Although it is difficult to break into the Chinese market, Peter Caplowe has made it much easier by starting a fashion trade show in Hong Kong. Zou Hong / China Daily

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"There aren't that many multi-brand stores in China," he says.

Instead, Caplowe says, the Chinese retail market is dominated by the mono-brand franchising model, which means international brands wanting to break in must have enough finance and backing to open multiple stores across the country that exclusively stock their product.

Artfully placed articles of apparel and clothing are scattered around the courtyard in the hutong where Caplowe sits and talks.

Once the childhood home of Wan Rong, a wife of the last Qing emperor Puyi, it is now a place of business for Wuhao, a multi-brand fashion and apparel shop.

But while boutique multi-brand stores do already exist in China, they are a minority. To allow local talent to achieve its full potential, this will have to change, he says.

As the country gradually moves away from manufacturing and toward a consumer-driven economy, fostering local design talent makes sense, Caplowe says.

"The bigger the domestic-branded fashion market is, the better that is for the manufacturers here in China."

The long-term plan is to bring Chinese-branded fashion to the rest of the world, too, he says.

The challenge for those yet to break into the market is not striking a pose; it's striking a deal.

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