Search Issues
Macao’s unique blend of Western and Eastern cultures creates a rich environment that allows locally based enterprises to thrive alongside the international brands seeking to establish a presence here.
In this edition of Macao Image, we meet the driving forces behind two home-grown companies to find out about their businesses, and discover flourishing luxury goods brands. First, we profile a young jewellery brand that is forging a foothold, and then Macao Image meets the makers behind a newly launched line of original beauty products containing ingredients found in Macao.
A bright red, hand-woven bracelet decorated with golden charms is the most recognisable of the products designed by Annabella Jewellery Co. Ltd. As a young jewellery brand in Macao, Annabella Jewellery brings a new look with its products, through a subtle yet stylish use of 3D gold craft and designs. The brand is gradually carving its very own niche in the competitive market for jewellery.
The brand was founded in 2016 and began doing business in a small shop in a high-rise building. It has now expanded to four branches at street level in Macao and in the neighbouring city of Zhuhai, in Mainland China.
Effective advertising and a reputation for trustworthiness have enabled the company to elevate its business practices to meet standards at home and abroad.
Ms Anna Chan, Director of Annabella Jewellery, who founded the company, is proud of what has been achieved so far. “Every piece of jewellery is a loving gift to deliver a message from its sender to its receiver,” Ms Chan told Macao Image. “We are doing our best to create and deliver the best possible options for our customers to have a unique shopping experience with us.”
Products of distinction
There are three elements to Annabella Jewellery: pieces made for infants and older children, pieces made for young people, and pieces made for the mature wearer. The company regularly puts out seasonal collections of new designs.
Ms Chan said designs bearing representations of the animals of the Chinese lunar calendar, constellations and other lucky charms are offered for sale every Lunar New Year. “For special occasions such as Mother’s Day, we always have theme-based designs, while staples such as alphabetic initials are available all year round,” she said. “Once our customers decide on the main piece, they can work around it to personalise the pairing and overall design of the final product according to their preferences, so that every piece of jewellery can become one of a kind.”
The company’s creative pieces are conceived and crafted by a team of professional designers. Ms Chan said every prototype was handcrafted and a mould of it made for mass production of the design. “It takes at least around a month until a certain mould is ready and we are able to proceed with mass production,” she said. “We make sure every detail is in place.”
Annabella Jewellery aims to make products that suit all budgets, so some of the gold jewellery it sells is surprisingly inexpensive. While the more glamorous designs can lighten your pocket by MOP10,000 or more, simpler pieces can cost as little as MOP499.
The brand’s products have drawn the interest of shoppers in Macao and now the company wants to attract customers beyond the city’s borders. “We have been putting a tremendous effort into systematising our product sourcing, our in-house operations and retail platform, as well as upgrading our sales experience at the shops and training professional sales associates,” Ms Chan said. “By aligning and standardising every aspect of our business, we maintain a unified operating model that will allow us to franchise our business in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, or even other places.”
Ms Chan believes preparedness will give her company a better chance of taking any opportunities that crop up. She said laying the foundations correctly today would surely allow her to build a more successful business tomorrow.
Formula for success
Hanmay Co. Ltd. has been selling cosmetics made in South Korea since it first set up shop in Macao. Building on its years of experience of retailing cosmetics, Hanmay decided to launch a line of its own original beauty products in 2018, called ÀO. Ms Carmen U, Director of Sales and Operations at Hanmay, told Macao Image that products bearing the ÀO brand contained ingredients found in Macao, prepared using techniques mastered by the well-established cosmetics industry in South Korea.
ÀO products are intended to preserve what Ms U calls “the root and beauty of Macao culture with authentic and original ingredients”. The brand can be seen on two main skincare products made by Hanmay: the ÀO Lotus Sleeping Mask, which the company says, whitens and soothes the skin; and the ÀO Phoenix Tea Wake-up Mask that is said to revitalise the complexion and counters allergic reactions.
“We set out to put meaningful, natural ingredients in our professionally made, high-quality beauty products. Our products are the medium for us to tell the story of our brand,” Ms U said.
Ms U said that before the advent of ÀO, Macao lacked suppliers of beauty care products that had their own, original lines. She saw an opportunity to create skincare products unique to Macao, made with ingredients found in the city.
“The skincare products of ÀO are designed and developed in Macao. With our experience and knowledge of South Korea’s beauty industry, we decided that our products should be produced in South Korea,” Ms U said. “All key ingredients, such as fine phoenix tea and lotus, are shipped to the Korean production line for manufacturing.”
Ms U said it took at least seven series of trials to perfect the ÀO Lotus Sleeping Mask, each time the combination of the ingredients and formula was adjusted. The final product is certified to meet the global standards of the beauty industry and is testament to the communication and co-ordination between Hanmay and its manufacturer.
Opportunity knocks
Ms U said the next step for Hanmay was to make a wider range of products beyond facial care. The company is looking into developing a collection that includes body soap and shampoo made with ingredients associated with Macao. She said the company might look to Portugal for inspiration, a reflection of the Portuguese contribution to the city’s culture.
“Just as we wish to use fine ingredients from the East in our products, we wish to do the same with special ingredients from the West. At this stage, we would like to experiment with extracts from red wine, as red wines are already widely recognised around the globe,” she said.
ÀO products are already sold in two shops in Macao and Hanmay intends to open a third outlet on Hengqin Island, across the border in Mainland China. The Hengqin shop will offer what Ms U calls “all-in-one beauty solutions and the ultimate relaxation experience”.
“We can see a promising outlook for Hengqin. For a lot of Macao people, Hengqin will become the city’s backyard. We are planning a business complex with multiple functions,” she said. “It will be a space dedicated to beauty in all its aspects, as customers can enjoy facial treatments, hair treatments and make-up services.”
Other parts of the complex, she said, would function as a café, a classroom and a shop. Ms U said the Hengqin shop would serve as showcase for the ÀO brand and as a stepping-off point into the wider Mainland Chinese market.
As a young jewellery brand in Macao, Annabella Jewellery introduces a new style with its products
“By aligning and standardising every aspect of our business, we maintain a unified operating model that will allow us to franchise our business in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, or even other places.” Ms Anna Chan, Founder and Director of Annabella Jewellery Co. Ltd.
A bright red, hand-woven bracelet decorated with golden charms is the most recognisable of the products designed by Annabella Jewellery
ÀO products are already sold in two shops in Macao
“The skincare products of ÀO are designed and developed in Macao. With our experience and knowledge of South Korea’s beauty industry, we decided that our products should be produced in South Korea.” Ms Carmen U, Director of Sales and Operations at Hanmay Co. Ltd.
Products bearing the ÀO brand contain ingredients found in Macao
