C ST OV O ER RY
Building brands for kids
Charmaine Ng meets the creative minds behind Hong Kong’s leading children’s brands. Photography by Graham Uden Bonne Mere is a boutique children interiors brand that cultivates the values of a ‘good mother’. It focuses on offering heirloom products to be handed down and appreciated for generations to come including classic, timeless bedding, nursery accessories and clothing. The brand was founded by Nicole Mair, an Australian fashion designer and product development manager who has worked on iconic sci-fi film The Matrix, creating the costumes for Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Ann Moss, and presented collections at Paris Fashion Week. “After many years of travelling abroad for weeks at a time and endless weekends working to meet deadlines for fashion shows, it was time to try something new,” Nicole says, of starting Bonne Mere. “The brand has enabled me to continue my passion to create and given me the opportunity to spend more time with my daughter and watch her grow.” Devoted to helping new parents decorate and create beautiful and cosy environments, 14 Expat Parent
Bonne Mere combines classic European tradition with contemporary design, embracing subtle and soft colour tones to help support peaceful and harmonious moments for children. The brand works hand in hand with a small family-run factory and happy community of mothers and grandmothers who are passionate about their handcrafted products. “We are very proud to create economic opportunities for people, especially women, to provide for themselves,” says Nicole. When asked about the future of Bonne Mere, sustainability and longevity lie at the core of the brand is doing. “Our overall design and production focus is sustainability. This means using eco-friendly practices, sustainable materials and ethical production processes,” Nicole also mentions continuing to produce timeless designs and expanding to become a global children and nursery brand. “We believe there is a need for products that withstand the test of time and still be stylish long after the season is over,” she says.
