PHOTOS BY CANON POWERSHOT SX 720 HS
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DESIRE BY MANDY LAU
SHOP 209A, PODIUM II, WORLD TRADE CENTRE,
280 GLOUCESTER ROAD, CAUSEWAY BAY
HONG KONG
+852 5930 4311
MANDY@DESIRE-JEWELLERY.COM
WECHAT; DESIRE28344311
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MANDY LAU IS TALL, WILLOWY AND STYLISHLY GARBED WITH A LAVISH DIAMOND NECKLACE AND SHOD IN HERMES SHOES WHICH I ADMIRED WHEN WE MET AT HER BOOTH IN HALL 5 OF KUALA LUMPUR CONVENTION CENTRE.
"OH I LOVE SHOES, FASHION, BAGS AND OF COURSE JEWELLERY!" SHE SHARES. HER HAIR WAS PULLED INTO A CHIGNON, EMPHASISING HER STRONG, ANGULAR FEATURES.
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I ASKED, "YOU ARE SO YOUNG HOW CAN YOU OWN SUCH A BUSINESS? DID YOUR FATHER START IT AND YOU HAVE NOW TAKEN OVER AS THE SECOND GENERATION?"
Mandy Lau raised her expertly drawn eyebrows. "How old do you think I am?"
"Er, 28 years old?" I said, hoping I was not too far off the mark.
Without beating a beat she said bemusedly, "You really want me to buy you a dinner, don't you? I am 49 and will be 50 tomorrow as 28 April is my birthday! Yes I am not joking and this is my second time I am celebrating my birthday at Malaysia International Jewellery Festival!"
Well then at half a century, Mandy Lau qualified to be founder owner of her label!
She was born in Hong Kong to average parents as she denied being from a rich family but conceded they had enough dough to send her to USA to study.
"My father was a merchant while Mum is a housewife and active artist. She still goes to school to attend classes and she is now 88! Yes, I guess the school has made a lot of money from her fees! Mum loves painting, drawing with charcoal, calligraphy, pottery, anything and everything artistic."
As for Mandy Lau's own inclination, she remembered seeing her mother's jewels as a child and became fascinated and obsessed. "I remember seeing Mum's vintage diamond ring and became besotted. I loved going to shops to see and admire the colored stones as I love colors.
"I also fell in love with fossils and fossilised stones like gleaming ammonites and right now in my booth I have a few ammonite pendants.
"I was so intrigued by colored stones and fossils I could remember all their names. All the various common and technical names I could recall with ease but not other stuff! I was around 12 and loved looking at jewellers' window displays and I knew I would own a jewellery business one day though there were several diversions and detours before I opened my first shop!"
She wanted to be an artist too but realised one could not make big bucks and the notion of artists shivering and starving in the garret did not appeal to her practical mind.
She studied in Hong Kong University and Philadelphia University in USA. She laughs, "Can you believe I graduated as an accountant? But I never worked as one so yes, it was a waste of my parents' money in a way."
In America, she handmade jewels from semi-precious stones. "I made necklaces, rings and earrings and put them in artisanal shops to sell. I did well so I was very encouraged."
MENTOR LUCK
In feng shui, there is a strong belief in Mentor or Guardian Luck when someone with experience or connection enters your life and introduces or opens doors for you, giving you a leg-up in your career.
Well, Mandy Lau has Mentor Luck in spades!
Back in Hong Kong she taught part time in a local polytechnic while making and selling jewellery.
"I met a Canadian designer who had a shop and carried my stuff. She had a divorce and said I should have my own shop and she would help me since she now had time on her hand. I was unsure and did not even know where to find a shop.
"She did everything for me but it was easy as the shop next to hers became empty. What a happy coincidence! It just happened like that, just when I needed a shop."
Mind you, it was just 120 sq ft, not the size of a Cartier boutique.
"I named it Personal Design since I did just that and customised jewellery for clients. From semi-precious stones, I started using diamonds and precious gemstones and never looked back! Prices were RM 2,500 to RM 50,000. Business grew but I take credit as I worked so hard, Monday to Sunday. I was still teaching at the polytechnic in the day and worked in Personal Design after class.
"After a year I stopped teaching and devoted fulltime to running my shop."
Again Mentor Luck appeared.
"The gem setters, goldsmiths, workers all taught me on what could be done, and more importantly what could not! I was very lucky, still am! I always meet people who helped me indirectly or directly. They made things happened! This is why I never complained about life as I have been so blessed so I am thankful to God always."
Surprisingly Mandy Lau did not bother to move to bigger, glitzier premises but maintained the 120 sq ft shop. She explained, "I went into export. Many jewels were sold overseas so I did not need a big shop in Hong Kong as I could hardly keep up with production.
