The Sacai Sensation

Japanese designer Chitose Abe spills the secret of her continual victories in fashion

- Cherry Mui

Sacai’s Chitose Abe visited Hong Kong for the first time in five years last October. The designer is based in Tokyo and has been presenting in Paris since the brand’s inception; her brand is everywhere. But Hong Kong holds a special place in Abe’s heart, as the first market outside Japan to have a standalone Sacai boutique. “I just arrived yesterday. During the pandemic, we heard the market is a bit slow and quiet, so we were expecting that kind of atmosphere,” she says. “But I’ve been walking around and feeling the energy is very, very strong here. I was remembering the moment when I first came to Hong Kong; it’s a really energetic city.”

Visiting the store, which relocated from its original location at On Lan Street to Landmark’s Belowground in late 2022, was certainly on her agenda, but Abe had other plans too. The most exciting and eagerly anticipated was her appearance at Landmark’s BaseHall, where the fruit of a collaboration between the brand and Tokyo restaurant Menchirashi was taking place—with guest appearances by udon dishes from Tokyo restaurant Curry Up and Hong Kong’s own Yardbird. Crowds of Sacai fans as well as udon-loving foodies flocked to the dining destination in the hope of scoring a bowl of limited-edition noodles.