Revolution often comes from the most unexpected places – even in fashion. As luxury watchers ponder whether or not China will ever produce its own high-end fashion label, thus directing the spending balance away from western brands, some local designers are already making the speculation a reality – though not in women’s wear, as might be expected.

　　變革的潮流往往發(fā)生于某些令人出乎意料之地—甚至是時裝業(yè)。正當奢侈品觀察人士尋思中國能否生產出自身的高端時尚品牌，從而引領并扭轉青睞西方產品的消費傾向時，一些中國本地設計師已經把猜想夢成現實——只是并非如預期中的在女裝領域。

　　Instead, as Amy Chua was penning Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, a growing number of young Asian men defied family expectations and abandoned white-collar jobs to create a new upmarket segment of the local men’s wear industry. Their ages range from 19 to 30, and they have started bringing hand-made ties, custom-made shoes and bespoke shirts to the Asian market.

　　然而，正當蔡美兒(Amy Chua)執(zhí)筆寫《虎媽的戰(zhàn)歌》(Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother)時，越來越多的亞洲帥男們公然違抗家人的期望，辭去自己的白領工作，打造中國自己的高端男裝，他們的年齡從19歲至30歲不等，手工打造的領帶、定制鞋與定制襯衣已開始投放亞洲市場。

　　Mark Cho, 28-year-old co-founder of The Armoury, a Hong Kong haberdasher popular with the online men’s wear community, left his job at a London bank to start his business in Hong Kong last year. Cornell-educated Justin Chang, 24, the scion of Ascot Chang, a Hong Kong-based company known for its bespoke shirts, also abandoned the world of finance after an internship at a stock brokerage. Meanwhile, 25-year-old Gerald Shen didn’t even bother with banking: armed with a degree in finance and economics, he started working full-time on his Singapore-based tie-making business straight after graduation.

　　28歲的香港服裝經銷商曹文偉(Mark Cho)去年辭去了自己在倫敦某銀行的工作，回到香港創(chuàng)業(yè)，他與人合伙創(chuàng)辦了The Armoury公司，如今已在網絡男裝行業(yè)大名鼎鼎。今年24歲、畢業(yè)于康奈兒大學(Cornell)的賈斯廷?張(Justin Chang)結束券商公司的實習后，也辭去了工作。他是香港知名襯衫定制生產商詩閣(Ascot Chang)的后人。今年25歲、手持財經學位的杰拉德?沈(Gerald Shen)同樣如此，他畢業(yè)后甚至沒去銀行業(yè)求職，直接回到了新加坡，全身心創(chuàng)辦了自己的領帶公司。

　　All say that their passion for clothing meant that working in the industry was inevitable. “From a frivolous interest, it became a bit of an obsession,” laughs Shen, who makes lightly padded multiple-fold ties using British fabrics. Cho says: “After 10 years of interest, I decided I could enjoy doing something more with it.”

　　這幾位年輕人說自己青睞服裝業(yè)，因此從事該行不可避免。“說得輕狂些，從事這一行純屬癡迷，”沈笑著說，公司用產自英國的布料制作淺充式多折領帶。曹說：“我喜歡這行已有10年，覺得自己可以有更大作為。”

　　Equally important was a local economic climate conducive to starting a business. Cho’s store launch was promoted by InvestHK, a government agency that promotes investment. “The business was designed specifically to be launched in Hong Kong. I think it would have been impossible elsewhere,”

　　he says. 本地良好的創(chuàng)業(yè)氛圍也是重要的成因。曹開店得到了香港投資推廣署(InvestHK)的支持，這是一家政府機構，全力支持投資創(chuàng)業(yè)。“當初就是專門謀劃在香港開店，我覺得若開在其它地區(qū)是不可能成功的，”他說。

　　Chang, whose workshop makes 60,000 bespoke shirts a year, adds: “Hong Kong’s a good climate because there’s no import tax, so [bringing in] materials from Europe [is cheaper].”

　　張的公司每年定制6萬件襯衣，他補充說：“香港具有良好的商業(yè)環(huán)境，不征進口稅，所以從歐洲進口原材料更為便宜。”

　　It’s a view shared by 30-year-old Edwin Neo, a Singapore-based cobbler-turned-cordwainer who picked up the trade in Budapest and last July co-founded shoemaker Ed et Al: “It would have been a lot more difficult starting up in Europe,” Neo says. “We would face stiff competition from well-established brands.” His Goodyear bespoke shoes start at S$600.

