Crystal glamour concept to include art

While the original Blue Heaven lights Hong Kong, the new Bao Gallery is putting more sparkle into China with a new www.crystallize.me line up.

Managing Director Raymond Chui is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the original Blue Heaven Crystal Lighting Ltd.’s entrée into the Mainland China market with crystal chandeliers and fine crystal products. After a company restructuring last year, the original Blue Heaven name is now a product brand in China to signify the 100 percent European and custom made crystal chandeliers presented within the new outlet, Bao Gallery.

Upon entering China in 2000, he found that the original Chinese name of Blue Heaven was already registered, so he decided to name the company Bao Xi Lai (which implies ‘Imperial Luxury’). In a market that is filled with copycats, Bao Xi Lai’s early aim was to pioneer its original concept of luxury decorative lighting. The concept has now grown to include creative crystal products made from the finest crystals available, branded under the name Jing Ke, which implies “Crystal Glamour”.

“Blue Heaven Crystal Lighting, the 40-year old lighting company in Hong Kong, gave birth to Bao Xi Lai, a concept for China. Bao Xi Lai is using ‘Crystallize•Me’ as its English name and Web site www.crystallize.me. All Crystallize •Me showrooms will be branded as ‘Bao Gallery’”, Chui explained.

Bao Gallery is primarily a crystal lighting showroom which also features other crystal products, such as crystal ornaments, glassware and gifts. Chui has opened shops in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Chengdu.

“After 10 years of growth, we have become much more diversified, offering much more than just crystal chandeliers. Bao Xi Lai showcases the lighting products, while crystal glasses, jewellery, home accessories and gifts are marketed under the Jing Ke brand in China”, Chui said.

His creative juices flowing, he began to separate and rebrand the products and experiment with new directions. Jing Ke (Crystal Glamour) is now split into two brands: jk-Blue (no Chinese name) for the jewellery lines and jk-Royal (Chinese name Jing Ke) to include crystal ornaments and gifts. The jk-Blue brand jewellery has two shops, one in Shanghai, and one in Beijing, with others planned. Jk-Blue’s official e-commerce website: www.jk-blue.cn and jk-Blue’s second website: https://jkblue.taobao.com offers lower line products.

Part of the 10-year anniversary celebration was the grand opening in early December of the second Bao Gallery showroom located on King’s Road, Hong Kong, which is following the idea for a Frenchdesigned modern showroom for crystal lighting, fibre optic lighting, furniture and art that started in Shanghai.

Before a customer enters the Bao Gallery, he notices the crystal-shaped faceted patterns on the exterior walls and windows of the shop, while the door, also faceted triangles, projects gleaming, coloured crystal handles. Ultramodern and sharp-edged cement walls and floors in the showroom highlight the beautiful chandeliers and the gallery hosts a beautiful white Rolls Royce that Chui wants to cover with crystals eventually. Everything, from the desks and computers stands to the ceilings, is part of the overall, new gallery design.

“Each showroom will have a wall of blue lights too, so that you know when you walk in whose shop it is”, Chui explained. “This concept is a first for China.

Bao Gallery is also presenting lighting range and household glassware from the new Ray Living brand. The ‘Ray Living’ brand is born out of concept of ‘Living with Crystal’, which features core products, such as lighting and household glassware, but it will also include furniture and other crystal household accessories.

‘Ray Living’ is NOT named after me”, Chui laughed, “but the name works in both English and Chinese because of the way the sun’s rays hit and highlight the facets of crystal. Ray Living will also offer lighting products design in China”.

These new ideas did not come from the ether. The economic slowdown, although it hardly affected Hong Kong’s and China’s growth, did provide time for Chui to re-evaluate the entire business direction. He hired a consultant to examine the Blue Heaven Crystal Lighting and Bao Xi Lai operations in early 2009, creating a new road map for the company for the next 10 years.

The new business plan was completed in September 2009 and Chui opened a representative office in Chengdu at the end of 2009, part of the company’s long-planned entrée into south-west China cities.

Right after Chinese New Year in 2010, Chui opened two new headquarters, one in Hong Kong and the other on Nanjing Road in Shanghai to create and promote the new concept of Bao Gallery. Then the company opened new logistic centres in both cities, providing more efficient and professional after-sales service and facilitating international purchasing. The first Bao Gallery opened in Shanghai in June of 2010 on Huahuai Road in Shanghai presenting a new, modern face for the fine, old historical tradition of crystal lighting and crystal products.

“Building these modern galleries, rather than ordinary shops, sets a new direction for the retail business and the customer shopping experience in China. It differentiates us from our competitors”, Chui said. “We will open different shops for the jk-Blue line in Beijing and Shanghai too. Our jk-Blue shops will appeal to a different customer base than Bao Gallery. Jk-Royal is the brand for all the ornaments and gifts, glasses and art pieces. We are the first to promote European glass arts in China”.

Bao Galleries and JK-Blue shops have a rosy future, Chui feels. “In 2011, we will be continuing with our effort to promote crystal and glass art, another first for China. We will sell to individual collectors but we are also moving into commercial property developments and working with interior designers to bring the sparkle of crystal ornaments and art into homes, clubs and restaurants.

‘Living with Crystal’ is one concept to do that”, Chui said. “That’s why we are introducing lower-prices crystal products, so more people can enjoy it”.

Chui is also very proud of his staff. The employees of Blue Heaven are still working there after more than 40 years, and all the staff members he hired in China over the past 10 years are still with him. He spends quite a bit on staff training so that they are not only familiar with all the products and the sources of the crystals, but also that they understand the steps for proper installation and use.

“Throughout the expansion plan, we had to ensure that the foremost principle of the original Blue Heaven, i.e. to provide only the highest quality products and services is upheld. After all, this is what makes the brand so trustworthy”, Chui said.