Gap was essentially the American wardrobe that was well-priced, and it was attractive, and it was happy, and it had great color, and it has jeans, and I think we did the same with Old Navy. And I think we do the same with J.Crew at a much higher level, Madewell at another level.
Customers don't just want to shop: they want to feel that the brand understands them.
I spot detail quickly.
There are too many retailers. There are too many brands. There are too many designers. There are too many discount stores, and the predator online companies are selling discount like crazy.
If you get a pant that fits the woman, as all women know, you get a loyal customer for life.
If you get someone right out of college - and I meet a lot of them - you're not going to get a lot of experience at all, so you have to feel the ambition and desire, which is based on a lot of factors.
I don't buy art. I'd rather buy a beautiful location or a beautiful site than buy art. A beautiful home is like owning a beautiful painting, except you can live in it.
You banter, and you talk, and you get a sense of the speed of thinking and flexibility... It's not terribly scientific, but I interview a dozen or two dozen people a week, and I get a certain vibe reasonably fast.
You have to build a team, but someone's got to lead, and someone's got to be unpopular at times.
I define leadership as: Emotionally, you own your business. You own it with passion. And you either have or you don't have an economic investment. But when you have all three of those, you are the boss from Day One, and you care every single day more than anyone.
You know what ends up on the markdown racks? All the weird colors. Guys don't wear orange or citron.
Apple has beautiful design, beautiful product, incredibly functional. But mostly, it's about picking product, getting behind it, marketing it, and introducing it to a customer. What they've done just inspires me.
I couldn't stand not controlling my own product from how it's manufactured to how it's sold.
Christopher Columbus discovered America in a blue-and-white sailor shirt, and since then, men have been wearing blue and white shirts.
I find, in merchandising and design and creative, a business school degree isn't particularly helpful.
Hong Kong has always been a dynamic and exciting and high-energy city, and it has that New York thing going on, and people here care about how they look.
If you don't care about the lapel or the buttons or the fit, then you are doing a disservice to the consumer. We're all inside the tunnel, speaking the language of business, but we need to speak the language of customers.
I love to work. I have a passion for what I do.
Growing up, I always wanted a bedroom of my own.
We buy and sell goods. We buy low and sell higher - that's what we all do to make a profit. But I consider a merchant someone who has a certain intuition and instinct, and - very important - knows how to run a business, knows the numbers.
