Sir Paul Smith, the fashion industry's wealthiest, enthusiastic art collector and honorary member of the Rock and Roll elite community (Eric Clapton and David Bowie's good friend) - after selling his brand 40% of his market two years ago, And did not retire from the glorious brand I've run for years. This July, his flagship store in Notting Hill, Westbourne House, celebrates its 10th anniversary. The store was designed as an elegant and luxurious apartment, it can be said that Smith's own dream portrayal. He said frankly, so far every time he entered the shop, he would be excited to be shivering. And his good friend ManoloBlahnik specially worked with him on this anniversary to design a range of limited products, including watercolors, hand-painted decorative plates, jewelry and retro radios. Smith, a 60-year-old big boy in his early 60s, did not want to retire. "In fact, I now have no special plans, including retirement, and I do not want to be a tasteless person, but for now, everything is fine, just do it on a step by step basis." Every time I return to my office after work, Smith is always hard to hide Joy of heart. Long live rocking life in London! "I love my wife, I love my job, just to make a trade-off between the two," he said. He was accustomed to getting up at 6:30 in the morning and then went to work, moving around in his messy office next to Covent Garden. In his briefcase lies an electric train, which can carry lone circles of unknowingly "cargo". "I took it out to spend time when I was in a meeting with those important clients, especially when I was in Japan, and I did not understand the birds in the Japanese language." He laughed and proudly Shake your neck. His friends often say he is "crazy". Paul Smith I really like this review. Many of his actions also reflect the correctness of this assessment, for example, he always talked about his so-called "day trip". "I went to the company's office in Delhi and stayed there for only one day, and on the same day I could visit both the Great Wall of China and Vietnam. My favorite 'day trip' was in the morning in Moscow, In St. Petersburg, and at night, I've been in New York.I'm a busy man - I have to travel in a less sophisticated way. "In his office there is a brown plush monkey, which Paul Smith calls" office manager. " And despite her age, every time the designer walks into the sample room, she always feels delighted as a kid breaking into a candy store. His employees often smile and watch him do these things - apparently Paul Smith still likes his job. Journey to Japan Behind the naughty personality, Smith is actually a smart businessman. So far, he has served as chief brand officer, president and design director. Since its founding in 1970, the brand has opened its stores in 35 countries around the world and has generated more than £ 280 million in sales each year, including wholesale, retail and trademark licensing revenues. Interestingly, as a downright British brand, Paul Smith's most important market is in Asia, and especially in Japan - where it is simply being revered as an idol. There are 14 Paul Smith stores in England, and in Japan alone, they have more than 200 stores. In addition to bringing in nearly half of the brand's turnover each year, the country of Japan has long been the voice of Smith. "I was invited to Japan back in 1982, just three years after I opened my second store in London," he said. He is a good racks, especially for wearing his own design - beautiful plaid denim shirt, trousers accompanied by a pair of brown suede shoes, revealing a piece of lilac socks. "At that time ITOCHU Corporation has been very concerned about me - their job is to search for a sign to make money in the local Japanese are very much looking forward to young European designers to their country shop, I, in fact, really want to go to the name of Japan Place to play, so when I was invited, I was really groveling. "The timing for Smith was just right. The era of the Japanese fashion industry in the 1980s was a time when the new attitude of the younger generation and the rapid economic development brought countless opportunities to European young designers like him. "At that time, a large number of large-scale designers received invitations to go to Japan, but most of them did not respect Japan and regarded the country as a money-making machine. I was just the opposite of them It was an amazing opportunity for me to join my wife, Pauline, who was in Osaka for a meeting with Itochu's people. "Paul was amazed at what he saw and heard in Japan. "It was very frustrating to meet for the first time, there were only three employees in that company who had never opened a shop or had any experience in running a store, did not advertise and did not know how to work with magazines - all in the European fashion industry They do not understand everything that matters - they have never done socks or shirts - they're all traditional tailors, and the company specializes in the clothes that older men wear and the style is simple. "However, for Smith Japan is really a very attractive opportunity. It is also from this moment on that he began a close relationship with this country "for everlasting life." "I was very young and very eager at that moment and I went to the factory several times a year because I think it was the key to success and I also designed the product specifically for the Japanese market.I started with a blow - too many do not know Things to learn, but for them too, they need to tutored their knowledge about the modern fashion market and also need to know more about me - at this point we are common, I do not speak Japanese, but I'm good at communicating. It's always energetic and full of vigor, which helped break the barriers. "That's true. He inherited this gift from his father - wild gestures, distinctive facial expressions, showing a keen sense of humor. You can hardly refuse his attraction. "The Japanese have always had a passion for British culture from the past to the present and they have a very close relationship with British music and they know I know people like David Bowie and David Hockney ... So when they met me or bought PaulSmith's products , It felt as if they had some sort of connection with me throughout Europe. "Getting Around the World Paul Smith opened Japan's first store in Tokyo in 1984." The agency lost money for the first three years , "He said." But for them, it does not matter. Japanese business relationship with Europeans completely different. They care more than just money - and of course it matters. They are willing to establish a long-term business relationship that gives you time to understand the entire market. As long as you prove that you know what you are doing, they trust you and support your opinion. In the fourth and fifth years, Paul Smith started making money. "Neither Paul Smith nor Itochu did not look back and Paul Smith increased his turnover in Japan by 10% from 2004 to 2005. In 2006, Itochu acquired 40% of his brand equity, including his wife and his An important stake in the hands of directors. Sir Paul Paul retained 60% of the assets, but this description seems a bit pale - he painstakingly the entire system has been a rift in the past 15 years, almost all the famous luxury goods Brands come here, seeking huge amounts of money for cooperation, failing one by one, however, Smith finally fell. "Obviously, we can effortlessly open 25 stores, but we have noticed such a lesson as JilSander. "(JilSander was acquired by Prada and was twice forced to divest itself from its brand, including a recent resale.)" I've been to Japan nearly a hundred times, "he said." I have my own office there and it's completely Independent of the agency, this means that Paul Smith has complete ownership of his goal. We have always dominated the brand image, is responsible for determining the location of the new store, control the shooting of the ad. This approach is unique. "After Japan, Paul Smith entered another South Korea and Singapore." We have 16 stores in South Korea worth millions. In Singapore, we have two specialty stores, two in Bangkok, and we have counters in Hong Kong. "He said.Every PaulSmith store style is unique.Losangeles flagship store is a bright pink modernist buildings, Osaka's" quiet paradise shop "where the building was built in 1956, the predecessor is a shrine shop, and In New York, "When the store opened 16 years ago, so many Britons living in the United States came asking us not to sell Mars Bar, a famous chocolate bar made by Mars since 1932, We are unable to do this because of the regulations on the health and safety of local foodstuffs. "