Denise Ho - Combining Style with Sustainability

I admire people who go out of their way to support our world’s general wellbeing. Denise Ho, combines her passion for fashion with the necessity to create sustainable clothes while limiting the polluting impact. Her journey in fashion started from being a leading fashion stylist, to creating a hand made knitwear brand (Knotti) to then joining forces with a conscious aware tribe to become the Creative Director of The R Collective.

Her journey led her to where she is now. As her own awareness grew on the devastating harm the fashion industry was (and continues to do) to the climate, she made the decision to do her share to put a stop to it. We talk about this industry as if it were something disconnected from us, but let’s open our closets and see what we find. Remembering what we buy supports an industry and who we buy from supports either an industry that does us no good in the long term or it supports game changers who care to meet our needs for both fashion & wellbeing.

“It’s what you do that matters. ”

Meet Denise Ho, mother, fashion lover and entrepreneur based in Hong Kong.

Q: Denise, while it feels like just yesterday since we met, it was actually awhile ago - i mean just look at our kids, they have grown so much since.What made you to transition from the kids fashion industry to the environmentally conscious ladies fashion world?

A: I think owning a kids wear label made me realise the real side of the industry and the serious amount of wastage we are creating . I mean our team was so small that we just didn't have the capacity to do better, that's when I knew that I had to stop doing what I was doing. After the left the label, that's then when I met Christina from Redress and she invited me to style their show.  It was that moment that I realised that I wanted to get into the conscious side of fashion.  

Q: Did Motherhood change the way you see fashion? 

A: Maybe? I mean I was into sustainability way before I had Donovan.  The language now has definitely become  more mature, it could be from motherhood or I have just grown from doing what I am doing. 

Q: As a Creative Director of The R Collective, can you tell us about the brand? What is their mission statement? How does The R Collective impact us socially and environmentally? 

A: The R Collective is a fashion label born out from the NGO Redress.  Our main missions is to reduce waste so we only work with waste that are donated thru Redress channels. We also bring in young design talents who came out from the Redress Design Award to design capsules for us as 70% of waste are created based on design decisions so it's important to set the right sample for the  future creatives. 

Denise Ho, working from home to keep the quality through a work life balance.

Q: Are there any hurdles when it comes to combining style with sustainability? 

A: No not really. It used to be but not anymore. I think the whole supply chain is realising that it is mandatory to be sustainable. 

Q: When you hear 'Dream big" what springs to your mind? 

A: Good question! I guess to create a brand that changes the way people think, breaks out of stereotype. For example LuluLemon, it's a label that pretty much a new  genre which is Athleisure and replaced denim sales when it comes to casual wear. I would love to work for a brand that makes history, I will be very proud of that. 

Q: Life in Hong Kong is a mix of city and green life. Where do you go to eat, shop and live healthy? 

A: I eat a lot at home now as that is the healthiest way to eat. It's either that or we will go all out, like steakhouse, hotpot, dim sum....My husband and I are both quite active  so we love to exercise together as a family, we hike, swim, gym and  play tennis. I like to try new things so it's never about  going to the same places or doing the same things. 

Q: On Abis Journal, we love to know about the wellbeing rituals? Can you share with us your routine that supports your soul and keeps you driven when it comes to your life goals and dreams? 

A: I think Buddhism and meditation helped me out a lot and gave me the luxury to start this journey of having clarity towards myself and other people.  It’s so interesting that I just want to learn more and do better.