CHANGING LIVES
Tatler Hong Kong|March 2023
More than a decade after joining her mother’s textile and apparel manufacturing business, Esquel Group, Dee Poon is now weaving her own path with her new company, Tessellation. She lays it bare about work, female empowerment and the importance of protecting mental health
- Tara Sobti
CHANGING LIVES

IT'S the week before Chinese New Year and Dee Poon has just had dental surgery. “I’m sleep-deprived and swollen,” she says over video chat from the Esquel Group offices in Wan Chai, where she’s back to work merely a day after the procedure.

The Hong Kong-born entrepreneur has no time to feel sorry for herself: in January this year, after 13 years at the forefront of the family business as president of Esquel brands and distribution, Poon flew the coop and formed her own entity, Tessellation, in partnership with her cousin Natasha Cheng. Tessellation will comprise Esquel’s luxury-retail arm, Pye; mid-market workwear brand Determinant; and Esquel’s venture and technology business. It will also encompass several sustainability-focused platforms including Exponent Envirotech, a technology that helps reduce the use of water and chemicals in industrial processes; Vertex Greentech, a materials innovator that uses technology to create sustainable fabrics; and Compass Greentech, which provides sustainable solutions for accessories and packaging. In this new venture, Poon is president of Tessellation brands and retailing—a title she is still coming to terms with.

“I hate [the sound of ] that. It makes me sound like an old white man,” she says half-jokingly. “Esquel and Tessellation will still work together in many ways, but I wanted to be able to move at a difference pace and create room for a different culture. We have a past and a heritage, and we aren’t exactly sure where we are going, but we’re looking forward to a different type of energy.”

この蚘事は Tatler Hong Kong の March 2023 版に掲茉されおいたす。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トラむアルを開始しお、䜕千もの厳遞されたプレミアム ストヌリヌ、9,000 以䞊の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしおください。

この蚘事は Tatler Hong Kong の March 2023 版に掲茉されおいたす。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トラむアルを開始しお、䜕千もの厳遞されたプレミアム ストヌリヌ、9,000 以䞊の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしおください。

TATLER HONG KONGのその他の蚘事すべお衚瀺
THE LAST WORD
Tatler Hong Kong

THE LAST WORD

Every issue, we ask our cover star a round of quickfire questions that give us a little more insight into their personalities. This month: Gulf Kanawut lays it bare

time-read
1 min  |
July 2024
WOMEN AT THE WICKET
Tatler Hong Kong

WOMEN AT THE WICKET

Asia's women's cricket teams from outside the Indian subcontinent have been rapidly rising up through the ranks, creating opportunities, breaking barriers and changing the game as they go

time-read
10+ 分  |
July 2024
TIME TURNER
Tatler Hong Kong

TIME TURNER

A 2024 Turner Prize nominee, British Filipino artist Pio Abad talks to Tatler about carrying on family legacy, unearthing historical connections and why the Philippines is always at the core of his work

time-read
7 分  |
July 2024
ROYAL RICHES
Tatler Hong Kong

ROYAL RICHES

Ahead of the opening of Prince and the Peacock, Black Sheep Restaurants' latest establishment, Tatler joins the hospitality group on a culinary pilgrimage to India

time-read
8 分  |
July 2024
MAKING HER POINT
Tatler Hong Kong

MAKING HER POINT

Foil fencer Daphne Chan is happy to see the rising interest in her sport since Cheung Ka-long's historic win, and is headed to the Games with impressive wins behind her. But she's not allowing the pressure to get to her, and is most excited about who she might meet in Paris

time-read
3 分  |
July 2024
IN IT TO WIN IT
Tatler Hong Kong

IN IT TO WIN IT

Hong Kong freestyle swimmer Ian Ho, whose Instagram handle @Amphlb_ian playfully alludes to his aquatic prowess, competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and won silver in the men's 50 metres freestyle at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou. This month, he will represent Hong Kong at the Paris Olympics. He talks to Tatler about making Hong Kong proud, life as a student and professional athlete-and why relaxing is the way forward

time-read
3 分  |
July 2024
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Tatler Hong Kong

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

Two-time Olympic swimmer Camille Cheng thought Tokyo 2020 would be her last Games, but competing in Paris was too big a draw for the French Chinese athlete

time-read
3 分  |
July 2024
INTRIGUE AND INTRICACIES
Tatler Hong Kong

INTRIGUE AND INTRICACIES

Parisian artist Ugo Gattoni takes us through his elaborately designed poster for the Olympics and Paralympics in his home city this month

time-read
3 分  |
July 2024
Crafting a New Legacy
Tatler Hong Kong

Crafting a New Legacy

Nicholas Lieou, creative director of high jewellery at Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group, is reimagining jewellery, as the brand celebrates its 95th anniversary

time-read
2 分  |
July 2024
A Lasting Legacy
Tatler Hong Kong

A Lasting Legacy

Tatler explores Cartier's latest Watches and Wonders novelties with the maison's image, style and heritage director, who explains how the luxury house continues to create designs that are relevant today, yet rooted in legacy

time-read
3 分  |
July 2024