News

Richemont group shares knowledge with ITC students

Dr Chloe Ki, Assistant Professor of ITC, coordinated a sharing session called Virtual Fashion Expert Sharing with the Chloé Marketing & Communication Team from the Richemont Group, a Swiss luxury goods holding company. Ms Yijia Dai, Assistant Communications Manager of Chloé, shared “How to communicate to the luxury customers in the post-pandemic era”. The session gave our ITC students the opportunity to learn about the latest luxury fashion marketing communication strategies that are important to future retail elites in the post-pandemic era.  

Dr Di Fan and Dr Chris Lo receive prestigious 2020 Jack Meredith Best Paper Award

Dr Di Fan and Dr Chris Lo are the recipients of the 2020 Jack Meredith Best Paper Award, which is awarded by the Journal of Operations Management (JOM), a flagship journal in operations management. The editor-in-chief of JOM first submits the list of nominees. Then all of the departmental editors, who are world-renowned scholars from top business schools, vote for the award recipients. The findings of their study, Deviations from aspirational target levels and environmental and safety performance: Implications for operations managers acting irresponsibly, are featured in international media outlets, including the Guardian (International Edition), Sydney Morning Herald, The Age (Melbourne), and Yahoo! UK & Ireland. The article was a Wiley top downloaded paper (2018-2019) and a featured article in JOM. Deviations from aspirational target levels and environmental and safety performance: Implications for operations managers acting irresponsibly examines how financial performance affects corporate social responsibility and explores how human aspirations play a role in this relationship. It is found that anxieties lead poor performing firms to cut corners in employee safety and environmental protection, whereas hubris leads profitable corporate giants to ignore using resources to abide with laws. The findings imply that both underperforming and overperforming firms tend to tolerate unethical behaviours, while firms closer to the norm behave better.  Drs Lo and Fan explain, “Our research aims to advance understanding of the underlying reasons of corporate irresponsibility. Since human emotions are behind such behaviours, we call for more scientific research on the corporate business decision making process to inhibit these cognitive biases. Regulators, creditors and investors can play a key role in promoting sustainable practices, with extra attention on both ends. Sustainability is the most critical issue for today’s fashion industry. All in all, we are very grateful for this opportunity to feature ITC research work beyond the fashion industry and being recognized in the global business and management research communities.”  The Journal of Operations Management is the most prestigious journal in the field of operations management. It is listed among the 24 leading journals of the UT Dallas’ Naveen Jindal School of Management database and the 50 journals used in The Financial Times research rank. It is also ranked top on the Australian ABDC journal quality list (A*), the UK ABS journal list (4*), and Chinese Academy of Sciences JCR ranking (Q1). Read more about the work of Drs Lo and Fan in the Journal of Operations Management: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/joom.1032 Wiengarten, F, Fan, D*, Pagell, M, Lo, CKY. Deviations from aspirational target levels and environmental and safety performance: Implications for operations managers acting irresponsibly. J Oper Manag. 2019; 65: 490– 516.

ITC hosts online seminar on WealthTech

Ever wondered about the promises and pitfalls of online solutions that aim to enhance your wealth-management process? Over 130 individuals which included ITC research and MA students and alumni members were interested in this topic and participated in an ITC organised online seminar on WealthTech (WT) to understand its impact on consumer welfare and the financial markets. Prof. Haitian Lu, Director of the Chinese Mainland Affairs Office and Professor of Law and Finance of the Faculty of Business, PolyU, presented his latest research on WT in “The Promises and Pitfalls of WealthTech: Evidence from Online Marketplace Lending” on 17 October. For decades, the wealth management industry has retained its status quo, charging high fees to provide advice to a small group of high-net-worth clients. The rise of WT, or use of digital solutions, has changed this landscape. WT promises to "democratize financial services" by serving the underserved market segments with affordable, accessible, instant, and seamless wealth management services. Critics, on the other hand, argue that people design, model and market WT algorithms, so it would be naïve to assume that all WTs are well-designed with competency and integrity.

Visit of school principals

A group of school principals, career mistress and panel heads visited ITC on 6 November 2020 to understand our BA programme and learning facilities.

