Every day thousands of brands are launched onto the world market, among them, an increasing number from emerging countries. This week Nicely Made in China (NMiC) is happy to give centre stage to NLGX, a new Chinese street-wear brand. Created in 2008 by Michel Sutyadi and Ed Hung, NLGX recently opened a store at Beijing’s Capital Airport Terminal 3 and is about to open another one. Quite an achievement for such a young brand, and so to help NMiC learn more, we interviewed Michel Sutyadi.

Michel, how did you start NLGX and what does it mean?

Our brand comprises of the letters NLGX which stands for Nan Luo Gu Xiang. [In the late nineties, Nan Luo Gu Xiang was one of the first street in Beijing where bars and funky shops opened up]. Ed and I began by creating an online map of all the Nan Luo Gu Xiang bars and stores, which we updated monthly in an effort to keep pace with new openings and closures. In 2008 we opened our first café in which we began to sell T-shirts and bags. But very quickly we needed more space for the retail side of the business, so we stopped serving coffee. That’s how the NLGX adventure began!

Today, what type of products do you sell?

We create new designs for the T-shirts we make, and also produce bags (from recycled newspapers) as well as a variety of accessories. We recently launched a fashion brand called Kommute for travellers and commuters.

Who is the designer? Where do you get your inspiration?

We both come up with ideas and concepts from which I then create the designs. As for our inspiration – we just look around us. We live in an old part of Beijing which gives us a lot of ideas. We also introduce the new Beijing in our creations – the Blue-Sky-day concept, the airport codes, etc… All things that have become part of the life of the 2012 Beijinger! For the new Kommute line, we feel we’ve created a line of clothing for people like us!  Ed and I both ride our bikes to work every day, so we knew that we wanted a bike hoodie that we could not find on the market. We put a reflector on the back for night rides for instance!

Quality control is a hot topic, especially regarding products made in China. What steps have NLGX in place for quality control?

First we only work with factories who have prior international experience. Then we do several rounds of sampling before we launch the production of an item, and all our T-shirts are pre-washed and pre-shrunk. The designs on the T-shirts are carefully silk-screen printed. We have made an effort on the packaging as well; each T-shirt comes with its own « green » box  that we’ve designed ourselves and which are too nice to be just thrown away. They can be recycled as great storage boxes.

Who are your customers and what feedback do they give you?

It’s a 50/50 split between Chinese and foreign clients. Chinese consumers like our designs because of their simplicity and our foreign clients like the brand because it’s Chinese without being too traditional.

Where can our readers buy your creations?

They can buy via our website as well as in our stores in Nan Luo Gu Xiang and Terminal 3 at Beijing airport. At Beijing Airport you can already find many international fashion brands, but they were looking for a local independent design brand – which is how we got invited to be there. NLGX is a Chinese brand, and even though we were not born in China our heritage is Chinese – we were both born abroad of Chinese parents.

Website: www.nlgx.com/

Dear friends and partners of Nicely Made in China (NMiC)

Our team would like to wish you a very Happy New Year of the Dragon! We hope it will bring you and your loved ones good health, success and prosperity!

Keep watching this space for more articles on people who’ve placed quality and passion at the centre of their lives to bring you some of the best products China has to offer!

If you know a company you think should be featured on our website, please feel free to let us know about them!

Don’t forget that you can also follow us on our Facebook page.

China’s export-led economy is slowly becoming more of a local consumer-led market. Evidence of this can be found in the growing number of consumer products with Chinese brands appearing in the shops all over China. Today, at Nicely Made in China (NMiC), we’re happy to introduce Zhao Lei – based in Hangzhou – and his Chinese furniture brand Smartwood.

Zhao Lei, when did you create Smartwood and what is it?

Two years ago, I was working in an architectural firm but I did not like the atmosphere there so I decided to give up this profession. I then spent about a year exploring my own business model and in 2010 I created Smartwood. Smartwood produces furniture that my wife Xiaofan and I design and that clients assemble themselves back at home. We manage all aspects of our company including marketing and sales and quality control.

