Former journalist finds happier world in fashion

By Shen Jingting (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-04-02 06:38

Sun Yafei (left) and Sun Duofei in the exhibition store of their online shop. Zou Hong / China Daily

Sisters' love of luxury goods turns into money-spinning web business

Sun Yafei, was once a successful journalist and a Wall Street hedge fund manager. However, one year ago she decided to change her life and began her own business, an online luxury goods outlet. She called it Fifth Avenue.

"Fifth Avenue is the central road in Manhattan and it stands for the highest quality and highest fashion taste," the 33-year-old said.

She started www.5lux.com on Jan 1, 2009, offering around 160 discounted luxury brands to Chinese women. Fashion attire and accessories, such as handbags, cosmetics and watches are sold at a discount rate ranging from 20 percent to 80 percent.

"We buy goods directly from producers and agencies, which helps us cut the prices," Sun added.

She said she and her sister, Sun Duofei, invested around 2 million yuan in the business and it is already profitable.

"My old reporter friends almost dropped their jaws when they heard I was selling luxury goods.

They said "that's not you!" Sun giggled in her SOHO Modern City office one sunny afternoon.

"But when I was a journalist, I found the world was dark and depressing, however, when I became an entrepreneur in the fashion field, I found a different world.

"One which is full of color, passion and beauty," she said.

Former journalist finds happier world in fashion

No wonder Sun's friends were surprised. Sun had worked as a reporter for China News Week and Southern Weekend from 2002 to 2005.

She gained fame as a woman prepared to face danger and speak out on unfair social issues in a rational way.

She once disguised herself as an interpreter with a lumber company to sneak into the dangerous Golden Triangle alone, to interview opium growers.

"No media was permitted to enter that area at that time, and I remember Zeng Zimo, the Phoenix TV hostess, had no choice but to return home with her investigation team," Sun said.

"I was afraid of revealing my identity during the first three days, but gradually I found people there who were eager to speak to the outside world," she added.

On another occasion Sun flew to Taiwan to cover the general election, but was questioned by the FBI who thought she was a spy. She investigated the Hengyang fire in 2003, which took 20 firefighters' lives, and annoyed local gangs so much they said they wanted her life.

But she decided journalism wasn't for her.

In 2005, Sun won a scholarship to Dartmouth College. On graduating she worked in a medium-sized hedge fund company on Wall Street, but soon found herself bored

"In 2008, I was sent to China by my company. The main job was to drink coffee with different people," Sun said. "I got bored with that life, because I hate doing nothing and wasting time."

It was coincidence that led Sun down the road of luxury fashion.

Her younger sister, Sun Duofei, studied fashion in New York in 2008, and she was a crazy buyer.

When she came back from the US, she brought many luxury goods, with her, both old and new.

"She opened an online shop on Taobao, and the goods sold out in a very short period of time," Sun said.

Since Duofei was an expert in fashion and Yafei had some friends in luxury goods in New York, the sisters decided to explore China's online luxury goods market.

"Though we do get competitors in China, Fifth Avenue has a unique character - we make sure every product is authentic, and we provide the largest number of goods, mid to top level brands, even some luxury brands that haven't been introduced to Beijing," Sun said.

Sun's dream is to make www.5lux.com a listed company, and after that, she plans to spend a year traveling.

"A writer, or a talk show anchor may be a good profession for me when I retire," Sun smiled.