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Designer Ann-Sofie Johansson at the opening ceremony of H&M's Beijing store. [Jiang Dong]
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You can probably run into Ann-Sofie Johansson anywhere in the world. As head of design at Swedish fashion brand Hennes & Mauritz, she loves scouting the globe for ideas.
Johansson was in the capital for the opening of H&M's Beijing store. "This is an interesting city where people pay attention to details, and there are many things to explore," she says.
The 42-year-old fashion designer expresses satisfaction over this season's collections by H&M.
"It's all about spring and summer fashion," says Johansson. "But we have one look that is more aesthetic - a lot of animal prints, long dresses, a little safari inspired," she adds in a reference to the golden leopard patterns and black-and-white stripes of some of the clothes.
"We also have this faded denim," says Johansson, pointing to her blue-and-gray jeans. The look is inspired by a movie about Bob Dylan, in which everyone is fully clothed in denim.
Johansson's favorite is a one-piece jumpsuit. "It's like a continuation of the dress. You've been wearing dresses for so many seasons, and now this comes along. It is also easy to wear."
"This season is a lot about personal style," she says and underscores the importance of accessories. Her recommendations? "Necklaces, big jewelry, big neck-pieces and big earrings and bangles," she offers.
But the designer herself does not have a favorite dressing style. "It depends on my mood and what I am doing: on weekends, going to the bar, I like to go with denim," she says.
Explaining why the brand has nothing specially for the Chinese market, she says fashion is a global thing. But she is quick to point out that the brand has everything you could ever need - from cradle to grave.
(China Daily, April 24, 2009)
