of success for alldressedup is that, while being fashion-forward, it is also incredibly wearable and has something for all types of women.

Mr Jerome Awasthi, a fashion show producer who has worked for Christian Dior and Louis Vuitton, says the brand's intricate detailing and unique designs, coupled with an interesting colour palette, give it a distinct look that is young, fresh and appealing.

'Most designer brands get so carried away with creativity that it becomes completely unwearable,' said Mr Boey. 'But (alldressedup) has a very consistent look that women can identify with. The fit is fabulous, and it flatters not just models but real women too.'