Asia Fashion Weekly News Bulletin – ISSUE 63 Week of 4 May 2026
(1) Inside The Peninsula Hong Kong’s elegant fashion arcade, where the city’s luxury style scene began
The Peninsula arcade offers heritage luxury, blending historic elegance, carefully chosen brands and hotel hospitality into a shopping experience shaped by tradition and service.
(2) 139th Canton Fair Underscores the Agility of China’s Fashion Supply Chain
At the Canton Fair, Chinese fashion exhibitors highlighted a shift toward sustainable materials, technical performance and specialised design, signaling a more agile industry focused on greener production and lifestyle driven global demand.
(3) Robert Wun, the first designer to show at Paris Haute Couture Week, on the Met Gala, Wong Kar-wai and staying true to himself
Hong Kong designer Robert Wun is broadening his creative reach, taking his signature couture beyond the runway while staying true to a distinct vision shaped by confidence, cinematic influence and artistic independence.
(4) Met Gala 2026: Blackpink, Katy Perry and the best looks of the night
Southeast Asia is reshaping fashion through craft, regenerative materials and AI driven production, showing how heritage, innovation and sustainability can work together.
(1) Inside The Peninsula Hong Kong’s elegant fashion arcade, where the city’s luxury style scene began
(Photo Credit: Monocle)
The Peninsula’s arcade on Nathan Road offers a different kind of luxury from nearby malls such as K11 Musea and Harbour City. Rather than chasing novelty, it draws strength from history, using the hotel’s long standing identity to create a shopping experience rooted in elegance, ritual and continuity.
Set beneath crown mouldings and against marble walls in shades of brown and cream, the arcade feels like an extension of the hotel rather than a separate retail zone. Rolex and Goyard sit near the main café spaces, and shoppers move through the foyer for appointments, lunch or afternoon tea, while hotel guests and local residents pass easily through the same space. That mix gives the arcade a sense of daily life as well as exclusivity.
Benjamin Vuchot, chief executive of The Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels group, says this was where luxury retail in Asia first took shape during the 1970s, when Hong Kong became an entry point for brands including Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Van Cleef and Hermès. Today the arcade spans three levels and houses more than 80 tenants, from fashion and jewellery labels to grocery offerings such as Mercato. Long established names remain central, including bespoke tailor Jimmy Chen and Co, while newer arrivals such as Vhernier and Lala Curio bring fresh energy.
The result is a retail setting that feels curated rather than crowded. With live music during the day and steady foot traffic across its marble floors, the arcade still trades on service, atmosphere and heritage as much as on the brands themselves.
News Source: https://monocle.com/fashion/retail/inside-the-peninsula-hong-kongs-shopping-arcade/
(2) 139th Canton Fair Underscores the Agility of China’s Fashion Supply Chain
(Photo Credit: PR Newswire)
At the 139th Canton Fair, fashion exhibitors showed how China’s apparel industry is adapting to a market increasingly shaped by sustainability, performance and specialised design. The showcase suggested that the country’s fashion supply chain is moving beyond mass manufacturing and toward products tailored to more environmentally aware and lifestyle focused consumers.
A strong emphasis was placed on low carbon materials and greener production methods. Companies from Guangdong highlighted innovations such as carbon capture beachwear, bio based fabrics and plant dyed infant clothing, presenting them as part of a traceable supply chain built to meet international standards. Other exhibitors promoted biodegradable fibres and chemical free dyeing techniques, reflecting a wider push toward circular and eco conscious fashion.
Performance technology was another major theme. Outdoor and sportswear brands introduced garments designed for practical use, including cycling jackets with windproof and water resistant properties, and sun protective clothing that combined moisture control with packable, travel friendly design. These products point to rising demand for apparel that blends technical function with everyday style.
Design specialisation also emerged as a key strategy. Some brands are using region specific design input to target overseas markets more precisely, while others are expanding through original collections aimed at segments ranging from businesswear to luxury leisure. Together, the displays at the fair presented a Chinese fashion industry that is becoming more agile, creative and globally competitive.
(3) Robert Wun, the first designer to show at Paris Haute Couture Week, on the Met Gala, Wong Kar-wai and staying true to himself
(Photo Credit: Hungmc / Tatler)
Hong Kong designer Robert Wun is entering a new phase of his career, one that expands his world rather than narrows it. Known for dramatic haute couture that has appeared on stars such as Adele and Blackpink’s Jennie, Wun says he has little interest in fitting expectations shaped by others. His latest return to Hong Kong reflects that instinct, with costume designs for Hong Kong Ballet’s Glam Rock showing how his vision can move beyond the runway while remaining unmistakably his own.
Wun, the first Hong Kong designer to present at Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week, was commissioned to create costumes for Martlet, a ballet piece rooted in local culture and set to music by Beyond. The project draws on themes that have long shaped his work, including Hong Kong cinema and especially the films of Wong Kar wai, whose poetic treatment of beauty, romance and femininity he deeply admires. For Wun, those influences form part of a distinctly Hong Kong visual language that stands apart from Western ideas of elegance.
His rise has been gradual but decisive. After graduating from London College of Fashion, he built momentum through celebrity clients and film work, but describes his 2021 collection Armour as the real turning point. Since then, he has shown in Paris, staged a homecoming presentation in Hong Kong and pushed his work toward broader recognition, including inclusion in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s 2026 spring exhibition Costume Art.
What defines Wun now is not only success, but confidence in his own voice. He sees fashion as a space where courage matters, especially when resisting pressure to chase trends rather than conviction.
News Source: https://www.tatlerasia.com/style/fashion/robert-wun-on-the-met-gala-and-wong-kar-wai
(4) Met Gala 2026: Blackpink, Katy Perry and the best looks of the night
(Photo Credit: Taylor Hill / Getty Images)
This year’s Met Gala leaned fully into spectacle, with the “Fashion Is Art” theme prompting guests to treat the red carpet as a stage for invention rather than elegance alone. Katy Perry wore a custom Stella McCartney gown topped with an openable visor, while Rihanna arrived in a sculptural Maison Margiela look by Glenn Martens, defined by bold draping and exaggerated curves. Heidi Klum, true to form, chose maximum drama and appeared in a full Statue of Liberty inspired transformation that made her nearly unrecognisable.
One of the night’s most notable moments came from Blackpink, whose four members attended together for the first time. Each offered a distinct interpretation of the dress code. Jennie wore a custom Chanel gown embellished with 15,000 metallic sequins, while Lisa, appearing as a Host Committee member, chose a Robert Wun design with two sculptural 3D scanned arms rising from the shoulders. Jisoo made her Met Gala debut in Dior, and Rosé completed her Saint Laurent look with Tiffany and Co jewellery at the waist.
Asian athletes also made a strong impression. Eileen Gu wore the Airo dress, a collaboration between Iris Van Herpen and artist A.A. Murakami, with 15,000 hand formed iridescent glass bubbles that gave the piece a light, almost living quality. Alysa Liu marked her debut in a red Louis Vuitton gown after being named the house’s newest ambassador. Naomi Osaka, in Robert Wun, added a theatrical flourish of her own with a quick change on the carpet.
News Source: https://www.tatlerasia.com/style/fashion/met-gala-2026-best-dressed