Why did you choose wood as your material of choice for your design?

I think wood has wisdom, just as forms have shadows. I decided to design wooden furniture because wood is an easy material to handle. I am a nature lover and I love material that is alive.

What types of wood do you use? Where do you source your material?

Most of Smartwood furniture is made with American white oak which according to our American provider is between 80-150 years old, or German beech. In those two countries, forests are managed in a sustainable way. The quality of the wood is excellent, the classification is standardized, the supply is sufficient and we don’t need to worry about illegal felling.

What type of quality control do you have in place?

We work with two factories. The first specializes in white oak while the second works with beech wood for our shelving system. A prototype model is produced for every new design and only goes into production when we’re happy with it.

For customer service, if problems are found with our products they can be returned and exchanged within 15 days after sale.

If after 15 days any problems arise, customers can send the product back to us for repair at basic cost.

Where do you get your inspiration?

For me design should be functional. Some products are just nicely designed stand-alone pieces while others can be adapted. For example, our shelves – the S03 shelving system – allow you to realize multiple structures through different combinations of standard components.

Which piece of Smartwood furniture are you most proud of?

I think our most original design is our coat-rack. I discovered that Chinese designers do not pay much attention to coat-racks, so we designed two models.  I like to think that our models have successfully achieved a balance between beauty and usefulness.

How many products do you have in our catalog at the moment?

Right now we have 12 products – not a large range but that will change very soon.

Where can Nicely Made in China readers buy Smartwood flat pack furniture?

On our Taobao shop: http://smartwood.taobao.com/

Goodbye 2011, hello 2012!

2011 has been an eventful year for Nicely Made in China. 51,000 people visited the website to read our stories on quality Chinese products: watches, travel, carpets, porcelain, yak wool knitwear, children’s clothes, outdoor equipment,  high end design, handbags and more.

2011 has also been a year of firsts for Nicely Made in China: we received our first mention on the CNNGo website, we registered our first e-commerce sales, we launched our Expert’s page, put our first video online (thank you Jade & Ali), featured our first recycled products and published our first article in German and we reached the 500 fans mark on our Facebook page.

This end-of-year message would not be complete without thanking our loyal sponsors who continue to support us, and just like us, believe that quality products and services can indeed be found in China. So, we would like to thank very specially our favorite travel agent Travel Stone, the luxury bed linen maker Rouge-Baiser, the Hong Kong business centre CentreO, the Hong Kong French bookstore Parenthèses, the publisher Primary Mandarin, and lastly our first and oldest sponsor, the international mover and pet relocator Links Moving.

We wish you all a very happy Christmas, and a prosperous and healthy 2012.

If you live in Northern China, chances are that on a cold winter’s day you’ve bought ‘tang hu lu’, those little skewers of toffee smothered fruits. But there’s another ‘tang hu lu’:  Tang’Roulou (written phonetically), is a Chinese company created by French-born Amélie Peraud in 2004 which has in 7 years become synonymous with ‘made in China’ quality children and baby clothes and accessories. At Nicely Made in China (NMiC) we thought it appropriate to put the spotlight on this promising new Chinese brand, which Amélie runs with Pierre-Yves Babin who joined the company 3 years ago.

Amélie, why did you choose Tang’Roulou as a name for your company?

I have a sweet tooth and I’d always been intrigued by ‘tang hu lu’. They remind me of the big red toffee apples that you get at fairgrounds. Tang’Roulou is a name that conjures up a sense of color and a refreshing fruity taste, like a sweet that children and adults both enjoy.

How did you start making clothes for children and babies?

I had friends in France about to become mums and I felt like giving them very personal gifts, so I designed blankets for their babies which I had sewn here in China by local seamstresses. After that, people encouraged me to carry on, and I did!

Today you’ve got a fully-fledged business with a wide collection of products. Can you tell us about them?