　　今年30歲的新加坡人梁英杰(Edwin Neo)也附和上述說法，他由鞋匠轉行皮匠，當初在布達佩斯(Budapest)進入該行，去年七月與人合開了Ed et Al制鞋廠。他說：“若在歐洲創(chuàng)業(yè)，則要難得多，會面臨那些知名品牌的激烈競爭。”他推出的固特異(Goodyear)定制鞋起價600新加坡元。

　　The “made in Asia” label has become far less of a stigma. “We lack the marketing power of ‘Made in Italy’ or ‘Savile Row bespoke’,” says Chang. “But [for my generation], locally made products have a bit more cachet because they’re increasingly rare. There’s a nostalgic quality about them.”

　　“亞洲制造”的品牌早已不是劣等貨的象征。“我們沒有‘意大利制造’或者‘薩維爾街(Savile Row)制造’那樣的名氣，”張說。“但對于我們這一代人來說，本地制造的產品更顯得尊貴，因為它們越來越稀少，能讓購買者有種懷舊感。”

　　Arnold Wong, 19-year-old founder of Colonial Goods, a newly launched men’s wear label that celebrates Hong Kong’s colonial heritage, concurs: “More and more [Hong Kongers] are cultivating their own sense of style and savoir-faire.” For its first collection of T-shirts spun from a vintage loom, which will be released in August, Colonial Goods teamed up with Lee Kung Man, a knitting factory established in 1923.

　　19歲的Arnold Wong創(chuàng)辦了Colonial Goods，這個新的男裝品牌旨在 “紀念”香港過去那段殖民地的歷史，他附和道：“越來越多的港人正在培養(yǎng)自己的時尚感，并展示自己的才華。”今年8月推出的首個系列的T恤衫的布料由老織布機紡出，由Colonial Goods與Lee Kung Man聯手推出，Lee Kung Man是一家創(chuàng)建于1923年的針織廠。

　　These men also accept that they were lucky to have entered the market at the right time. Asia’s swift recovery from the financial crisis has made consumers more willing to spend. “Customers originally came in looking for something for the office,” says Cho, whose store sells everything from pocket squares made of kimono fabric to suede loafers from Spain’s Carmina and unstructured jackets from Florentine tailors Liverano & Liverano. “But they are slowly coming around to the fact that [they should] dress well for all occasions.”

　　這幾位男士都承認自己生逢其時。亞洲快速從全球金融危機中復蘇，這使得消費者有更強的消費欲望。“過去，消費者逛店是來買上班穿的衣服，”曹說，從和服料做的西服裝飾方巾、西班牙布蘭(Spain’s Carmina)做的山羊皮樂福鞋到佛羅倫薩(Florentine)利韋拉諾制衣店(Liverano & Liverano)制作的寬松型夾克，他的店貨色齊全。“但消費者逐步認識到自己應該在所有的場合都穿得像模像樣。”

　　Cho and Chang say the tight-knit Asian mens’ wear community has helped their businesses grow. Cho attributes his ability to launch The Armoury to his close relationship with popular Hong Kong tailor WW Chan & Sons. “They provided a good starting base of customers, goodwill and credibility,” says Cho, whose store hosts a corner for the tailor. Business was so good that earlier this year, Cho had to turn some customers away. In July, Arnold Wong com-missioned a set of photographs of well-dressed men in Hong Kong. It became a viral hit on mens’ wear websites – and Chang, Cho and his partners at The Armoury feature prominently.

　　曹與張都說亞洲男裝界的精誠團結使得生意日隆。曹說自己開辦The Armoury公司歸功于與香港知名裁縫店WW Chan & Sons關系莫逆。“WW Chan & Sons憑籍自身的商業(yè)信譽與知名度，為我們公司的起步提供了良好的客源，”曹說，他的店里辟出了WW Chan & Sons的專區(qū)。如今店里的生意火爆，結果年初只得回絕部分顧客。七月，Arnold Wong在香港請人制作了一組穿著入時的俊男照片，隨即被各大男裝網址瘋狂轉載——張、曹以及The Armoury公司的合伙人隨即聲名大噪。