1) Could you tell us a bit about yourself and your background?
I am from Sydney, Australia with an Aussie Mum & Austrian Dad. I fell in love with Hong Kong after a six-month posting in 1996, so I resigned from my position as Asia-Pacific Marketing Manager for a large Australian Veterinary company and set up my own business. I specialized in Small Animal Veterinary Dentistry & Anaesthetics and Equine Nutrition. My early years were focused on working with the Chinese Equestrian Teams. I was the first person to register a foreign feed supplement in China and I signed a contract with the Chinese Government to send Chinese Mainland riders to Germany to train and eventually helping them compete in the 2008 Olympics.
I never imagined eventually having a career in fashion, but I have always enjoyed sewing. Actually, when I first moved to Hong Kong for my 6-month post, one of the first things I bought was a sewing machine. I couldn’t imagine being anywhere without one!
2) What inspired you to start this business?
It was on one of my many trips to Europe for a Veterinary Conference that I struggled to find an iron in my hotel room. My clothes were all creased, and the hotel told me that due to fire regulations they could not place irons in the guest rooms. In the back of my head, I promised myself that one day I would only wear CREASE FREE CLOTHES!
In my early years in Hong Kong, it was virtually impossible to find clothes that fit. The sizing did not cater to a western sized clothes. In the years long before M&S, Zara & H&M most foreigners could only buy clothes when they travelled outside Hong Kong. In 2006 whist pregnant I remember thinking even the maternity clothes were not suitable for western sizes. The struggle to find good basics in a crease-free, durable fabric that worked across all sizes, led me to create ROSARINI. A brand of simple, yet stylish clothes for all occasions.
I wanted to create clothes that look great, are washed and worn, will last a long time and can be worn to the beach or to a black-tie event. It took me some time to create the perfect fabric but to this day I think our fabric is the best I have ever worn. It is basically indestructible. It always looks fantastic and will never, ever fade. I have a great dislike of creases & those little balls that form on some fabric after wearing and washing. I might go so far as to say I have a phobia of both of these things!!!
ROSARINI fabric never lets you down. Some days you get dressed at 6am and whether you’re going to an office, travelling, working from home, in & out of cars, taking care of the kids – we all want to look & feel good – all day, not just for a few hours. ROSARINI will work as hard as you do and always allow you to get dressed and just get on with your day. Our clothes mean you can get on a plane and sleep for 10 hours and get off and go straight to a meeting. As the fabric on all our pieces is the same, it makes creating outfits super easy.
Everything matches. It never ceases to amaze me & I often ask myself what I would do without ROSARINI clothes.
Our aim is to provide pieces so that each woman can make her own style. We are about slow fashion – clothes that will last a long time. Clothes that you will wear for many years and save you time and money. I like to think we sell the clothes so that each woman can create her own fashion. We create timeless, simple styles that stand the test of time. We are not about FAST FASHION.
3) How do you balance your work and family life?
It’s a ‘WIP’ – a constant work in progress! Each day brings new challenges and rewards. Some days are harder than others, so I appreciate the great days. My life is very much South Island based. Home, office, school are all within a short distance from each other and this makes everything much more manageable. Plus, a lot of coffee always helps.
4) How do you make yourself happy and ritzy in life?
Life is what you make it and it’s important to take pleasure in the small things. Driving with great music blasting is a sure way to make me feel happy. Thinking up new designs that women of all ages and sizes will enjoy wearing. Helping women all over the world look & feel their very best makes my heart feel happy. Feeling ritzy is easy when I no longer need to stress about what I am going to wear. ROSARINI makes that possible because whether getting dressed for a formal occasion or on a daily basis I feel confident that I will always be able to create the perfect outfit. The same all black outfit can go from the office to a party by throwing on some fab shoes or a statement necklace.
In today’s world it is hard for women to navigate the dress codes. I see how much stress it can be for women to get dressed or find their perfect outfit. Nothing makes me happier than when a customer can take 5 pieces and create multiple looks that work for them. Being able to create looks for the ‘woman we want to be each day’ is crucial. The same 5 pieces can take us from home, work and travel. I am so lucky as we have the best customers who often tell me how much their lives have changed since they discovered our brand.
Apart from all of this – throwing on a ROSARINI PONCHO is the sure way to be ritzy & happy. It’s one simple piece that can totally change the way I look and feel.
5) Could you share the most memorable moment of this business journey so far?