Our collections of clothes and accessories include dresses, shirts, and padded jackets for children as well as angel nests, sleeping bags and foldable changing pads for babies. We get our design inspiration from architectural details or from what we see around us in our daily lives in the hutongs of Beijing.

What type of material do you like to use?

Most of our products are made of cotton and our specialty is that we work mainly with printed rather than plain fabric. We buy our fabric in Beijing, but any time we travel around China we visit local markets – Pierre-Yves and I have a passion for treasure hunting – and bring back vintage patterned fabric. From our last trip in Guizhou I brought back a kind of Ming blue velvet dating back to the 70′s. It belonged to the grandmother of the hotel owner where we were staying. He did not know what to do with it – there were 14 meters of it remaining. I bought it all! I also brought back from Fujian a very colorful fabric with big flowers that fishermen’s wives wear as veils.

All in all we use about 200 types of fabric for our creations, varying from a very bucolic look to a very Chinese one.

Where are your products assembled?

Everything is assembled by hand in 2 workshops here in Beijing. There are 3 employees in each. Normally we produce quantities of no more than 50 for items of clothing – everything is handmade – although often more for accessories. We also work with Baihua – The Flowers – a women cooperative in North West China supported by the association “Femmes du Ningxia” for handmade embroidery.

Who are your clientele?

It’s a 50/50 split between Westerners and Asians. 30% are Chinese who have traveled outside of China and have jobs in fashion and design. They like handmade products and often they tell us that our clothes remind them of what their grannies used to make for them.

Where can Nicely Made in China readers buy your creations?

In Beijing, Shanghai and soon in Hong Kong. We also now have an online shop on Taobao.

Website: www.tangroulou.com

BEIJING:

Tang’ Roulou – Sanlitun north road n˚30 – Phone: 010-6416-9761

Brand New China – Sanlitun north road n˚11 – NLG-09a –

The Orchard – Cuigezhuang – Hegezhuang village –

Wuhao curated shop – Maoer hutong n˚35 -

SHANGHAI:

L’Atelier Mandarine – Tai Kang Lu 210 / n˚3 Room 318 – Phone: 021-6473-5381

If Indiana Jones was a woman and a gemologist his name would probably be Paloma Sanchez. In a recent interview with Nicely Made in China (NMiC), Paloma recounts some of her adventures around the world’s hot spots and how she creates her jewellery.

Paloma, why did you become a gemologist?

I had always been interested in gemology but to please my father I first acquired a law degree from Madrid University before studying at the Gemological Institute of America (G.I.A) in Los Angeles. I subsequently worked for watch companies in Asia, but I still was not using my skills as a gemologist. Then in 2009 I decided to follow my passion and opened my first shop in Sanlitun, in Beijing. I recall that at the G.I.A we were all dreaming of adventure, flying to remote places in search of precious stones. And today that’s my life!

How does a gemologist work?

I fly to anywhere and everywhere gemstones are mined.  Some places can be very dangerous!  This year alone, I traveled to Colombia, Arizona, France, Mexico, Morocco, Thailand, Ethiopia, Malaysia and Madagascar. I also buy gems in China: aquamarines from Xingjiang near the Pakistan border, tektite from Guilin and quartz and sapphires from Jiangsu province. Then I come back home to Beijing – I moved here in 2006 – to design my collections of necklaces, rings, earrings etc… Each piece is handmade by my 5 Chinese employees – all goldsmiths and silversmiths from Guangzhou where there’s a strong jewellery tradition.

Why do you need to go to so many countries?

Madagascar has almost all the precious and semi-precious gemstones that you can find on Earth but not quite everything: they have the best aquamarines, tourmalines, sapphires, garnets in all colors, rose quartz, jaspers, agates, fossils…but the most beautiful emeralds are still to be found in Colombia, the best turquoise comes from Arizona and the best lapis lazuli from Afghanistan. I’ve only recently begun to go to Ethiopia to buy opals where the market is not yet mature, but the stones are cheaper than in Australia, for instance, for the same quality.

