Christmas is a time to reflect and renew, says Ookonn CEO Anson Shum

Anson Shum is the CEO of luxury travel luggage brand Ookonn, which is known for its youthful, rebellious spirit; fun and forward-thinking designs.

Lately I’ve been … keeping busy. We have just launched OOKONN in Korea, and we are collaborating with DFS Group, the Hong Kong-based travel retailer, on our pop-up store at T-Galleria. However, nothing is more exciting than working on the development of our new luggage design, which will be launched in January.

To me, Christmas means … a time to reflect, renew and pull some crackers.

This Christmas, my wish list includes …I wouldn’t mind a well-considered gift that’s beautifully wrapped. Other than that, I would be happy if I could spread a little joy to others.

My favourite place to spend Christmas is … anywhere, as long as families and friends are around. I prefer somewhere cold. Winter immediately makes me think of perfect snow, wrapping up warm in a down jacket and drinking hot chocolate next to a roaring fire.

My favourite Christmas memory is … Tivoli, an amusement park in central Copenhagen. There’s often a feeling of nostalgia around Christmas – of harking back to more simple times with families and old friends. Tivoli also reminds me of Lai Yuen [the old amusement park] we had in Hong Kong. It’s like being on the set of one of Tim Burton’s movies.

My top holiday fashion/travel tip is … to travel light and to switch off our cellphones whenever we can. I know it is hard as we’ve all become so dependent on our devices. But not receiving constant notifications allows us to enjoy every second of our surroundings.

My New Year’s resolution for 2018 is …just continue doing what I’m doing now. I’m pretty content with everything that has happened to me in 2017. I’ve realised that life isn’t about perfection – it’s about owning your strengths, having an open mind and being present. Do what you can when you can.