SCHEMES Chow Tai Fook heir-apparent Adrian Cheng is fulfilling his vision of bringing the arts to the people and supporting up-and-coming Chinese artists. With a personal penchant for art, he takes a hands-on approach to his work, including recent Chow Tai Fook jewellery designs. But a strong sense of heritage is never far from the surface. STORY KATE WHITEHEAD PHOTOGRAPHY GARETH GAY ASSISTANT BY FABIANA WONG ART DIRECTION GRACE MA STYLING KENNETH WONG GROOMING JOYCE WONG 54 THE PEAK THE PEAK 55 t’s a Sunday night, and from humble beginnings, starting out as as The Peak’s creative a young salesman in a jewellery store in team sets up props, Macau. It’s a classic rags-to-riches tale background and lighting - he impressed the storeowner, married for a cover photo shoot, his daughter and went on to found the Adrian Cheng is firmly jeweller Chow Tai Fook and real estate in the director’s seat empire New World Development. Just – just where he wants before the outbreak of World War II, “I CALL MYSELF to be. Unlike other high- when he was starting out, the world was powered interviewees a very different place, but his wisdom is A CULTURAL the team has worked with, Cheng has still sound. a clear idea of what approach to this “The world is changing, there is no OR CREATIVE month’s shoot will work for his artistic formula you can apply to every single Isensibilities. Given his background, work venture or business, but there are some ENTREPRENEUR and passions in life, this comes as no basic rules - like sticking with a vision,” OR FAMILY surprise. says the Harvard-educated Cheng who Cheng, scion of the world’s largest worked at Goldman Sachs and UBS before ENTREPRENEUR, jewellery business and a leading Asian joining the family business. TO CREATE NEW property conglomerate, shares two It takes courage to carry through important lessons he says he learned from your vision, even if you come from a VENTURE(S) WITHIN his grandfather and father. “They taught moneyed family. Cheng’s vision was a AN ESTABLISHED me to be really be humble and to make new breed of shopping malls - one that more friends because you never know, the set out to marry art, nature and people - BUSINESS” person sitting next to you may be the next and an arts foundation. president of the United States.” “You look at the shopping malls in And the second lesson? Have a vision Hong Kong and China, everything is the and stick with it. It’s safe to say the 34 same, the same layout, the same brands, year-old Cheng – one of the world’s the same box. There is no personality and youngest billionaires – has taken these the customers are changing too – they pieces of guidance to heart. are getting more sophisticated and they His grandfather Cheng Yu-tung came are getting bored,” says Cheng. 56 THE PEAK THE PEAK 57 Just 28 when he launched the first hip “It’s a win-win for the museum and K11 Art Mall in Hong Kong in 2009, he the retail space,” says Cheng. describes it as “museum retail”. The arty But he insists that it’s not just about formula proved a winner - it was profitable “YOU LOOK AT the draw of a great master painter and after a year and soon after that the sales the lure of big brand appeal. Of course, doubled. He opened another in Shanghai THE SHOPPING people come to see the “Water lilies” and last year, and there is more in the pipeline. “Wisteria”, but alongside the exhibition For the ongoing Claude Monet MALLS IN are symposiums where he hopes to exhibition at the K11 Art Mall in Shanghai, HONG KONG encourage debate and dialogue. Which Cheng collaborated with the Musee brings him to the project perhaps closet Marmottan Monet in Paris to bring 55 AND CHINA, to his heart - the K11 Foundation, which pieces to the city. On day one, 60,000 he founded in 2010. tickets were sold and they had to put a EVERYTHING It’s the first charitable foundation temporary hold on the booking system. IS THE SAME… in China to offer a creative platform “It proves that everyone is thirsty to artists - at home and overseas - to look at good art and especially THERE IS NO and aims to change the landscape of masterpieces and those who have had a contemporary Chinese art. Artist-in- big influence on the contemporary art PERSONALITY residence programmes at the K11 Art OPPOSITE PAGE landscape,” says Cheng. AND THE Villages in Wuhan and Guiyang operate Hong Kong K11 Art And it’s a shrewd business model. At as incubators for young and emerging Mall the K11 art malls, people don’t need to queue