I have so many great moments but a defining one many years ago was when I attended an AIRLINE SUPPLY CONVENTION. I remember setting up my little trade display in a function room at a 5-star hotel in Macau, alongside some very famous fashion brands & industry suppliers. It was a 2-day fair and on the first day a man from another trade exhibit who represented a very big fashion brand, who had been supplying airlines for many years, approached and asked us why we were attending as we were not supplying a product that had previously sold to airlines. It was clear that he thought we had nothing to offer. However, I pointed out that our clothes were the perfect item for the travel industry because they were easy to pack, non-crease, easy to wash in a hotel basin, fast drying, did not need ironing and could be worn during the flight or to a business meeting. He did not look convinced.
The next day we were approached by the head buyer from one of the prominent airlines. I could feel all eyes in the room on us…I could sense this was to be a make-or-break situation. You could hear a pin drop in the room as I gave my very best 2-minute presentation to the airline delegation on all the reasons why they needed ROSARINI onboard their aircrafts for duty free shopping.
The head buyer looked and listened and finally replied… You are offering exactly what we need. We will keep you busy. She popped on a PONCHO and proceeded to wear it for the rest of the day. The airline placed an order and we were sold onboard flights!
6) What is your philosophy of life?
You only have one life – so have no regrets.
Work hard & do your best.
Believe in yourself.
Dream big!
Fight for what you believe in.
Written by Ella @ Ritzy
Karen Scheinecker could not bring herself to leave Hong Kong after a six-month posting in 1996, so she resigned her position as Asia-Pacific marketing manager for a large Australian veterinary product wholesaler and set up her own business.
Thirteen years on, Ms Scheinecker is a leading light in the elite equestrian industry across Greater China. Her thriving animal health company, Garesch International Ltd, is a multimillion-dollar enterprise, employing 10 people and exporting to eight countries. Along the way, Ms Scheinecker has married, had a child and, more recently, launched ROSARINI, a line of women’s clothing. She believes it wouldn’t have been possible anywhere but Hong Kong.
Her role as marketing manager had taken Ms Scheinecker all over Asia, and she soon realised that “my future was in Hong Kong.” Apart from being the best base for servicing clients across the region, she had “fallen in love with the fast pace of life.”
The business began as a go-between, sourcing Australian veterinary products for the Hong Kong veterinary industry. Early clients included private vets, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department and the Police Dog Unit.
Armed with “the best training I could wish for” from her former boss, a successful entrepreneur, Ms Scheinecker made good use of her natural rapport with Asian customers. She forged new ground, promoting veterinary dentistry, which was then in its early stages of development, and the latest in animal anaesthetics.
Ms Scheinecker’s first move into elite equestrian circles began with her selling Equistro, a special range of German equine feed supplements. “This brand has been the official supplier of the German Olympic Committee for Equestrian Sports since 1987, and is responsible for supplying German riding, driving and showjumping horses at Olympic, World and European Championships,” she said. By now Garesch International was supplying the horse-racing market in Hong Kong.
“My first contact from China was a man from Beijing – Huang Zuping,” Ms Scheinecker recalled. “He was new to the equestrian world, but I could sense early on that he had a great love and desire to learn all he could about taking care of his horses.”
Mr Huang talked about his dream of being the first showjumper to represent China in the Olympics. Garesch sponsored him, and he moved to Europe to train. In 2008, the rider achieved his dream when Hong Kong hosted the equestrian events of the Beijing Olympics.
Ms Scheinecker will never forget that day. “As Olympic fever enveloped Hong Kong, I thought, ‘here I am, a girl from Australia, who helped someone from the Chinese mainland get to the Olympics.’ The world really is a wonderful place.”
Contacts Pay
Her client base on the mainland grew as she was introduced to wealthy horse owners living on private estates. She worked with the China Equestrian Federation, sponsored the China showjumping and dressage teams, and supplied feed supplements and products for horses competing at the Asian Games in Korea. In 2003, Ms Scheinecker became the first person to register a foreign equine feed supplement on the Chinese mainland. “This was an achievement that I am still congratulated on today,” she said.
From her Hong Kong office, Ms Scheinecker has developed a large network across Asia, exporting to Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, Korea, Indonesia, the mainland, Singapore and the Middle East. This was possible, she said, because of Hong Kong’s can-do attitude. “There are so many things every day that I get a kick out of – like waking up in the morning and deciding I want to do a promotion on a particular product, and I can have graphics, print and brochures all done in a day.”
