When you begin seeing fashion as a language and not just garments, suddenly the vastness of its power becomes apparent. It can preserve memories, define identity, and provide a way to carry culture to an audience far from its roots. That concept is embodied in Hong Kong designer Karen Chan, who will be awarded Best International Fashion Designer at the Runway 7 Fashion Awards 2026.
The honor comes on September 14, 2026, at Sony Hall in New York City, placing Chan’s design philosophy at the center of a global fashion conversation.
As you explore Chan’s work in SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN, you realize this is the foundation. A brand that revolves around a powerful idea. Through fashion, it can be reapportioned, rethought, and brought into today’s fashion.
A Designer Turning Hong Kong Heritage Into Contemporary Fashion
Karen Chan is the designer of SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN. It is a fashion brand with a Hong Kong cultural and creative fashion icon position and was the first to obtain “Hong Kong Top Brand.” Also, it received the “Best Fashion Designer Award” in Milan among all of HK-New HK-Chinese Style brands.
What is different from other approaches is how she looks at the cultural landscape of Hong Kong. In this manner, rather than merely sampling styles or periods of dress, Chan transmutes cultural touchstones into new fashions that somehow seem right for today.
This philosophy is exemplified through the inspiration behind the brand’s original fabric prints. It includes references drawn from nostalgia, local intangible cultural heritage, and arts & culture. Familiar cultural elements offer a source for new creative expressions. It allows traditional references to appear increasingly within work that feels literally up-to-date, accessible, and stylized.
This is one of the defining aesthetics of SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN, which echoes the “New HK-Chinese Style.” This method combines aspects from East and West. It reinterprets ethnic clothing with a contemporary sense of style.
The Meaning Behind “New HK-Chinese Style”
The New HK-Chinese Style is a design trend that goes beyond just the visual sense. This is a manifestation of Chan’s endeavor to establish a fashion language linking Hong Kong identity and an ever-expanding global audience.
Ancient Chinese fashion was characterized by unique silhouettes, patterns, fabrics, and symbolism in textile production. On the other hand, Hong Kong is a product of the fusion between Eastern touch and Western influences. Chan builds on both sides of that story.
That balance is important. You get cultural fashion, which can sometimes feel a bit like distant heritage. Chan instead turns to an ever-evolving set of design references, cultural or otherwise.
SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN sees heritage not just as something to conserve, but as something to reinvent.
Building Bridges Through Cultural Collaboration
The authority Chan has over her culture is seen in the establishments SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN has partnered with.
It is the first fashion brand among many to collaborate with the following:
- Hong Kong Museum of History
- Hong Kong Intangible Cultural Heritage Office
- Sam Tung Uk Museum
- Hong Kong Museum of Art
- Hong Kong Heritage Museum
- Dr Sun Yat-sen Museum
Chan’s work takes on another layer with these collaborations. They show how fashion can act as a bridge between cultural institutions and contemporary audiences.
The moment you experience a historical artifact, traditional craft, or intangible form of folklore inside a museum, you are dealing with it via preservation and documentation. Fashion offers another possibility. This has the ability to take those small cultural narratives and translate them within the form of everyday visual culture.
That connection is what Chan’s work accomplishes by translating cultural inspiration into original prints, garments, and contemporary styling.
From Hong Kong to the Global Fashion Stage
Karen Chan is backed by international acclaim and has a wide-reaching worldwide presence. SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN has been invited to participate in more than 35 international fashion weeks. These include events in different locations like:
- Hong Kong
- Milan
- Paris
- London
- New York
- Los Angeles
- Seoul
- Bangkok
- Shanghai
- Shenzhen
- Macau
For you, that global reach allows your vision to see Hong Kong fashion in a broader way.
Instead of simply showcasing Hong Kong culture to a local audience, Chan has tapped into global fashion weeks. She uses them as stages for debuting unique creations from Hong Kong to to international audiences.
Each location provides a unique fashion landscape and clientele. Milan carries the legacy of luxury and design. Paris is one of the most rooted of fashion’s creative capitals. New York is a city of light, multifaceted and commercial. International destinations, like Seoul, London, Los Angeles, or Shanghai, all offer cultural views.
Moving between these environments, SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN hopes to engage in a global dialogue without losing its roots as HK-Chinese Style.
Fashion as Cultural Storytelling
Chan essentially shows us that fashion is storytelling.
When you first see a garment, what do you notice first? However, beneath these details can be some tales of a city, tradition, memory, or any culture.
Chan draws from Hong Kong nostalgia and intangible cultural heritage. The clothing itself is a kind of transference of those references into new spaces.
It made cultural storytelling more accessible as well. You do not need to go into a museum, nor browse through a historical archive, in order to discover an aspect of Hong Kong heritage.
A New Chapter for Hong Kong Fashion: Recognized at Runway 7 Fashion
Karen Chan’s journey shows how a designer can stay rooted in one place while touching audiences far and wide.
SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN promotes new layers of signification with Hong Kong nostalgia. They illustrate arts, intangible cultural heritage, and Chinese traditional dress. They evolve into fabric for a modern fashion nation.
This is reflected in the New HK-Chinese Style aesthetic of its brand. It collaborates with major cultural institutions and has a presence at more than 35 international fashion weeks.
That honor for Chan can thus be interpreted as merely a piece of a much larger narrative. Now, you can turn towards the Runway 7 Fashion Awards 2026. It is a tribute to global style but also a celebration of cultural identity in a global fashion landscape.
Karen Chan, as the Best International Fashion Designer, will receive the award on September 14 at Sony Hall in NYC for SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN.
Runway 7 Fashion Awards · Best International Fashion Designer Award
Karen Chan
Karen Chan is recognized for her distinctive approach to contemporary fashion through SPARKLE by KAREN CHAN, where Hong Kong heritage, traditional craftsmanship and East-meets-West design come together. As a designer and creative director, Chan has brought her cultural perspective to international fashion audiences while reinterpreting traditional influences for modern fashion. Her creativity, cultural storytelling and international contribution will be honored with the Best International Fashion Designer Award at the Runway 7 Fashion Awards 2026.