"I love European style jewels like those worn by royalty and the aristocracy. In the 1990s there were not many producers of such jewellery in Hong Kong. Some Italian jewellers bought my bling and sold them in Italy, Spain and France. A reversal of roles!"
Mandy Lau was contented with her 120 sq ft shop in Plaza One also in Causeway Bay. But in Hong Kong, things seldom stay still for long.
"After 12 years the owners of Plaza One shopping mall wanted to redevelop and had to kick the tenants out."
AGAIN, BIG TIME MENTOR LUCK APPEARED
Again this cool and composed jeweller took the news calmly. "I was not agitated. It was no big deal."
But her customers were the agitated ones!
At her shop's farewell gathering they surrounded her and demanded where would they be buying their unusual and exotic jewels.
I simply sighed and said "From other shops"!
Incredibly she even contemplated retiring! "Can you imagine that? Thinking of retiring and I was only in my thirties, haha".
But her loyal clients would have none of that and set out to root out suitable new shoplots around the area.
She laughs riotously, "Can you imagine the vision of wealthy tai-tai staggering around Causeway Bay in 4-inch heels searching for empty, well positioned shop lots for me? I am so grateful to them."
One customer found a shop lot in World Trade Centre which was ideal and Mandy Lau should have been suitably indebted. "Incredibly she went the extra mile for me as you won't believe what she did! She stood and counted the human traffic coming in and out from escalators and elevators at 12 noon, 3 pm and 8 pm! She actually stood and manually counted the customer traffic and gave me the list so I could assess for myself the advantages of the shop's location. She really touched my heart. Not just one day but she counted the potential customers from Monday to Sunday! And yes, she probably stood in her high heels too!
"Before I knew it, I had all the vital statistics without having to lift a finger. I couldn't believe my luck! All the details including rental. The management also could hardly believe I was going to be the tenant and not her."
This time her shop was bigger at 400 sq ft. She also changed the brand to 'Desire by Mandy Lau' as she said women all desired jewels. And a few men too!
Desire by Mandy Lau on the second floor of World Trade Centre opened in April 2004 on her birthday and remains there today.
"Business is good and all my customers from 1999 remain friends. A few even have grand daughters who buy from me."
JADE AND COLORED GEMS ARE MANDY LAU'S SPECIALTY
"I specialise in jade and colored stones as these are my favorites. So far my most expensive jewel sold for HK$ 870,000 which is not a huge amount but a similar piece would cost thrice or four times more in designer boutiques!
"A customer showed me a photo and asked if I could do something like that and I said yes at more than four times cheaper. It was a Piaget bangle retailing at HK $4.8 million and she was so happy to get a similar one for HK$ 870,000. Mine was not a blatant copy but inspired by it."
Mandy Lau married an angmo, mat salleh or gwailo in 2000. "My husband is English and a business consultant. He chose to marry on 5 August just one day after his birthday on 4 August. He explained this was to ensure I would always remember our wedding day!
"When I work, I concentrate fully on the project and I have even forgotten my own birthday.
"We both agreed not to have kids as that is a lifelong commitment. He initially asked me if I came home after a heavy day and our children rushed out from their bedroom and jumped on me, what would I do? I replied I would send them back into their room. My husband nodded and agreed it was best not to have children!"
SIGNS OF SUCCESS
In her World Trade Centre shop she has 3 staff. She has 3 studios in Hong Kong and China with 15 male workers. She said matter of factly, "I work better with men"
I asked what inspired her.
She showed me her handheld laptop and scrolled. Images of diverse objects, places, faces, flora, fauna and cultural events flitted past. All seemingly irrelevant and disparate. I asked "What gives?"
"Interiors, paintings, posters, cars and shoes, all unconnected but trust me, they can inspire jewellery design. I look at castles, colors, graphics and something will gel in my head."
Failing which there are her 5 cats, three British Short Haired and two Persians.
"My 5 cats move freely in my Mid Levels flat." she remarked.
Mid Levels is as posh as it gets though the super rich live higher up at what is called The Peak. Being me, I asked how much she paid for it and its current value.
She raised her eyebrows again. She did not admonish my nosiness but replied "I bought it in the late 1990s just before I married for HK $ 5 million. Today it is worth HK $30 million and it is 1,600 sq ft. Anything else?"
Her best seller(s)?
She answered emphatically, "None"
My turn to raise my eyebrows.
Mandy Lau explained, "All my jewels are one of a kind with no duplicates. Of course some are similar looking but never identical. If a piece is sold, I will offer something similar."
She is uber creative but needs a plan. "I push myself to be creative. I need a plan so I can focus and see it through till fruition. I like animals so they always feature in my designs. Yes, I made jewels based on my 5 cats but all were sold. Now I am into birds and fish and sealife like lobsters, prawns and squids. My next phase will be crocodiles. Each design is always different---I don't cut and paste."
Well done, handy Mandy!