How many collections do you make each year?

It depends! This year (2011) I made 2 collections with Colombian emeralds and one with Sleeping Beauty turquoise, antique hand painted British porcelain, pink sapphires and Brazilian rough lemon quartz.  The next collection will be called « Africa in China ». I will use precious stones – opals, tourmalines, sapphires – that I brought back from Ethiopia and Madagascar, with China-inspired designs.  For example, I will use antique Chinese jade with Ethiopian opals for a necklace.  Each collection consists of more or less 50 pieces.

What metal do you like to use in your jewellery?

I use silver and gold. Now, I have also created a collection with other metals like silicium and chromium from Germany, and copper from Michigan.

Who are your clients?

In the past, most of my clients were expatriates, but now 80% of my clients are Chinese. My designs are unusual and modern at the same time, and the Chinese have become accustomed to that. They see the New York fashion shows and they read ELLE and VOGUE. Each piece I make is unique and my clients, who have good salaries, now want one-of-a-kind handmade pieces that they won’t see anywhere else. I have noticed that I now attract more and more artists, movie stars and art galleries owners.

I also work with local – Elysée Yang –  and international fashion designers like La Perla, the luxury lingerie maker, lending them my jewels for their fashion shows.

What’s next for Paloma Sanchez?

I intend to open a second shop in Beijing very soon and maybe one in Shanghai too!

Contact:

Website: www.palomasanchez.com

Paloma Sanchez Shop: Nali Patio.

A115, 81 North Sanlitun Lu, Beijing.

At Nicely Made in China we are constantly on the lookout for interesting quality products from China. Our goal is to help you identify the unique and maybe even the unusual, across a wide range of products and services. Towards that end, we start this week with a new « Expert’s Corner » series! As ever, we welcome your feedback on this initiative.

Jewellery tends to be an occasional purchase, which probably means most of us lack expertise on the subject. To help with that, we invited Nicolas Favard to speak to us. Nicolas studied jewellery and gemology for 6 years at the Institut de Bijouterie de Saumur, and now runs a jewellery shop in Beijing.

Nicolas, how do you differentiate between a worthless piece of metal with a bit of colored glass on it from a platinum ring with an embedded flawless 18-carat diamond?

We have to consider two things here: the metal part of the ring and then the stone. For the metal, the first thing you should look for is the hallmark. This is a custom that started in France in the 13th century. Jewellers have a personal hallmark, usually bearing their initials. Then an Assay Office will deliver the hallmark, which guarantees the purity and the quality of the metal. Different metals have different hallmarks, and there are even different hallmarks for the same metal depending on the quality. For example, in France, a dog’s head is used for platinum or an eagle’s head for gold of a certain quality. Hallmarks also vary depending on the country of origin.

And what about the diamond – the famous 4Cs – color, clarity, cut and carat weight ? What should we look for with such gems?

The price of a gem is determined by, among other things, its purity. A stone should always come with its own certificate from a laboratory with a good reputation, like the Gemological Institute of America. I always give a certificate for the gems I use in my creations. It is essential then, as an amateur, to first try to show the stone you’re considering buying to a professional. If for some reason he cannot tell you what it’s worth by examining it, he should give you the address of a laboratory who will help. In Beijing, I rely on the National Gemstone Testing Center which does a very good job.

For precious stones – diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds – I recommend that you obtain a certificate.  For less expensive gems, provided you have a “coup de coeur” for it, you can probably take the risk provided they are not too expensive!

Website: www.nicolasfavard.com /

Weibo: weibo.com/nicolasfavard

We are happy to announce that starting today with “Khunu sweaters”, our readers are now able to buy these beautiful yak wool sweaters via our Nicely Made in China website.

By using the discount code “NMIC10” and as an introductory offer any NMiC reader who purchases through this link, will receive a 10% discount on all Khunu men’s and women’s sweaters and fashion accessories.  Just use this coupon code: “NMIC10” at the check-out.

