Pivoting to Hong Kong: Sennet Frères returns to the city after 70 years

There's a historical mansion in southern Hong Kong Island named the Old Alberose, and it was home to a merchant by the name of Albert Weill. 150 years ago in Paris, Weill founded Sennet Frères, a seller of luxurious European watches, which he would later bring to Hong Kong, later importing and selling high-end automobiles to the city's most affluent residents.

After Weill's passing in 1922, his wife Rosie took command of the business, turning it into a successful jewellery retailer as well. Under Rosie's leadership, the brand boomed in popularity across Asia, becoming the largest distributor of Patek Philippe and other top luxury brands in the east, with points of sale expanding to Hankou, Shanghai, Beijing, Manila, Singapore and beyond. The company also produced its own luxury timepieces, and you can still find original Sennet Frères enamel table clocks that were given as gifts to the Manchu imperial family at the Palace Museum in Beijing.

World War II would change the brand's fortunes in Hong Kong, and after, Albert and Rosie's children weren't interested in continuing the family business. However, their daughter used the Old Alberose as a secret meeting place for Hong Kong’s pre-war medical director Sir Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke and Japanese interpreter Kiyoshi Watanabe to offer humanitarian aid to prisoners-of-war and others under occupation by sneaking medicine sewed into the lining of Watanabe's coat, saving more than 200 wounded and sick victims.

Much like the Old Alberose, Sennet Frères remains a part of local history, and after a brief 70-year sabbatical, the brand returned home just before Christmas 2020. The new Sennet Frères of Hong Kong isn’t selling watches or automobiles, but rather elegant couture bridal gowns in the heart of Causeway Bay.

Standing four storeys tall above Russell Street, the 9,000-square-foot boutique is a sight to behold. Dresses line the windows, showcasing the masterwork of chief creative and design director Kev Yiu. With the feel more akin to a gallery of wearable art than a store, the location offers three floors of both ready-to-wear design and bespoke tailor-made pieces with opportunities for both rental and purchase. At the top floor, Sennet Frères has built an exhibition hall, featuring stories of the brand’s history and also displaying cultural relics from its past as an importer of the finer things in life.

Beyond all this, the store will also play host to seminars, interactive sessions and even workshops on a variety of topics including wedding photography, wedding makeup, dress selection and how to pick a venue - additionally broadcasting these live through the use of ultra high speed 5G technology. We are, after all, still in a pandemic. And that perhaps raises an important question: with so many weddings and similar gatherings on hold or even cancelled due to the ongoing crisis, why make luxury bridal a priority at all?

The brand tells me that “every crisis creates opportunities,” noting that while gatherings in Hong Kong have reduced in size and frequency, couples out there have also reduced their spending on banquets and venues. Weddings will still go on, and Sennet Frères sees an opportunity for the brides to shift that newly freed budget to having a beautifully handcrafted dress for their special day.

Observing all proper safety measures, Sennet Frères cautiously takes each walk-in customer’s temperature and sanitises their hands, also sanitising each dress following any trial session. The brand is currently creating its first online shop, offering customers from around the world the opportunity to purchase their dream wedding gown, created to match their measurements exactly.

Sennet Frères reaches customers through a number of digital touchpoints, advertising through social media and running wedding showcases with a hand-selected group of vendors from the wedding industry.

The project is the brainchild of singer and songwriter Hins Cheung, chief creative and design director Kev Yiu, business director Jacky Cheng and operations director Katherine Luk, who sought to embrace the beauty of all women while honouring the spirit and craftsmanship of the esteemed Sennet Frères brand. The collections are named for the women of the Weill family: Rosie, Susannah, and Sophie, and each dress is handmade here in Hong Kong, taking an average of 120 hours for a single piece.

At long last, Sennet Frères has come home.

A special thanks to Sennet Frères business director and CEO of Alexander Hera, Jacky Cheng, and operations director Katherine Luk for talking to Marketing for this piece.

 “Pivoting to Hong Kong” is a series created with support from our partners at InvestHK. InvestHK’s vision is to strengthen Hong Kong’s status as the leading international business location in Asia. InvestHK works with overseas and Mainland entrepreneurs, SMEs and multinationals that wish to set up an office – or expand their existing business – in Hong Kong.