I am often asked about the inspiration for THE FIFTH COLLECTION, an idea I have had for some time but that really got kickstarted when I settled back in Singapore, a place my family and I have considered home for nearly a decade.

I’ve long felt that Singapore is unfairly perceived as an unexciting place for fashion. But that perception couldn’t be further from the truth; just sit in any sidewalk café on Orchard Road, in Tiong Bahru or on Haji Lane, and you will have a front row seat to an urban catwalk of diverse styles.

What’s more, few places in the world are as fanatical about fashion as we are here. From an Hermès exhibition to an H&M special designer collection, the line of anticipating fans will stretch from a few hours to sidewalk sleepovers, all to capture another piece of a favorite fashion legacy – they are collectors in everything but name!

I started thinking that what was really missing was a place to further enable that passion, a place to access greater variety and uniqueness and direct your personal fashion collection with confidence. So why not leverage the power of the internet to provide the tools for collectors to trade luxury pre-loved and vintage fashion as if they were in London, Paris, New York or Tokyo?

When it comes to my own interest in vintage, I am fascinated by the heritage, character, and craftsmanship of a purer era, but also by the secret that distinguishes what is vintage from what is simply old, what I call the Da Vinci Code of fashion. A great vintage piece is also truly forever, and if maintained properly will likely go up in value over time – in recent years, vintage fashion has even gained recognition as an investment grade asset alongside art, wine and vintage cars.

Vintage is also about uniqueness in a world of same same – with the right piece, even jeans and a shirt can be made uniquely yours. A great example, and my inspiration for a lot of this, is a dark brown, 46 year-old, beaten-up Hermès Kelly bag that used to belong to my mom. I adore everything about it, especially the worn rock ‘n’ roll edge it has developed despite being a bag usually stereotyped differently – it’s my very own “good girl gone bad” bag. It’s priceless because of its unique story that can be retold in countless ways with each new outfit.

And that’s what I hope you’ll love about THE FIFTH COLLECTION, the freedom to discover, share, trade and empower your unique style.