Eve breaks new ground

The latest collection, presented by Eve Group, displays a modern twist to an ancient clothing style. [Photo/China Daily]

A pioneer in China's luxury menswear market, Xia has received numerous requests from her girlfriends to make clothes.

Six years ago, Xia made a trip to the mountains in Southwest China's Guizhou province and found the Miao craftswomen, who amazed her with their beautiful embroidery.

"They don't speak Mandarin, they can't even write their own names, but their creativity shocked me. The modern designers have to sketch on the computer, but these people have it all in their brain," Xia says. "I decided to bring them to the outside world. But it was like a running race with modernization."

Many of these craftswomen had to abandon their skills as their hometowns are overtaken by tourism. Xia purchased their work at high prices and built a museum in the area to exhibit their art. She brought Eve's designers into the mountains to work with them. Now Eve collaborates with more than 1,000 Miao embroiderers.

Xia took their work to exhibitions and runway shows in Milan, London and Paris, where they received overwhelming acclaim.

Eve Group has a number of brands. Prices range from more than 10,000 yuan ($1,600) to several hundred. It offers a made-to-measure service to about 1 million VIP customers, many of them business leaders like Xia herself. It has more than 500 stores nationwide.

The well-connected Xia brings thousands of her fellow businessmen and women into the mountains to retreat and see exhibitions. Many of them later joined Xia on her mission to rescue and revive the traditional craftsmanship.