Buy Khunu products using your discount code at the check-out to get a 10% reduction: “NMIC10”.

	Crafted from pure Himalayan yak wool, we paired a traditional cable knit body with finely ribbed sleeves and a subtle yet distinctive flash of color on the right cuff. 10% reduction after using the discount code « NMIC10″. Click here to buy this Cortina sweater
	Created in the Himalayan mountains, the Ella is lightweight and warm with a flattering feminine cut. 10% reduction after using the discount code « NMIC10″. Click here to buy this Ella sweater
	This men’s sweater is created from 100% yak wool in a subtly textured and durable 9-gauge milano knit. It features the uniquely designed Khunu elbow patches for added durability and a touch of style. 10% reduction after using the discount code « NMIC10″. Click here to buy this Slingsby sweater

Below you will find our original interview with Julian Wilson published last February, where he shares his passion for these unique products.

Winter can be very cold and very long in the North of China!  In its search for the perfect sweaters to keep warm, Nicely Made in China has come across Khunu, a young brand which deserves attention. Created by Julian Wilson, an ex-British army officer and Aaron Pattillo, who used to work as a manager for the Clinton Foundation, the company was created 18 months ago. Already, their sweaters are to be found on the shelves of fashionable stores in hip Swiss and Californian ski resorts. NMiC talked to Julian about finding the right wool and the challenges of living up to the expectations of nomads.

Julian, how did this adventure begin?

I have always been fascinated by Beijing and in 2005, I moved there from Hong Kong. At the beginning of 2008 I looked for a business idea with a social element to it, where returns could be evenly distributed and multiple layers added on to the value of a product sourced from communities with no access to the global market place. I think that with Khunu we have found the right model.

Your sweaters are made of yak wool – how do you source that?

For our first collection we worked with our yarn spinners to buy our fiber. Since then, Aaron and I travel extensively in Qinghai, Sichuan and Mongolia in search of nomads communities with the best wool, to see what and how much they can provide and also find the best ways to buy. Over the past 2 years, we have developed relationships with nomads communities in Western Sichuan and we are currently working on establishing a sustainable system of wool collection. But we try to be careful. We don’t want to raise false expectations by ordering yak wool for which we have no outlet. I think the most genuine way is to find a market first. So, at the same time we are working hard to find and establish a real market for it.

Who designs the Khunu sweaters and where are they made?

Our current collection of sweaters was designed by a New York-based designer, and are made in a factory near Beijing. We use a Western designer as currently our market is mainly the US and Europe. We believe it is important that the designer lives in, understands and knows our market. We are a very young company – Aaron and I still do all the groundwork ourselves. When it comes to quality control and the fair treatment of workers, it helps that the factory we use is already working with major Western brands.

What are the benefits of yak wool?

We tested and compared it with Merino wool and cashmere in two different laboratories – SGS in Hong Kong and the China Textile Testing Center in Beijing. We found that yak wool has the same thermal retention as cashmere and is more resistant to pilling. It is also 10-15% warmer than merino and has a softer feel. Actually the softness of the wool comes as the biggest surprise to customers.

How receptive is the market to yak wool?   Where can our readers find your sweaters?

Yak wool remains quite rare and exclusive but initial response from customers is very positive. What we are doing at Khunu is first finding and establishing a market for it so as not to create false expectations in the nomads. So far we have focused on distributing our products through our website and to independent stores in mountain areas. Our sweaters are now sold in stores in Switzerland  (St.Moritz, Zermatt) and in California (Sausalito, Lake Tahoe), among other places.

Website: http://www.khunu.com/

If, like Hong Konger Michelle Lai, you travel a lot, you might be on the lookout for the perfect travel bag. Nicely Made in China (NMiC) caught up with Michelle in Paris on her way to the contemporary fashion fair Rendez-Vous. Born in Toronto, she is the founder and creative director of Mischa. She talked about her passion for Japanese textiles and how her life changed when she began to create handbags.