Yishu Yan wins Silver Prize at 2020 YINGER PRIZE

Congratulations to ITC PhD student Yishu Yan. Yishu, who is studying under the supervision of Prof. Kinor Jiang and Dr Jinyun Zhou, won Silver Prize at the 2020 YINGER PRIZE Global Womenswear Emerging Talent Contest. The contest attracted the participation of more than 600 designers from many different countries, including France, Britain, Italy, Belgium, Lebanon, Japan, South Korea, and China. On 28 October 2020, 30 finalists from the graduate and the individual categories showcased their works and competed for the Gold, Silver and Bronze Prizes at the Shenzhen World Exhibition and Convention Centre in China. Yishu’s collection reflects her PhD research on the creation of a new form of fashion knitwear that combines stretchable 3D fabrics and adaptable forms through digital knitting. Yishu’s design research integrates technical study and creative practices. No cutting is used in the production process and the inclusive design demonstrates sustainability from a new perspective, which also accords with the theme of this competition. The contest was organized by the China Fashion Association, Shenzhen Garment Industry Association and Yinger Fashion Group. It was the kick-off event for 2020 Fashion Shenzhen. The panel of judges consisted of renowned academics and designers, including: Li Dangqi, Former Chairman of the China Fashion Designers Association and Professor of Tsinghua University; Wu Hong, Chairman of the Costume Art Committee of the China Artists Association and Professor of Shenzhen University; Wang Yutao, renowned Chinese fashion designer; Xu Lifeng, international fashion blogger and producer; LIEN, Chief Editor of LADYMAX; Cheng Chen, Director of the Womenswear Department of JD Group; Leng Yun, fashion business consultant; Yan Weixin, Director of The Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art and Urban Planning; Serge Carreira, Head of Emerging Brands Initiative of the French Haute Couture and Fashion Federation; Roger Tredre, Course Leader of Fashion Communication at Central Saint Martins University of the Arts London; and Ennio Capasa, renowned Italian fashion designer.

Visit of The Hong Kong General Chamber of Textiles (香港紡織商會)

The chairman of The Hong Kong General Chamber of Textiles (香港紡織商會), Dr Raymond Chu, visited ITC on 16 October 2020, with his broad members Mr Janson Chu, Ms Connie Chan and members Ms Vicky Sung, Ms CM Leung and Ms SM Kwan. The delegation received a warm welcome from Prof. Jintu Fan, Head and Chair Professor of ITC, Dr Tracy Mok, Associate Head of ITC and other colleagues.

PolyU has most impressive academic footprint among 1000 textile schools worldwide

Over the years, ITC has achieved remarkable results in research and development. However, to gain a better sense of the contributions and achievements of ITC in textiles and clothing related academic work, ITC conducted an evaluation this year to gauge our progress. The study benchmarked textile schools (viz. institutions with a textile discipline) worldwide in terms of textile-related research publications. The related paper, “A comparative analysis of textile schools by journal publications listed in Web of ScienceTM” by Prof. Wei Chen and his textile school ranking task force, has been recently published by The Journal of The Textile Institute. Using the Web of ScienceTM, a total of 124,362 research publications from 2014 to 2019 were identified to be textile-related. Out of more than 1000 textile schools worldwide, 31 schools in 18 countries or territories were identified to be among the top 100 institutions that have published fiber or textile-related studies listed in the Web of ScienceTM. These 31 textile schools are ranked in terms of their productivity and the citation impact of their publications. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) ranks at the top in terms of the Hirsch index or the h-index. PolyU ranks No. 2 in terms of average number of citations per paper and average number of citations per staff member. PolyU also ranks No. 3 in terms of total number of publications. The results testify to the academic excellence of PolyU as a world leader in fashion and textiles. Ziqi Li , Hosana Poon , Wei Chen & Jintu Fan (2020): A comparative analysis of textile schools by journal publications listed in Web of ScienceTM ,The Journal of The Textile Institute, DOI: 10.1080/00405000.2020.1824434

Postgraduate programmes attract high calibre international students

Every year, the taught postgraduate programmes at ITC attract applicants from all parts of the world. These applicants have a diversity of personal and educational backgrounds. Despite COVID-19, the number of non-local applications to our two MA programmes has been impressive this year, with 86% of the Fashion and Textile Design and 66% of the Fashion and Textiles applicants from outside of Hong Kong. Not everyone would choose to pursue a Master’s or Ph.D. degree after graduation from their undergraduate degree as the endeavor would require years of dedication and effort. Wang Xinyu, Claire, a first year MA student in Fashion and Textiles who graduated from Colorado State University in the U.S., shares why she has chosen to undertake a Master’s degree at ITC: "I wanted to acquire an in-depth understanding of the fashion industry. ITC is a well-known fashion institute across the world, not only in Asia, but also in the U.S." Claire chose to study in Hong Kong rather than enroll in her undergraduate university in the U.S. because of the difference between the Asian and North American fashion industries while the pandemic is in full force: "The fashion industry in the U.S. is going through a rough time, so switching to a different environment is perhaps a good beginning for my new journey. I plan to pursue my PhD study at ITC after my Master’s degree." Na Yangyumeng, who graduated from the Oregon State University in the U.S., faced many challenges when she decided to enroll in Fashion and Textiles in the MA programme due to travel restrictions: "I was coping with many challenges, but then another challenge laid ahead. I found out that I could not fly to Hong Kong for my classes as I am in Yunnan in Mainland China." She was also concerned about adapting to the differences in teaching style and method online. Even though Yumeng cannot be in the same physical space as her professors at the moment, she emphasizes that the professors at ITC are very welcoming and experienced as they attach great importance to cultivating the critical thinking process of students despite being restricted to online classes. She hopes to develop networks in Hong Kong during her study for her future career. Xie Weilu, a first year student in Fashion and Textile Design in the MA programme, graduated from the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, and is from Guangzhou, China. She hopes to enhance her  design skills, which motivated her to enroll in the MA programme even though it has been a few years since she received her undergraduate degree. Weilu said, "I am aspiring to broaden my horizons, have greater achievements and contribute to my future career. Thus, I left my job to chase my ambitions, despite that it is hard for me to return to university life." Life is full of uncertainty and challenges, and these unprecedented times have not prevented our students from pursuing their dreams despite the challenges, as many of them are from far away places. Since no one should have regrets, follow your dreams and stay strong to make them come true. We are proud that the reputation of ITC has attracted students from other countries, and ITC welcomes Claire, Yumeng and Weilu among the many new ITC graduate students as they further their studies at our institute.

