Maria Luisa’s first boutique outside Paris opened in September 2004 at Shop 211, The Lee Gardens, Causeway Bay. Maria Luisa Hong Kong is operated and owned by Sidefame Limited, whilst Maria Luisa herself is responsible for selecting the designers as well as the buying for the store in Hong Kong. Maria Luisa explains: “We have always considered Asia as a modern and very dynamic market and we were looking forward to doing some business there and as luck would have it, we met Masaaki and Izumi Ogino whom we share a very friendly relationship. They offered us the opportunity to enter this business venture and make our dreams a reality.”

Masaaki Ogino is the founder of Sidefame Limited, the retail subsidiary of Fenix Group Holdings Limited. Founded in 1987, Sidefame also operates and represents other brands in the region such as Anteprima and Atsuro Tayama. Fenix Group Holdings Limited was established by Mr Ogino in 1972 and operates 33 companies and manufacturing plants worldwide including Fenix HK Ltd, one of the largest knitwear marketer/manufacturers in the region and CitySuper Ltd, an upscale chain of lifestyle megastores.

Considered by many as the Queen of high fashion and luxury retailing in Paris, Maria Luisa Poumaillou is an icon on the Parisian retail scene and a name on many fashionistas’ vocabulary since the opening of her first boutique back in 1988 on the Rue Cambon. Maria Luisa has an exacting vision in fashion and has, through her stores and selection of labels, created a very personal style that has been adopted by a worldwide clientele who is always in search of individuality, not trends. “I have never been interested in trends. Whenever I see too many people wearing the same dress or carrying the same bag, I immediately stop wanting it no matter how beautiful.” Such a personal philosophy has kept Maria Luisa at the top of her game. “I am very excited and proud to open a store in Hong Kong where women are beautiful and modern,” Maria Luisa says. “I am confident that my approach to fashion will be understood here. My goal is to bring Hong Kong women a stylish selection of some of the most beautiful pieces of the season signed by talented and exclusive designers.”

The 1500 sq ft boutique is located on the 2nd floor of the Lee Gardens and carries high fashion labels like Ann Demeulemeester, Azzedine Alaia, Martin Margiela, Givenchy, along latest discoveries such as Christopher Kane, Marios Schwab… Maria Luisa’s choice of labels and designers for her store in Hong Kong is based on “the strong identity of the collection, great style and top quality.” For her, following trends is not that important, but being special, modern, individual and timeless is.

Maria Luisa had a very clear vision of what she wanted to bring in and sell in her store in Hong Kong. She explains: “To Hong Kong, I wanted to bring that special Parisian flavour. Paris was all the time in my mind while I was choosing for the Hong Kong boutique. Our customer is a very cosmopolitan one, who loves our store for its strong Parisian attitude. Hong Kong is an international city and through the years we have had many customers coming in search of this. I believe in being true to myself and I can only sell things that I really love.”