Enchi Shen: Bringing Made-in-Taiwan Fashion to the World

Let’s turn back the clock to April of 2015. We are at the tenth Asia Model Festival, held in Korea, which is Asia’s biggest fashion event. Brand-name companies, top designers, and fashion media from around the world are gathered in Seoul’s Olympic Hall to focus on new work by cutting-edge creators. 7crash is the first Taiwanese fashion brand to be invited to the spectacle in a decade.

On the Korean fashion runway, 7crash insists on a style that is full of Taiwanese character.

“Taiwan Vogue” a hit in Seoul

The theme of the 7crash show is “Taipei City Runway.” The background music is Taiwanese-language rap, and images of Taipei’s most famous tourist attractions are being shown on a giant backdrop screen. This is a brand that confidently and proudly declares: We are from Taiwan!

This fresh and novel “Taiwan Vogue” draws enthusiastic applause. Designer Enchi Shen says, “Our team feels really encouraged and gratified, and we’re proud to call ourselves ‘Taiwanese designers.’ I hope in the future we can pro-actively take the Taiwan sensibility all over the globe.”

Famed shoe designer Jimmy Choo, official shoemaker to the late Princess Diana, stands backstage at the event with Shen and talks extensively with her about his experience in brand management. He has high praise for Shen’s work, saying it really stands out from the crowd.

Fast forward to October 2015, and 7crash is again representing Taiwan in an international fashion event. It is Vancouver Fashion Week, where new lines for spring/summer 2016 are being previewed. Looking back, Shen relates that 7crash didn’t have a complete line of accessories to go with their outfits, so for the three fashion festivals (Vancouver, Seoul, and New York) a lot of other Taiwanese brands stepped up to offer help and support. “For example, we got accessories designed by Aimee Sun, sunglasses from the model Chang Chia-yu, shoes from Miss Sofi…. We wanted to try a different approach to draw the attention of the international media and buyers to our ‘design from Taiwan.’”

Enchi Shen is seeking the perfect balance between making a splash on the catwalk and producing individual products that will meet market demand.

A fashion dream

Shen does not allow herself to wallow in the afterglow of the international limelight for too long. As soon as she returns to Taiwan after an event, she immediately throws herself back into the business side of her business. “I know that going to one or two international fashion shows might not be of much help in immediately boosting sales figures, but it’s essential to be there from the point of view of image and brand management. I consider these to be opportunities for marketing,” says Shen, explicitly vocalizing her two key foci: “brand management” and “sales figures.” This mindset is something she arrived at after her brand, which she created herself, went through repeated setbacks.

This whole story goes back, at its very beginning, to Shen’s “fashion dream.”

“When I took the national university entrance exams, I listed Shih Chien University’s fashion design department as my top preference, and Fu Jen Catholic University’s program in textiles and clothing as the second, but my score wasn’t high enough to get into either. So I ended up studying English.” Shen has been passionate about clothing since early childhood. In middle school she started to buy a lot of clothes and then, because she never wanted to find herself wearing the same outfit as someone else, she would tailor them herself. Transforming her new clothes into something unique also allowed her to make things by hand, something she takes great pleasure in doing.

Shen laughs as she says that despite not getting into her ideal university programs, she never gave up on her fashion dream. In her spare time she operated an online clothing store. She featured all kinds of products that she picked up at wholesale markets, as well as accessories and hairbands that she designed and made herself. Applying herself with naive enthusiasm, she never earned much money, but she was very happy.

After graduating from college, Shen went to work in the marketing department of a modeling agency. She came to understand all elements in the production chain of the fashion industry, up-, mid- and downstream. She worked during the day, and at night took non-degree classes in fashion design at Shih Chien University.

Then in 2011, persuaded by friends, she signed up for the “Taipei IN Style” autumn/winter fashion event. Her designs showed outstanding creativity, and she was named “most promising new designer of the year.” Motivated by this positive feedback, she began to think that she should devise a concrete plan to put her dream into practice. “My dream at that point can be stated very simply. I just wanted to see my creations on the runway. I wanted to become a designer.” Still only 24 years old, she founded her own company and created her own brand, 7crash.

Enchi Shen is seeking the perfect balance between making a splash on the catwalk and producing individual products that will meet market demand.

The pitfalls of starting a business

She turned her own small room into a workshop, cutting cloth on the floor because she didn’t have a proper surface to work on. She did everything herself, from design to cutting to sewing. She kept going this way for over a year, despite having no capital of her own and no investors, until she finally decided that there were still too many areas in which she didn’t have enough expertise. In 2013 she put the company on hold and went to study at the New Academy of Fine Arts in Milan. To most people, going abroad to study would be a reason for excitement, but she remembers it as an act of desperation.

“In fact the only reason I went to study abroad was that I didn’t have any capital for the brand and there was no way I could keep the company going. I knew that if I gave up on having my own company, I would need to get a qualification if I wanted to find a job in the fashion industry. I was pretty conflicted back then.” But her time abroad proved very fruitful. She found a lot of creative inspiration and learned about new models of brand management. Having had her eyes opened, she decided she would return to Taiwan and “hang in there” with 7crash for a while longer. Then even if she failed, at least she would know that she had done everything she could have done.

Fortunately, after returning to Taiwan she found a partner to invest in the business, and with that capital she was able to hire a team of marketing professionals.

At first, based on cost considerations, they moved the production line to Guangzhou in mainland China, where they went smoothly into mass production. Shen was especially thrilled by the sight of the first order they received, and she assumed that the foundations were in place for her brand to succeed. But, incredibly, the first shipment of completed garments simply disappeared, through manipulation and deception by the shipping company. For Shen, this was a wake-up call. Just as her commercial and creative dream had seemed to be taking off, they suffered a loss in the millions of NT dollars.

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Enchi Shen has personally participated in each and every stage of her brand’s development.

Getting up again and again

She and her partner then rethought their whole plan. The question they asked themselves was: Wouldn’t it be better to create a stable foundation and operating model in a familiar environment, and first find a clear identity and creative spirit for their brand? It’s not that they would give up the idea of taking the brand into the international market, it was just a matter of putting that step off until later. So they decided to bring production back to Taiwan, set down a stable base, and then relaunch.

“When I first came back to Taiwan I was really depressed. I didn’t know how we were going to define the brand, I couldn’t find pattern makers, and I didn’t know how to communicate well with senior tailors…. The only thing I could do was to redouble my efforts and learn about each link in the process. Sadly, there weren’t any brands from Taiwan that I could study to see how they had succeeded, so inevitably I felt lost, out on an island by myself.” Having endured this rite of passage, Shen is now able to handle even back-end activities like sales, marketing, and advertising, all by herself. She says that if you want to create a business or establish a brand, you have to keep falling down and then getting back up, again and again and again.

Today, the 7crash “Silver” designer series maintains the Made-in-Taiwan spirit, and it is this series that has been Shen’s ticket to international runways. The pieces are made entirely by hand, and sold only in limited quantities. The refined craftsmanship and visually powerful printed materials, cut to fit Asian physiques, demonstrate the capabilities of Taiwan’s textile sector. Although the glory days of the past are no more, Shen persists in endeavoring to create opportunities for the industry.

7crash, available over the Internet, has been selling in Europe, and will open its first bricks-and-mortar store in Shanghai in 2016. Enchi Shen, following her own path, has broken through the pre-existing framework for innovation, making the “crash” in the brand name especially apt. Having found “the one thing” about which she feels passionate, this young woman from Taiwan, through her own drive, is carrying the “Made in Taiwan” brand to the world. 

World-famous shoe designer Jimmy Choo, who is himself of Chinese ancestry, made a special point of telling Shen: “It’s the worldwide trend for women to take a leading role, so I hope you will continue to keep pushing forward.”

Shen founded her brand 7crash in 2011. Her products are made in only limited quantities, and each is individually numbered, making her customers feel special. (photo by Chin Hung-hao)

Shen founded her brand 7crash in 2011. Her products are made in only limited quantities, and each is individually numbered, making her customers feel special. (photos this page by Chin Hung-hao)

7crash designs use colorful 3D printed fabrics, the tailoring is skilful, the lines are clean and simple, and full use is made of the texture of the fabrics and of bold designs.