Day 6, April 3

Today began very early with an 8:00am flight from Shanghai to Hong Kong on Hong Kong airlines.We needed to be on the bus by 5:00am sharp because we have learned that traffic in Shanghai is very unpredictable. Although we were very tired from traveling, when we arrived in Hong Kong we were very excited. A few things we noticed right away being that it is a Special Administrative Region where, being a former British colony, they drive on the opposite side of the road. We were also astonished by the beauty of the city being on the harbor and the view from our hotel.

After arriving at the hotel, we had a half an hour to get ready and head to  Li & Fung headquarters.

At Li & Fung Headquarters we learned about the retailing portion of the company. The different sectors include Convenience Retail Asia Limited, Trinity Limited, Toys Holding Limited.

Trinity is a leading luxury menswear player in greater China. Some of brands they have include Gieves and Hawkes and Cerruti 1888. Menswear is becoming more popular in today’s fashion industry. The three main goals of Trinity are quality, authenticity, and service which are also key points to good retail. 

Circle K and Saint Honore are convenient stores in Asia that are part of Li & Fung limited. We got to visit both of these places that were nearby the headquarters. A popular baked good at Saint Honore Cake shop is the rocky bun. Yum!

After visiting Circle K and the cake shop, we got to hear from the Kohl’s Apparel Group about the production cycle, quality control, and testing.  We found that Li and Fung is extremely thorough in their quality control process.  For example, we got a chance to test our skills on finding defects in various clothing items.

The last part of our time at Li & Fung headquarters we got a tour of the showrooms. The showrooms include home décor, jewelry, apparel, toys, and many more. We even got to see actual buyers and consumers negotiating product supply in the showroom which was also set up as a conference room. This trip overall included aspects of business, retail, and design which was important to see how these three majors interacted with each other.  For example, today related directly to an operations and technology management class taken by many of the students as well as technical design.

We could not thank Kohl’s and Li&Fung enough for all of the opportunities for educational and personal development they have allowed for us through the retailing center.  This trip will truly never be forgotten.