Sammie Wong recipient of Innovation and Technology Scholarship 2020

Congratulations go to Sammie Wong, a Year 4 BA student who is majoring in Knitwear Design & Technology. She has been recognized as one of the four outstanding students at PolyU who have received the Innovation and Technology Scholarship 2020 jointly sponsored by the Innovation and Technology Commission and HSBC, and organised by The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups (HKFYG). Sammi will receive a scholarship of up to HK$150,000. Sammie Wong has been recognized as one of the four outstanding students at PolyU who have received the Innovation and Technology Scholarship 2020 In total, the scholarship is awarded to twenty-five recipients this year, who are all exceptional undergraduates from different universities in Hong Kong and have diverse backgrounds, including medicine, physiotherapy, mechanical engineering, public health, speech and hearing sciences, and other science-related areas of study. They were selected from a pool of 163 candidates. All of these outstanding awardees underwent a highly competitive selection process, have demonstrated excellence in their academic studies, and are passionate about innovation and technology.  Other PolyU awardees include those who are majoring in radiography, occupational therapy and physiotherapy. The HKFYG requires students to participate in a series of initiatives to enhance their international exposure and further their passion and commitment toward science and technology. Sammie designed an innovative product called “The Stressless Climate Detective Sleeping Bag” which focuses on developing a thermally sensitive fabric for the homeless by using nanotechnology. Apart from receiving the scholarship, Sammie represented PolyU when she participated in the prestigious Future Retail Challenge student competition. The theme this year is to make a retailer relevant again against the challenges of COVID-19 under Project Retail Phoenix. Sammie and her team members worked on a project that focuses on a 3D home printer to create food for a restaurant that is suffering from loss of business during the pandemic. The printer is installed with a camera and a projector so that people can eat and connect with their friends and family while enjoying the food. Sammie had a wonderful experience with her team members on preparing a professional business proposal and making the presentation to four world-renowned retail leaders, including Ms Alexandra Waldman, Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer of Universal Standard; Mr Antonis Kyprianou, General Manager - Franchising of Tendam; Mr Bernie Brookes, Former CEO of Edcon; and Ms Michelle Feeney, Founder of Floral Street. Li & Fung has supported the Future Retail Challenge and mentored the students for over a decade. Sammie is one of these students. She is very appreciative of Li & Fung for sponsoring her and her team members to participate in such a meaningful event. Currently, Sammie is working at GOXIP as a fashion curation intern and has had the opportunity to develop and design more than 250 posters, logos and banners for digital marketing channels.

ITC welcomes new Teaching Fellow

ITC is pleased to welcome Ms Cristina Kountiou, a newly appointed Teaching Fellow in Fashion Business. Ms Kountiou is a fashion catalyst and educator with over 20 years of experience.  Her transition from design to  quality assurance, product development and brand management has provided her with a comprehensive overview of the industry and a focus on sustainability. She has 14 years  of industry experience and 7 years of teaching experience across 3 fashion departments at a creative design institution, where she taught Luxury Fashion Management. This program based in the US was voted No. 1 in BOF. She has always strived to connect the industry and education sector, and believes in bringing fashion education to the forefront with new technology and creative thinking.  She has continued to consult on fashion business development and sustainable practices.  With a passion for sustainable research and development, Ms Kountiou managed sustainable start-up label Puer, developing the branding and design, and marketing the label as well as showcasing it at the Berlin Fashion week and Pure London. Cristina managed design teams for a Hong Kong based design house, developing trend reports and forecasting, design concepts and products for womenswear collections, childrenswear and sportswear. Brands that she has worked for include: DKNY jeans, Esprit, and House of Fraser. She has also conducted design and brand consulting for independent labels.