CUSTOMERS ARE Chinese artists. LEFT up to see a big exhibition, such as the Monet There have been important lessons The entrance to the CHANGING” Shanghai K11 Art one; they get a ticket and are called when along the way, not only about trusting Mall and Claude it’s their turn to enter. In the meantime, himself and his vision, but also about Monet exhibition they can wander around the mall. how to get an effective team on board. RIGHT Contempoary art pieces displayed in the Shanghai K11 malls 58 THE PEAK THE PEAK 59 FROM TOP Kaarina Kaikkonen exhibition by K11 Art Foundation; Design Mart; Mr. Zhenchen Liu's Kaleidoscope “A hybrid model is so new, so when “It may sound strange, but “I thought [singing] was my talent, but you are hiring people you have to educate sometimes I’m afraid that I’m not being being a talent and using your talent for them, train them and create the vision that productive. I’m not a workaholic, but I your livelihood or profession is different you want. A lot of the time it is really about feel very uneasy when I’m not producing - I just knew it was only my talent and motivating people - and that’s challenging. things, wasting your time,” he says. wouldn’t be my future job,” he says. I’ve learned a lot about that, how to deal He’s been that way since he was What he has succeeded in weaving with people, how to motivate them,” says young, driven by an urge to create, to be into his work life is his creative eye as Cheng, who encourages his management productive. After his wedding in 2009, a designer and has created a couple team to read a book every month. it was work that drove him back to the of jewellery collections for Chow He’s made great strides in a relatively office, putting his honeymoon on hold. Tai Fook. Last year’s collection of 15 short time and there are no signs “If you want me to go crazy just put pieces, “Ombre di Milano” (Shadows FROM LANVIN POPLIN FITTED SHIRT, BOTH AND WHITE COTTON TRENCH COAT BELTED TWO-TONE of slowing. Two more K11 malls are me in a big house and say there is no of Milan), was well received and sold scheduled to open on the mainland in plan or schedule, just loiter around the well at auction. In March he launched 2015 - in Beijing and Shenyang - and house, watch some TV. I have to always “Reflections of Siem”, a collection there are another 19 K11 projects in China be in the process of creating and thinking inspired by Cambodia, which will be “ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAMMES targeted for the next five years. Cheng is and implementing and changing things - auctioned to VIP customers in October. clearly a man not afraid of change. “I like whether it’s a product or a charity, I just It took him two months to design AT THE K11 ART VILLAGES IN steady change - it ignites reinvention and need to see an impact,” says Cheng. the Cambodian collection, doing the WUHAN AND GUIYANG OPERATE stimulates you to improve,” she says. The creative urge and artistic flair has sketches by hand. Craftsmen then So if he doesn’t fear change, what bubbled close to the surface all his life. spent 18 months working on each piece, AS INCUBATORS FOR YOUNG AND does he fear? It’s the only question that Trained as a classical tenor in high school, meticulously setting diamonds and using EMERGING CHINESE ARTISTS” seems to stump him. He pauses and when he used to sing opera and musicals and delicate stone setting techniques. The he speaks after a moment’s reflection his even sang two songs at his own wedding, knockout piece is “Remembrance”, a answer sounds genuine, perhaps even a one in English and one in China, but never stunning 27.65-carat oval red tourmaline personal revelation. considered turning professional. with diamond-studded gold branches 60 THE PEAK THE PEAK 61 Chow Tai Fook counts 1.1 million VIP customers on the mainland and another 100,000 in Hong Kong. And increasingly they are looking for more affordable pieces. Hong Kong customers have deeper pockets than those on the mainland, with the typical VIP spending HK$40,000 on the first purchase and HK$12,000- $13,000 on the second. “Hong Kong is a bit more sophisticated because of the economy. In China people are trying to find out more about the product and they are willing to experiment,” he says. The single stud diamonds and classic gold pieces still make up the bulk of sales, but he has noticed a demand for more unique pieces, special designs perhaps inlaid with tourmaline or semi- precious stones.