Hong Kong Design Centre

The fashion industry greets new blood every year and exalts the most talented designers to the tip-top. In the past June, Fashion Incubation Programme (FIP) has just welcomed four new incubatees - MASSBRANDED, Oplus2, Matter Matters, and Classics Anew. The four fashion brands show diverse aesthetics and philosophies, giving us a kaleidoscope of styles. Let’s take a closer look at each of the four new incubatees!

MASSBRANDED is a high-end streetwear brand for men by Mass Luciano. The brand is for those who want to stay casual without dressing down. The pieces are characterised by structural designs and a graphic sensibility which enhance the male form. Its metropolitan chic is a direct reflection of Mass Luciano’s background - born in Puerto Rico, studied in Los Angeles, and worked at international brands such as Guess and Lee Jeans. He founded MASSBRANDED in Hong Kong in 2016 and won Lane Crawford’s Creative Call-Out -‘The Next New’ Best New Menswear Brand the following year.

Up next is Oplus2. Founded by Otto Tang in 2015, Oplus2 is a minimalist and wearable fashion brand for women. The brand’s concept is “Capture of Life”. Otto is a photography lover and believes that we can capture the essence of daily objects through careful observation. With a combination of photographic prints, purposeful material choice and sports elements, the brand unleashes the inner vitality, freshness and youthful spirits of women. Otto has been working with Lu Lu Cheung upon his graduation and assisted her to produce numerous successful collections. Oplus2 is a brand new venture for him to explore untrodden fashion realms.

For fans of Art Deco, Bauhaus, and post-modernist aesthetics from 80s Memphis, you should not miss Matter Matters. Matter Matters is a Hong Kong-based brand founded by Flora Leung in 2013. The contrastingly coloured geometry is straight up iconic and evokes a sense of blissful happiness. Flora’s visual communication training background is palpable in her playful and graphical fashion pieces. She is convinced that good design always starts with an understanding of the relationships between people, products and lifestyles. By now, the brand’s product range has expanded from handbags to garments, scarves, accessories, etc.

Founded by Janko Lam in 2014, Classics Anew is a unique fashion brand merging traditional Chinese aesthetics with contemporary fashion design elements. By reinventing cheongsam and breathing a new life into it, Classics Anew brings this classic feminine representation onto the stage of modern fashion and elevates its beauty. The brand bridges traditional Chinese craftsmanship with Western techniques and fabrics such as organic cotton, linen, denim and silk to create comfortable daily pieces. The distinctively Chinese details such as the buttons, mandarin collars and cuttings are all signature of Classics Anew.

In their two-year incubation period, the designers will receive collaboration opportunities, marketing support and extra exposure. They will also have access to FIP’s studio space and make good use of the resources to take their brand to the next level. Let’s give them our best wishes and look forward to seeing them dazzle!