Michelle, can you tell us how the Mischa adventure began?

I’ve always been interested in fabrics and textiles, and as a little girl I was a keen on sewing.  I studied Japanese at school and as soon as I could I began to visit Japan regularly. I had this obsession with Japanese vintage fabric, so I started to collect vintage kimonos and obis. In 2004 – at the time I was teaching English in international schools in Hong Kong – I was looking for a clutch bag but back then, unless you wanted a bridal bag or something very expensive, there was nothing available. That’s when I started to make my own bags.

In September 2004 I decided to have 40 handbags made of vintage obis ready for the Conrad Christmas Fair. I reckoned that if I did not sell any of the bags, I’d have Christmas presents for the rest of my life, but all 40 handbags were sold!  Following that first venture into the retail business, the question arose of what I really wanted to do with my life and I chose the creative route.

Who designs Mischa handbags?

I do! So far the company consists only of my business partner and I. Having said that, we are now beginning to work with freelance designers. I also oversee the production process – Mischa bags are made in Guangdong province. The design of my Travel Series ‘Overnighter’ bag is based on Japanese interlocking hexagons representing a sea tortoise shell. It suggests good fortune and longevity.

How many collections do you have?

We have two lines of products: the Vintage Couture and the Travel Series – with 8 bags.  We also do bespoke bags. Each Vintage Couture bag – made of vintage obis – comes with a certificate that states how many bags were made out of the same obi – usually no more than 4. For the first collection I used about 30 obis that I had collected over the years. I want Mischa to be a brand with long-lasting designs rather than coming up with avant-garde ideas that change every 6 months.

Where can Nicely Made in China readers buy your bags?

They’re sold at major department stores and Lane Crawford in Hong Kong and Beijing now stock our Travel Series. Our bags can also be found in Italy in Torino, in the USA and soon in Japan. Readers can check our store locator on our website.

Website: www.mischadesigns.com/

Recently, when exploring the Sheung Wan area of Hong Kong, Nicely Made in China (NMiC) stumbled upon Tung street which is chok-a-blok with quirky and interesting little shops selling some of the best products Hong Kong and international designers have to offer. It is here that Loveramics, launched in 2005 by William and Grace Ching, opened its store. We met with Grace to hear their story.

Grace, can you tell us a little about why you created Loveramics?

The mother company, Lynns, has been around since the mid-sixties making ceramics in their own factories in mainland China for foreign clients. 6 years ago, with my husband William – the grandson of the Lynns’s founder – we thought that it was time to have our own brand, so Loveramics was born.

How did you pick the name and what is Loveramics about?

We picked that name because we love ceramics and we love what we do! We mostly make dinnerware and tea sets, for example our Miix tea set. We’re trying to provide affordable luxury to our customers!

Who designs your products?

We have our own in-house designers but we also work with other local and international designers. Here in Hong Kong we work with Milk, a design company founded by Lee Chi-wing. And now we are collaborating with Tracy Hollins and Simon Stevens, both from the UK. Our patterns are either in-glaze or on-glaze. I’d like to add that our all our products are compliant with FDA regulations.

How long does it take for a product to go from the drawing board to the shelf?

Quite a long time! The whole process takes 9 to 12 months.

How would you describe your style?

I think our products have a more European feel than an American one – even though our most successful product, the Miix tea set created by Milk, has been for sale at MoMA in New York for a couple of years. In Europe people look for long lasting style and the market is dominated by small shops. This suits us given our production time, where as in the US, department stores rule and collections have to be renewed every 6 months.

Where can Nicely Made in China readers find your products?

Quite a few places around Hong Kong and in Mailand China (including one store in Beijing). Our products are also on sale at Liberty in London and at MoMA in New York. Please check the store locator are on our website.

Website: www.loveramics.com

Hong Kong Store: 37 Tung St, Hollywood Road, Central, HK