Simon Lee Email & Phone Number

Hong Kong Sar

• After the Retail Designer has left, I was given the opportunity to make use of all my previous experiences and learnings, and to design the new store in ShenZhen MaoYe Mall• Although by that time I had over 6 years of VM experience, this was my first time taking up Retail Design but I was up for the challenge. Without much design support from the my own team, I sought advice and reference from the global team• There was an added difficulty since I could not personally travel to China due to the pandemic, therefore I also needed to build confidence and trust with Chinese team members • Since then, I have led the opening of 25 stores throughout China, they include: Shanghai New World Daimaru, Beijing Parkson Mall, Grandbuy Mall, ChengDu Chicony Mall, Hong Kong Harbour City, Langham Place counter and SOGO counter renovation• One of my proudest achievements was developing the design of the Tian Jin Isetan store myself. Such milestones led to my promotion to a more senior role in the team which also means I got to work very closely with the Regional General Manager daily• As the pandemic subsides, I am able to personally visit the China stores and work closely with our China team, fully fulfilling my role in the regional team • I currently look over all stores in Greater China: China - 45 stores, Hong Kong & Macau - 15 stores

Hong Kong Sar

• Having the previous experiences from Dior and Shilla, I stepped into a role with more complex responsibilities as part of a regional team• For the first year, my core focus is overseeing the Hong Kong stores and travel retail (e.g. China, Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia). After an internal reorganization at mid 2020, my important day-to-day roles have shifted to:• To coordinate with the marketing team on monthly store activities (such as VIP days and various holiday promotions) and quarterly launches to ensure all stores stay up-to-date to the newest products and designs• To ensure the retail team could perform their targets while maintaining brand image, I have worked with the local and global marketing team to complete the brand staging guideline for Hong Kong and China• With that said, daily communications through emails and phones, weekly check-ins via meetings and monthly visits in person are still held in the highest standards• Most of the building works are outsourced to experienced third-party experts therefore I often work closely with several of them at a time. This includes creating and managing budgets, in person visits to factories and monitoring building works in stores before openings

Hong Kong Sar

• I was a crucial team member working closely with the VM Manager, my responsibilities included:• Creating and implementing monthly store changes to accommodate product launches and seasonal promotions, executing budgets and coordinating with brand partners and contractors on design and building works• Although my time here was not very long, I took away some precious learnings: the hard and soft skills to work across and between various stakeholders, in this case, different brands, third party vendors, the airport team and our internal team. These skills greatly benefit me whilst continuing my journey as a visual merchandiser

Hong Kong Sar

• I have always been interested in fashion, therefore joining Dior, one of the biggest fashion and beauty houses in the world was very exciting• I was part of a team of four. With Dior’s frequent release of new products and changes in promotional roster, the workload was very hectic but I found the fast pace and constant challenges exciting• As this was an assistant role, I learnt a lot in cooperating horizontally, managing upwards, and receiving but also challenging briefs if needed. My day-to-day typically looks like:• Aligning with global and local marketing calendar to create store, acting as the central point of contact among regional VM, marketing team and sales team, actively working on visual displays at stores to support sales, maintaining testers for over 30 stores in Hong Kong, supporting pop-up stores, trade events and roadshows with physical and digital visuals• Initiatives that I assisted in: K11 Miss Dior Pop-up, Harbour City Dolce Vita Makeup Pop-up, Annual VIP day

• After working as a graphic designer for a few years, I had a strong urge for a change of environment but I knew I would never give up on art and design. I have always had a interest in VM hence I did a diploma at ASVM previously• With not a lot of experience but my passion and sincerity, I started an assistant role in EmbryHere, I got my taste of what VM is like, my work ranged from: sourcing and designing display windows and materials, designing and visualizing all stores and counters in over 20 stores in Hong Kong and Macau, working with contractors for building works and props• At this company, I was reassured that my change in career was correct as I experienced the utmost job satisfaction after having putting over 30 props and update all design visuals within two days for a campaign launch

Hong Kong Sar

• Following my graduation with a design diploma, I started working as a full time graphic designer• This was a natural career choice for me as I have always loved art and design. Having worked in two wine companies brought me further exposure and experience in: food and wine, multinational cultures, working with people from all walks of life• All of these have set a good foundation for my future transition to VM

Hong Kong Sar

Diploma In Visual Merchandising, Design And Applied Arts

Diploma In Graphic And Advertising Design, Graphic Design