Luxury Made in China

By ELISA MALA
October 3, 2006

After expanding to America and opening its flagship boutique on Fifth Avenue in December 2005, the Hong Kong–based luxury brand Blanc de Chine has another surprise for New Yorkers: a new accessories line. The 10-piece collection, which includes brooches, pins, and rings, will be on store shelves later this month.

The centerpiece of the debut collection is the "Madagascar" evening bag ($4,000) adorned with a tassel pull, floral ornaments, and simulated diamonds, a high-end version of cubic zirconium. Matching accessories include floral hairpins ($750), jeweled brooches ($850), tassel necklaces ($800–$1,200) as well as wooden and silver bangles.

Named after a type of white porcelain and designed by a team in Hong Kong, Blanc de Chine currently offers ready-to-wear collections for men and women. A line of home accessories includes silk bed-sheets, throw pillows, and duvets. According to Blanc de Chine North America's publicity and marketing handler, Taryn Kraimer, each item is designed with eight zen-inspired principles in mind: sensuality, serenity, purity, simplicity, harmony, subtlety, comfort, and functionality.

"We've had so much success with what we've done," Ms. Kraimer, said. Creating an accessories line "seemed like the next logical step."

The clutch purse will be available in two styles, made from ebony with a lacquered finish or wengue wood with a matte finish. Both designs will showcase silver branch ornaments encrusted with colored, simulated diamonds, and have tassels embedded with gray and black quartz. "They only use the finest things they can find," Ms. Kraimer said.

"The luxury is in the fabrication that they use," the jewelry and accessories editor of Hamptons Cottages & Gardens magazine, Isabelle Kellogg, said. The magazine will feature Blanc de Chine in a fashion spread this fall.

In a crowded accessories market, is luxury alone enough to stand out?

The president of the lifestyle Web site ecityofstyle.com, Ken Panton, had initial doubts. "When I first heard of the Blanc de Chine brand, I was skeptical," he said. He said he first believed that middle-aged consumers would gravitate toward more established brands such as Gucci, Tiffany, and Bulgari, while the younger set would shy away from the brand's aesthetic. "I wasn't sure that there was a market for them," he said.

But Mr. Panton now sees Blanc de Chine's distinctiveness as a selling point. "They take what I call a minimalist style and add a jet-set edge to it, which makes it luxurious and exclusive," he said.

Ms. Kellogg sees the same appeal. "It would appeal to a consumer that is very well-travelled," she said. "It's a different aesthetic."