Brand Excellence Award: Delicron

Dr Edward Lam, CEO of menswear specialists Delicron, has spent almost his entire life involved in the fashion industry and seen many changes in that time. So when he says in today’s market the quality of a brand can make the difference between success or failure, he is speaking from a deep well of experience.

“The products themselves are easy to copy, so the brand is what we’re selling. The brand represents the whole company and we’re very focussed on, and concerned about, the reputation of our brand.”

The efforts Delicron has made in this regard have been recognised by a nomination for the Brand Excellence Award at the 2015 Enterprising Hong Kong Awards.

“We are a family business that started in 1952 with a small factory owned by my father,” Lam explained. “There were no staff, only my father, my mother, my two sisters and me working in the company - and we [the children] were only six or seven years old at the time.”

Up to a decade ago, Delicron sold wholesale to stores. Then came a radical change in the company’s business model, with a switch from wholesale to retail.

According to Lam, this rethink was in response to the demise of famous department store chains, such as Da Da and Yaohan. These stores had been key outlets for the company, with Delicron simply supplying these stores with its products, on the basis that anything unsold would be returned.

“So we didn’t have to employ any sales staff, we didn’t have to pay rent, and we didn’t have to pay for the decor. But we started our retail business because we had to find a new market.”