Clothes Horse
Hong Kong’s business-friendly environment and the strong work ethic of her staff also enabled the entrepreneur to realise her next venture. With the equine business thriving, Ms Scheinecker began to think about the limited choice of western-size clothes for women in Hong Kong. “Three years ago, while pregnant and trying to find maternity clothes and once again struggling to find my size, I thought, okay, someone needs to do something about this!”
She sourced fabric from an international textiles fair at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, and found a factory in Guangzhou that would manufacture small quantities to a high standard.
Only in Hong Kong
Even though her retail outlet is on the eighth floor of a commercial building, word soon spread. “In any other place, this would simply not work, but here, it’s quite common,” she said. “Word of mouth is a wonderful form of advertising and, as our network grows, we see sales going from strength to strength. We are now doing export orders and our web sales are increasing. “
The veterinary side of the business is expanding, too. “For example, we recently launched a new Australian dog treat,” Ms Scheinecker said. “As it was my first experience of importing a dog food, I wanted to investigate all the local regulations and any special requirements that might be involved. The Hong Kong Trade Development Council made everything extremely simple and clear. It provided peace of mind that we were doing what was required. To me, as a small business, that is the most valuable assistance.”
This all proves, she says, that in Hong Kong “anything is possible.”
“I often feel like a day in Hong Kong is equal to a week anywhere else. I know that living in Hong Kong allows me the opportunity to have it all. My assistant left the office at 9.30 last night and told me not to work too hard, but my secret is that it’s not really work when you love how you spend your day. I just wish I could work out how to make the days longer.”
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Content provided by South China Morning Post - 04 Aug 2010
Author: Divia Harilela
Having Madonna as a spokesperson, providing fair price and texture of clothing and at the same time being a nice shopping place for the whole family on the weekend, Swedish fashion brand – H&M which is situated in the former site of Lane Crawford was fully crowded with people when it opened in the middle of the month. H&M is divided into 4 floors; casual wear, accessories and Madonna’s collection are on the ground floor; office ladies business wear is on the 1st floor; teenage and children clothing are on the 2nd floor while men’s wear is in the basement. Don’t think that Madonna’s collection is unfit for office ladies as they can choose patterned shirts with some basic cutting together with plain straight skirts or trousers. Patterned tops prevailing in this spring and summer and 50’s and 60’s clothing can be found here.
Australia brand ROSARINI has recently established their upstairs specialty store in Lan Kwai Fong and brings ROSARINI woman clothing which has simple design and is comfortable, easy to mix & match into Hong Kong. Each style including top, jacket, skirt, pant etc can all be mixed & matched. It is also easy for everyone to handle the mix & match of their new styles and old styles for work, dating and travelling. ROSARINI is sized from 8 to 24 and their fabric is so soft and comfortable, not easy to wrinkle and crumble so it provides convenience for women who always travel for work. The price is not too expensive. Inquiry 25261036.
Content provided by: Apple Daily
]]>One of the things we love most about shopping in Hong Kong is finding stores we never would have found on our own. Many stores are tucked in a building hidden away like a well-kept secret. Well sometimes, secrets are meant to be told so we have to tell you about ROSARINI. ROSARINI is a store that was created out of one women’s frustration in finding clothes that fit Western women here in Hong Kong. Karen Scheinecker, the designer and founder of ROSARINI, decided to take this problem into her own hands and created a line that caters to women who have a shape and figure that can’t easily glide into a pair of size 0 pants. ROSARINI’s sizes range from size 6-22 (UK size) which is wonderful news for those who are sick of pretty clothes only being available in very tiny sizes.
One of ROSARINI’s main selling points (besides their wealth of sizes) is the fabric the clothes are made of. Matt Jersey is the signature fabric and each item is crease free and breathable – which is great for Hong Kong’s humid climate and for traveling to fun tropical destinations! The best thing about Matt Jersey is that it does not cling, pill, fade or shrink. It also dries instantly after washing which is a miracle for the Sassy girl on the go.
We recently stopped in to see what ROSARINI was all about and we had a blast shopping in the store. We tried on so many things and were amazed at how great they fit. Our wish list has already been made – we loved the Waterfall Cardigan, Sleeveless Ruffle Top, Edged Cardigan and the Draped Front Cap Sleeve Top. What we really like most about the simple style of the clothes is that you can add your own twist, such as belts or jewelry, to truly make it your own!
Stop by ROSARINI to see for yourself how great their selection is. No worries if they ask you who told you the secret – you can tell them Sassy sent you!
Content provided by Sassy Hong Kong
Author: Lauren