Before starting her own shop on Taobao, London College of Fashion graduate Min Liu worked with contemporary Dutch house Viktor & Rolf and high-end Canadian brand Ports 1961. She didn’t sell her own clothes at first, though; rather, she sold vintage fashion items sourced from all over the world, photographed by her in a whimsical style that mixed and matched the pieces with masks she bought in Europe. In 2010, she debuted the first fashion collection from her brand, Ms Min, on Taobao.

Within three years, Ms Min was noticed by high-end department store Lane Crawford and ended up being sold at its Shanghai flagship – she was one of the first three Chinese fashion brands selected by the store. A number of other renowned retailers followed, from Saks Fifth Avenue to Opening Ceremony. In 2016, Min opened her own boutique in Shanghai’s most lavish shopping district, in the Shanghai Centre next to Christian Louboutin.

Now based in Xiamen, the fashion designer conveys classical Chinese beauty through modern aesthetics; her statement is vibrant, sharp and feminine. For the spring/summer 2018 collection, she crafts traditional mulberry silk floral motifs in golden threads and bold orange colours. In 2017, Ms Min launched a rouge collection with cosmetics brand MAC, inspired by the Chinese mythology of “round sky and square earth” (tian yuan di fang), using the traditional girly make-up hues of red and pink with hints of gold and silver. It marked the fourth China-themed limited collection presented by the cosmetics brand, following collaborations with photographer Chen Man, jewellery designer Baobao Wan and fashion maverick Chris Chang.

Focusing on e-commerce or not seems to be a question facing many fashion brands, but Min thinks that Taobao has given her a great opportunity to stay close to the market from the very beginning of her business. And though she’s seen tremendous changes in the Chinese fashion market since she began – the rise of homegrown designers, global brands moving in and increased consumer purchasing power – she thinks there’s still plenty of room for independent domestic designers to grow.

There have been numerous tributes to Paris-based designer Azzedine Alaïa since his death last November, but none as pertinent as Azzedine Alaïa: The Couturier at London’s Design Museum. Conceived and co-curated by the Tunisian-born master of the cloth, the first exhibition to be shown in the UK on the renowned designer spans his career from the early 1980s to his final works in 2017, and includes many of his greatest hits – the bandage dress, the zipped dress, the corset belt and the stretch body. His dresses have embraced the bodies of the world’s most seductive and successful women, and the name Alaïa was always synonymous with high glamour, sensuality, style, cut, self-confidence and independence. 

Unlike many of his contemporaries, Alaïa constructed each garment by hand and refused to bow to the pressures of Fashion Week deadlines, instead working to his own schedule. His collaborative approach earned him an esteemed client list including Greta Garbo, Grace Jones, Michelle Obama, Naomi Campbell and Rihanna. “My obsession is to make women beautiful,” said Alaïa. “When you create with that in mind, things can’t go out of fashion.” Ultimately, he dedicated his life to a more utopian vision than just fashion, believing that the clothes he made furthered the empowerment of women and became part of a broader cultural conversation. Says Jean-Paul Gaultier of the designer: “A big master! Brilliantly combining the technique, the sewing know-how, the tradition and the modernity!” See it all until October 7. (designmuseum.org) 

Blahnik’s flamboyant, experimental designs were the perfect accompaniment for Clark’s couture – and his Ossie shoe became iconic. However, his imaginative flair was as yet untempered by technical know-how, and the teetering shoes proved perilous to wear – “like walking on quicksand”, Blahnik later recalled. But comfort (or lack thereof) never stood in the way of fashion, especially in matters of shoes, and the visual bravura of his Ossies drew plaudits nonetheless; the designer, an inveterate socialite, found himself lionised. In 1974, he gained the distinction of becoming the first man to appear on the cover of British Vogue. 

The Vogue connection has defined Blahnik’s entire career. Even today, US Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour is rarely seen without her Blahnik slingbacks, which he designed for her in 1994 and which she has in numerous colour iterations. “I can’t remember the last time I wore anybody else’s shoes – I mean, I just don’t even look at them,” she claimed in a recent documentary on the shoemaker. And says supermodel Naomi Campbell, who knows his wares better than most: “Manolo is the king of shoes.”

How do you market the brand?

We have been collaborating with the wardrobe departments for a couple of TV series and are currently in discussion for a few crossover opportunities with industries outside of fashion. 

Have your design sensibilities evolved since you started Jn:Dn?

I think I have become braver in my use of colours. I never really noticed my sense of that before buyers commented on how it was different and unique to my brand. Since then, I’ve been trying to express myself better with colour.    

Where do you see Jn:Dn in five years? 

I hope that in five years, Jn:Dn will be stocked internationally, especially in New York. Besides being a fashion capital, New York is also a nostalgic place for me. I also plan to open at least one flagship store – a space where people can really experience the brand vision.

Images: Photographer: Xiaoyang Jin; hair and make-up: QiQi; model: Alina O