Made in Hong Kong Minna Chow and Mo Chung, accessories and clothing designers of Love to Mart

Brick and mortar shops are hard to sustain so it’s a (nice) anomaly that Minna Chow and her husband Mo Chung decided to open their own shop Love To Mart that not only carries their own designs, but also six other local brands: Tricote, Circle C, Wingu Workshop, The Gal Who Sold Tora, Attle.handwork and sew simple. We caught wind that Chow and Chung might be moving their business to the US next year because of the sky rocketing rent prices so we decided to drop by and check out their one-of-a-kind pieces before it’s too late.

Tell us about the concept behind the store.
We really like travelling and went all over England, the US and Australia and became fascinated with flea markets and handmade goods. We thought to ourselves, why don’t we try opening our own shop of handcrafted items? When we returned from our travels we thought that Tsim Sha Tsui would be the ideal place to open the store.

What inspires your pieces?
Our bracelets are all about friendships and relationships that bind two people together. You wouldn’t wear the same outfit as your friend, but maybe you would both wear the same styled bracelet but in different colours. You can customise the bracelet by choosing the type of bands and charms so they get the satisfaction of receiving something that’s unique and made especially for them. That sort of satisfaction is exactly why I do this.

How did you decide which local designers to carry in your shop?
The requirements are that the items need to have personality. I hope that they focus on one thing and when you see their work, you know it’s theirs. Like when you see Alexander McQueen or Stella McCartney, you automatically know it’s theirs.

Though you carry collections from different designers, it seems like they all centre on a certain theme. How do you achieve that?
Every week we have a different theme, so we pick different items from each designer that fall within that theme. If you close your eyes and choose anything from the store, you will know that it came from Love to Mart. We don’t care what trends are happening around us, we just choose whatever theme we like based on a movie we’ve seen or what we’ve been into lately. Every day, 365 days a year, we stock at least one new item in our store.

When did you start hosting workshop classes?
Half a year after we opened the store we realised that the customers wanted to learn how to make their own pieces. It’s pretty fun and satisfying to create your own personalised piece. I used to like brands like H&M and Zara, but I think it’s just too mass-produced that it doesn’t feel very special any more. Plus, you don’t know how many people tried that item on before you. It takes a bit more effort, but I like to find my own materials and have what I want made especially for me. Buying mass produced clothing is like eating fast food. Too much isn’t good for you.

Arthur Tam 

Love to Mart shop located at Room 1203,12/F, Metropole Building, 57 Peking Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, 5611 6305; lovedollybird.com.