Hi Rachael! When we first interviewed you, you’d just graduated from your fashion design course, and over the years, we’ve seen your label transform. Where do you feel Closet Children is at right now?

“Closet Children is in the process of extending accessories from the necks, wrists and ears to the body. Fashion, for me, goes beyond the normal categorisation of just garments and jewellery. It now includes other things like wigs, nails and weird makeup. In 2023 everything is blending into each other and it’s very exciting. That’s where I’m going. To me, fashion is one’s cloak of armour and I’d like to think that Closet Children is your personal armourer.”

Pictured: A look from Cheong’s graduate collection

You have a new collection coming out next year – what can you tell us about that?

“It was something I thought of in 2019 but only fully developed the concept in the years after. I tried to get funding for it but to no avail, but I finally decided to do it anyway. In the era of AI, Barbie and NPC (Non-playable characters) TikTokers, I feel that my  collection My Girlfriend the Showroom Dummy is highly relevant. It’s a development from my grad work, where again, I play with human dolls, exploring the artificial bodies of women and the intersection of femininity and violence.”

 Pictured: A prototype from Cheong’s upcoming collection

You’ve had your label going for several years now – what’s been memorable about that journey?

“Seeing many people loving their pieces all over the world! I’ve had more Singapore customers in the past couple of years so I’m happy that I appeal to a niche local market. I am so grateful to all the stockists who believed in my work very early on and helped me expand my international presence. It’s also very flattering that international stylists have reached out to pull pieces for celebrity shoots. The deadlines tend to be last minute and it mostly never aligns with my delivery time but it’s an honour that they thought of me. Doing this has been a huge learning curve for me too as I’m still experimenting with different ways of selling.”

And on the flip side, what’s not so fun? What should other emerging designers look out for?

“Some stylists tend to treat you like you’re disposable… It’s extremely rude because they usually send last-minute requests and I’ve rushed to accommodate them, just to find out the celebrity doesn’t even wear the piece. Of course I know that stylists tend to pull a bunch of designers at once just to play around with looks, and that’s okay, but the stylists don’t pay for shipping (when they said they would), and sometimes they don’t even bother to send the piece back to me. At the same time, it seems like they have more respect for other designers with larger followings and a bigger name. It is really unprofessional. Now I’m cautious about who I work with.”

What’s one thing you wish you knew before starting your own label?

“Business requires the use of your reasonable, analytical mind alongside the creative one. Unfortunately I didn’t think being more of an emotional, intuitive thinker would be an issue until this year and if I had known from the beginning I think I would have progressed much further. It has a lot to do with having a certain mindset and I’ve let my anxiety get in the way of a lot of things. Stay calm, meditate, ask for help, take weekends off and learn to let go of things that do not serve you.”

Pictured: Press-on nails as part of a collaboration with nail artist @theflutterytips

How do you balance satisfying your artistic sensibilities with the commercial demands and logistics of running a fashion label?

“I never make things just for the sake of being able to sell. I make pieces that I would also personally wear and make sure that it aligns with Closet Children’s style and values. It’s also a good idea to start customers off with ‘starter’ pieces. They’re priced lower than other items in the store and aren’t so out there aesthetically, so that customers can slowly work their way up. While the dream customer is a very niche group – people who know what they want and who they are, style-wise, not everyone is on that level yet and they’re still playing around with their style. That’s perfectly fine! I sometimes call my pieces ‘creatures’ because they’re like little Digimons that have a life of their own but blend perfectly into their hosts’ personal style.”

Can you tell me more about the specific challenges that emerging designers face today?

“Money is usually the biggest challenge. To really expand a brand, you will likely need a significant amount of cashflow to come in so that you can hire more hands, improve your website, packaging and so on. At some point you just cannot run the label alone as you’ll be stuck as the technician and not the entrepreneur. It can be hard to grow the business if you’re always going to be in the making role. I’ve realized this myself. Once you let go of the making role, so many other possibilities open for you. You are able to start dreaming bigger too.

 In the highly competitive environment of today where everything is online, designers also face copying from fellow small businesses and even big corporations. Being original in this day and age is tough as everything has been done before. I think the key to staying relevant and unique is that you keep pushing your own boundaries. If you don’t improve and expand on your practice you will likely be bogged down by copycats and struggle to stand out. I heard someone use this analogy on TikTok and I thought it was perfect: ‘they can steal the water but never the fountain’. Keep others on their toes; they’ll never be able to guess what comes next if your practice is an ever flowing fountain.”

Pictured: An installation commissioned by Kids 21 and Design Singapore

How do you think different players in the industry can help young designers in Singapore?

 “I’ve had the privilege of seeing how creative grants work in other countries and in contrast to that, I would obviously feel like we are lacking in that aspect here. We are still a young country with a short history. A large part of Singapore history involved prioritising economic growth over everything else so we are still behind on making art an important part of our culture.

I personally think what the government supports (monetarily) shows the people what is important. It’s not that we have nothing for creatives – it’s that the level of trust when it comes to grant money is very, very different. Funding for fashion is almost non-existent. Some of us just want to be acknowledged as artists too! I really think we can use some help in this area, whether it’s the public donating to crowdfunding for a label to start their first collection or even a private funder who loves fashion. If you want to see the local fashion scene grow, do consider funding designers you see potential in.”

Despite the considerable hurdles to launching a label here, what was behind your decision to proceed?

“There’s nothing else I’d rather do. Working for someone else creatively was fine for me in the short term but I do get restless after a while and ultimately always wanted to pursue my own vision. Don’t get me wrong, those were amazing learning opportunities (Cheong previously interned for Marine Serre) but I always knew I had to go my own way eventually. Being creative and having other people buy and wear my creations is the best thing ever. Hearing customers tell me they wear my stuff all the time is just so, so validating. That’s what I mean when I say Closet Children adds something to your treasure chest. It’s an important piece in the wardrobe, always enhancing what you already hold dear.

The only other careers I would consider are: doll-making, teaching and maybe butter-making. But now that I’ve developed a dairy allergy I think the last one is out. The other two are more like retirement jobs or something I’d do with more years of experience running a brand… I’m very lucky to be surrounded by people who actively pursue their passions and that really keeps me motivated. Ultimately I also do what I do to make a point that being an artist isn’t useless and unprofitable.”

Pictured: Cheong’s Iron Maiden chainmail mask that took 50 hours to craft and was exhibited last year at Asian Civilisations Museum