Tasha Liu

Tasha Liu is providing exposure for young Asian independent designers with her showcasing platform Labelhood under Shanghai Fashion Week.

Liu has been supporting independent designers for a decade. In 2009, she co-founded Dongliang, a multi-brand concept store in Shanghai, which quickly became a platform for younger independent designers with no access to sales channels to showcase their works. In 2013, Dongliang joined the “Design by Shanghai” programme hosted by Shanghai Fashion Week in cooperation with the British Fashion Council , to gain exposure for local talent abroad.

The objective of the concept store was to promote Chinese up-and-coming talents, and eventually Dongliang started participating in Shanghai Fashion Week, where it had a dedicated day managing the exhibitions and shows. Liu saw the interest and the market gap in this opportunity — and Labelhood was born.

Labelhood is an independent showcasing platform that supports emerging Chinese designers by exposing them to international markets. Seen as a talent incubator, in just four seasons Liu’s company became the epicentre of Shanghai Fashion Week, growing from a showcase of 12 unknown brands in a warehouse to a four-day event in a design hall adjacent to Shanghai’s luxury Xintiandi shopping mall.

“Everyone loves Labelhood, it’s like a family reunion every season,” said emerging Chinese fashion designer Angel Chen , in an interview to Jing Daily .