Professional fashion buyers use a passion for Chinese design to make their hobby a vocation
“The soul of a buyer shop is the taste of its buyer,” says 31-year-old Xun Bing, a fashion buyer who now owns boutiques in Sydney and Shanghai.
Xun used to dream of being a designer, but after getting her bachelor’s degree in the subject, she developed an interest in business, and looked for a way to combine it with her creativity. “It’s not only about selling products, but presenting an attitude,” she tells TWOC of her current career, which involves trend-spotting and recommending promising brands and designers to shoppers who visit her stores.
In the fashion industry, buyers (买手) “are the link connecting brands, sales channels, and consumers,” Hong Huang, fashion editor and founder of buyer store Brand New China, told Lifeweek magazine in 2013.
Buyers’ Market is a story from our issue, “China Chic.” To read the entire issue, become a subscriber and receive the full magazine. Alternatively, you can purchase the digital version from the App Store.
Sun Jiahui is a freelance writer and former editor at The World of Chinese. She writes about Chinese language, society and culture, and is especially passionate about sharing stories of China's ancient past with a wider audience. She has been writing for TWOC for over six years, and pens the Choice Chengyu column.
