| Founded | Hong Kong (1996) |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Hong Kong |
| Key people | Douglas Young (Founder & CEO), Benjamin Lau (Founder & COO) |
| Products | Lifestyle accessories and homeware inspired by past and present Hong Kong culture |
| Website | Official website |
Goods of Desire (abbreviated G.O.D.) is a lifestyle brand company based in Hong Kong. Its name is derived from the phonetic translation of the Cantonese words meaning "to live better" (住好o的). Founded in 1996 by Douglas Young and Benjamin Lau, G.O.D. has collaborated with such companies as Coca Cola, Microsoft, Swarovski, Canon, Greenpeace, and the SPCA. There are currently five store locations in Hong Kong. The company also sells products wholesale to boutiques in cities such as London, Amsterdam, New York, Sydney, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Singapore.
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Architects by training, co-founders Douglas Young and Benjamin Lau met in Young's hometown of Hong Kong in 1994. The idea for G.O.D. was born the following year, with the first store opening in Ap Lei Chau in 1996. Within two years, two more shops opened in Central and Tsim Sha Tsui respectively. In 2001, G.O.D. opened its 20,000 sq. ft. flagship store in Causeway Bay. In 2008, the co-founders of G.O.D opened a new lifestyle mall in the heart of Causeway Bay. In 2008, the company introduced a "Hong Kong Street Culture Museum" alongside a small shop at the Jockey Club Creative Arts Centre in Shek Kip Mei, Kowloon, which is also the current location of their main office. In 2009, the most recent location opened at The Peak Galleria.
Taking inspiration from both the condensed urban centers and rural environments of Asia, G.O.D. is heavily influenced by the concept of the eastern lifestyle as an alternative to the western way of living. The idea of such a cultural contradiction is especially prevalent in a city like Hong Kong, a city that boasts a modernized way of life combined with traditional Chinese practices.
Young believes that "the most successful brands tend to incorporate national identity." Not many Hong Kong brands actually feel very Hong Kong. I want to do something different: to give ourselves some pride and some respect. Some of our signature items have a quirky Hong Kong feel – they are unmistakable."[1][2]
Young also said in an interview with Hong Kong Trade Development Council that "I'm trying to push Hong Kong traditions, to make the ordinary and mundane into something extraordinary. When I hear people saying 'wow' about my products, it's great because it shows Hong Kong's flexibility." [3]
G.O.D.'s core range of lifestyle products are designed in-house, and their product range consists mostly of home furnishings and tableware, though they offer some fashion items. Red rubber trays for making "Double Happiness" character ice cubes, Buddha statues painted in DayGlo tones, and old-fashioned Chinese textiles re-imagined in modern settings are some examples of their products.
Their collection includes bedroom accessories, bathroom accessories, tableware, kitchenware, all boasting designs or prints inspired by old and new aspects of Hong Kong culture. One of their more popular design themes for this line is the famous Chinese "Double Happiness" character.
Major products include beds, sofas, couches, cabinets and storage, chairs and stools, ladders, mirrors, tables, and desks.
Their growing fashion line includes unisex t-shirts, menswear, womenswear, and undergarments. Accessories include belts, caps, fragrances, keychains, pins, umbrellas, and watches. In 2003, the company introduced its trademark slogan, "Delay No More", to the market. Spoken in Cantonese, the phrase sounds like one of Hong Kong's most frequently heard Cantonese curses (meaning "fuck your mother") and it is emblazoned on many of G.O.D.'s most popular-selling shirts.
In June 2009, G.O.D. collaborated with Starbucks to create the first ever Starbucks store in the world to incorporate a "Bing Sutt" corner, a concept designed by G.O.D. that fuses the retro Hong Kong teahouse style with the contemporary look of a coffeehouse. The coffee company states that, "This very unique Starbucks store has been built as a collaborative project with the quintessential Hong Kong brand G.O.D. (Goods of Desire). It is a celebration of Hong Kong's roots and spirit." [4]
In 2007, Douglas Young and seventeen G.O.D. employees were taken in by police for selling t-shirts bearing the logo "14K", the name of one of the city's largest crime syndicates. "Police claimed the shop had broken a section of an 1845 anti-triad law called the Societies Ordinance, which allows for the arrest of any person in possession of 'any books, accounts, writing, lists of members, seals, banners or insignia of or relating to any triad society.' Triad members still often carry such insignia — usually worn on the backs of shirts — that they show to shopkeepers in exchange for protection money." [5]
Authorities "confiscated 88 shirts and more than 500 postcards printed with a "14K" logo - with the numbers written in Chinese characters - from the store's five offices and warehouse located in Central, Causeway Bay, Tsim Sha Tsui and Yuen Long."[6]
Young states that "[It] was all a misunderstanding and the shirts were actually referring to 14 karat gold."[7] The 18 employees, including Young, were released the next day, and "their 14K T-shirts, are now collector's items," according to CNNGo.com.[8]
In 2008, G.O.D. collaborated with Kee Wah Bakery to design mooncakes for the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival. Young and his team of designers came up with the idea to present the traditional treats as bottoms in four different designs that sold out immediately. In 2009, G.O.D. released four more bum-shaped mooncake designs.
G.O.D. has received the following awards: