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.