Chen Yixin fulfils dream of launching own fashion label following very 'surface-level' online comments about her

She's a model, actress and now a fashion label owner too.

Local actress Chen Yixin just launched her own clothing brand Beike last month, and AsiaOne spoke to her to find out more.

"It was a personal move on my end to build this brand," the 24-year-old told us, as she felt "too much of [her] self-worth" hinged on her social media persona. 

"Comments I received were just about my appearance, basically very surface-level things… I wanted to put myself out there in ways where I could feel more proud of myself."

Though a bulk of her savings were used up to push through with Beike, Yixin said she feels fulfilled and accomplished for achieving her dream of starting her own brand.

She revealed that she spent a five-figure sum, a sole investment on her end.

"I did have assistance from my manager Cally who gave me my income earlier," she laughed, adding that she also considers her parents, veteran actors Edmund Chen and Xiang Yun "shareholders", as their ang baos contributed to her business.

The brand name is inspired by the Chinese word for seashells, but she wanted it to take on another meaning too.

"It's pronounced as 'bake' in English, like 'bake under the sun.' The whole story behind it was actually inspired by the fact that I really liked being under the sun," she said.

Adding that she loves going to the beach, Yixin said that the difficulty of finding cute swimwear that provides padding while flattering the Asian body type was what piqued her interest in making her own pieces.

Beike's swimwear line is scheduled to launch in June and, for now, the brand has beachwear-like tube tops, shirts and bottoms for sale.

We noticed that all the pieces are Peranakan-inspired and white in colour, and Yixin explained why: "I started off with just white because I wanted to focus more on the intricacies of the lace... I do have plans on making more colourful drops in the future.

"My grandmother is Peranakan, so I grew up with a lot of such details around the house. That's why I felt more inclined to take inspiration from the Peranakan side of history."

'A learning process'

Earlier this month, Beike announced that there was a delay in shipping out the first batch of orders, and Yixin shared with us what happened.

"The delivery service mixed up my orders with someone else's and they left everything at the warehouse, so it delayed the entire delivery process," she recalled.

"It really gave me a new perspective on online shopping and a deeper understanding towards sellers online. Having to answer to people and take accountability was a new learning process."

Despite the hiccup "dampening the mood", Yixin said she kept telling herself: "Now that I've learned, it will never happen again."

She shared that her friends and family also lent their support and helped her pack the orders.

"When the stocks arrived, my dad was checking them for me and my mum kept promoting my brand to her friends," she said, adding that Xiang Yun and Cally even snagged pieces from her first launch.

'If not now, when?'

While Edmund and Xiang Yun were supportive, Yixin said that they also gave her realistic advice.

"They did warn me that there will be some setbacks and to manage my expectations. They said that clothing lines are not easy to run, but neither is any business, and that the first few years are going to be the hardest," she recalled.

"I definitely took that advice and developed my own mindset."

What does Yixin want to say to other young adults wanting to go down the same path?

"Just do it. If not now, when? If you don't do it now, then when is it gonna happen? I've been dreaming about building my own brand for the past five years and I finally bit the bullet and just did it," she said.

"There have been no regrets. Like, there's always going to be what ifs but if it's not now, then when would it be?"

[[nid:684986]]

syarifahsn@asiaone.com

No part of this article can be reproduced without permission from AsiaOne.