Inside Pedder Arcade, Hong Kong’s new luxury destination, modelled on London’s Burlington Arcade shopping hotspot and grounded by New York-famous home-grown menswear boutique The Armoury

Nov 16 , 2023

Inside Hong Kong’s new luxury lifestyle destination, Pedder Arcade inside the historic Pedder Building in Central. Photography: Edward Chan Tsz Fung

Pedder Building’s new 5th-floor lifestyle space houses auctioneers Phillips’ second-hand watch outpost, cafe JK on Fifth, Nigel Cabourn and Drumohr stores, and The Armoury Study, a collaboration with Davidoff

Co-founders Mark Cho and Alan See were inspired by Hong Kong tailors W.W. Chan when founding The Armoury, which now also boasts a store in Landmark Central and two addresses in New York

With the streetwear trend and work from home shift showing no sign of quitting, many men in Hong Kong have followed suit – or not, as the case may be – by swapping jackets and ties for more casual attire. Mark Cho and Alan See, however, are arguably the city’s most dapper holdouts.

The founders of menswear purveyor The Armoury have invited me for a sneak peek at their latest project, the newly opened Pedder Arcade on the street of the same name in Central. With construction in its final stages at the time of my visit though, I was warned they would be dressed down for the occasion. Still the two 40-year-olds look as though they’ve stepped off the pages of Esquire magazine: See is wearing a three-piece custom-tailored suit while Cho sports a silk safari jacket, tailored trousers and a modern flat cap.

Pedder Arcade is on the fifth floor of Pedder Building. Photo: Akita Daisuke

The duo has practised what they preach since they founded The Armoury in 2010. Pedder Arcade includes the store’s third Hong Kong outpost and they remain steadfast in their mission to bring a curated selection of covetable men’s products to the city from style hotspots such as Naples, Tokyo and London. The Armoury also has two boutiques in New York, similarly venues for celebrating artistry in menswear.

Mark Cho, co-founder of The Armoury and Pedder Arcade. Photography: Akita Daisuke

Based on a similar concept to London’s Burlington Arcade – albeit on a smaller scale – the 6,000 sq ft space will house five pop-ups curated by Cho. These include auction house Phillips’ second-hand watch outpost, military-inspired casual wear by cult brand Nigel Cabourn, knitwear by Italian brand Drumohr and Atelier Pedder, a fabric shop to accommodate visiting tailors. There is also a cafe called JK on Fifth run by the founders of Hong Kong’s iconic Jimmy’s Kitchen, and The Armoury Study, a co-working space and cigar lounge created in collaboration with Davidoff.

“Everything is connected by what I call the ‘Armoury style’ – slow brands with a focus on the classic, and items that are detail-oriented while celebrating craftsmanship,” explains Cho.

JK on 5 at Pedder Arcade. Photo: Edward Chan Tsz-fung