[Images Inc…] Why Hong Kong Is the Bridal Gown Capital of Asia

 

There are six Vera Wang stores located throughout Asia. However, many of the brides around the region hop on a plane and fly especially to Hong Kong to buy wedding dresses from her flagship store here, a trend that has been seen among many of the top bridal gown stores in Hong Kong.

“Even though there are Vera Wang stores in the home countries of some brides, we find a lot of them will fly here just to pick out their gown because Hong Kong is one of the one duty-free ports left in the world so luxury products are priced better compared to other Asian cities and also for authenticity of the product,” says Carolyn Chow, one of the Managing Partners of Vera Wang Hong Kong.

Upon stepping into the Vera Wang Hong Kong store, the boutique immediately projects the brand’s overall image of luxury and status, which hold a special allure for many brides in Asia. “We tend to have a lot of Asian celebrities fly over to pick out their dream gown whether they’re from mainland China, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, or places even further away,” says Chow.

The dresses are extremely high quality, featuring intricate detailing and materials such as French lace, fine silk, crepe, chiffon, and taffeta, to name a few. Prices of the Vera Wang gowns range from 35,000 Hong Kong dollars to 160,000 HKD. The most expensive gown at Vera Wang is the Jacqueline, a full length ball gown in the luxe collection.

In addition to finding their dream dress, many brides choose to purchase other bridal accessories such as their shoes, veil, and headpiece at Vera Wang Hong Kong as well. There’s a level of prestige that goes with styling and purchasing your wedding dress and accessories in Hong Kong for many brides around the region.

But the Vera Wang Store isn’t the only Hong Kong wedding gown boutique experiencing this cross-border phenomenon. Trinity Bridal, a bridal salon that carries top brands such as Carolina Herrera and Oscar de la Renta, has Singaporean brides come to their Hong Kong store even though they have a boutique in Singapore. Dresses here range from 20,000 HKD to 150,000 HKD.

“Even though we get a lot of customers from abroad, we still think the Hong Kong market is still very dynamic. Whether it’s American Born Chinese coming back to work in Hong Kong or expatriates, our store is still very popular with the Hong Kong market,” says Cecile Chen, Managing Director of Trinity Bridal.

In a market where couples are willing to spend 400,000 Hong Kong Dollars on an engagement, brides are not afraid to spend more on their wedding day.

Besides prestige and high service levels, prices and the variety of brands that Hong Kong stores have are also what makes them popular among international brides, says Yolanda Choy-Tang, Managing Partner of Central Weddings and Vera Wang Hong Kong. “We have the largest selection of gowns by the designers we represent at our stores. That’s one big reason we why brides come to Hong Kong.”

As for price, Hong Kong is still one of the only duty free ports in Asia, making their gowns less expensive than that of other countries. Coming up with a list of Hong Kong bridal boutiques has even become a common request for wedding planners around the Asian region.

“We do get some brides who ask us for a list of bridal stores to shop at in Hong Kong,” says Caroline Tan-Reed and Angela Tioanda, owners of The Wedding Stylist, a wedding planning company based in Singapore. “We’ll have to work to put together a list of bridal stores in Hong Kong and then the brides will go there to find dresses. They’ll also go there to find cheongsams there too as brides hear that they are quite popular to purchase in Hong Kong. It’s like a short bridal shopping trip for them.”

That’s not to say other markets haven’t been opening up more higher-end, reputable bridal gown stores, however. Husband and wife duo, Chern San Lee and Brenna Koh opened up The Proposal in Singapore due to the lack of designer bridal gowns in their country. “When I got married, I found that the choice for wedding gowns were limited in Singapore,” said Koh. “I went to Hong Kong to look for gowns and I thought, ‘why is it so difficult to find gowns back home in Singapore?’” The Proposal now carries designer brands such as Galia Lahav and Ines Di Santo.

The bridal market in China, and Hong Kong specifically, is only getting bigger, which bodes well for Hong Kong bridal boutiques that distribute top brands. As the influence of high-end wedding gown designers grow in the Asian region, so do the customers of Hong Kong bridal gown boutiques.