If you’re a fan of Bruce Lee, you’re going to love this shirt brand from Hong Kong
- Ben Fu, the co-founder of fun and colourful shirt brand Emanate, reveals why the martial arts icon is his biggest inspiration
What made you launch your own brand? “This has always been my dream. I’ve been working in the textile industry for almost 30 years. I have worked with a lot of brands. Two years ago, I thought, ‘I have to take action.’ I decided to create Emanate.”
What’s the thinking behind it? “Emanate is about expressing your emotion, expressing your colour, expressing yourself. When we walk down the street, everybody is either wearing black, grey or white. They have no choice as every brand is like that. I want everybody to be able to choose their own colour. I created Emanate in this kind of style because I like to wear it myself.
“The market offers limited options and they tend to be expensive. Our shirts are designed with fine details and we provide many choices. We select 100 per cent cotton, fine yarn fabric and digitally print on to it. We select smart buttons that match the design. We put in a lot of details, like collars and cuffs with trims and piping. I want customers to purchase a quality shirt at a reasonable price.”
What has the martial arts icon got to do with it? “Bruce Lee represents confidence and power – triumph. Emanate’s tagline, ‘Empty your mind’, is a quote from Lee. It means that you have to abandon your original perception to try new things. I worked with Hong Kong artists such as Raphael Ma and the Hong Kong Bruce Lee Club to create a collection of Bruce Lee shirts.”