HMH is a classic menswear bespoke studio, located on the Bund in Shanghai. More than a year passed before I made time to follow up and visit again.
HMH was originally in Ruikang apartment, but later the landlord took it back for his own use and moved to Riverside Building, separated from Ruikang apartment by a post and telecommunications museum.
Just a short section of Suzhou River, from west to east, is located the Fujian Road and Bridge, Henan Road and Bridge, Sichuan North Road Bridge and Zhapu Road and Bridge with the same long history … The old and the new are mixed and unique.
The day I went coincided with a light rain. Out of the Tiantong Road subway station, behind it is the Riverside Building.
Turn right and bypass this huge building. The small stone-paved North Suzhou Road Pedestrian Street is uneven, littered with one small puddle after another.
On the road in light rain, pedestrians are sparse, the green plants on the river bank are green, and the sloping lawn opposite the museum is full of flowers. All the scenery in the rain is so clear, the colors are saturated, and the beauty is like photos.
The Riverside Building is S-shaped and is said to be the largest single apartment in old Shanghai. During the 1930s and 1940s, some employees of MGM Pictures in the United States lived here, while others were Jewish businessmen who fled from abroad. After liberation, except for the private property of the old residents, most of the houses upstairs were allocated to public officials.
There are many entrances and exits of the riverside building, all around. Because I came here for the first time, I mistakenly entered the atrium garden surrounded by the big S-bend of the riverside building, and the small garden plants were lush. Later, I went to see it specially. The street sign at the gate was No.370.
The building is undergoing a protective overhaul. The whole building is surrounded by scaffolding covered with safety nets. The garden trail is slightly muddy and there are new or old building materials piled on both sides.
Stepping into the elevator lobby of the building, the clapboard and roof of the wall are mottled and old, the chandelier is dim, and the terrazzo floor is inlaid with heavy copper bars and the English abbreviation of EB, which is about the builder’s LOGO, which is very chronological … In a trance, it is like crossing the old Shanghai beach.
The elevator is not the old-fashioned antique with sliding doors, but the domestic elevator updated in the 1970s and 1980s. The space is cramped and the running speed is slow, and it rumbles like a green leather train running.
When I got out of the elevator, I went in the opposite direction and inadvertently walked almost the whole floor. The corridor is broken and dim, and the wall is peeling off, but it is very imposing. Even in the corridor on the same floor, there will be steps that suddenly go up or down a few steps, which is a bit novel.
A small chandelier is hung not far from the long and winding corridor, and clothes dried by uncles and aunts are hung on both sides, and all kinds of cables are cluttered on the mottled walls. There is actually a patio in the corridor, and there is not much light coming from the top, which is covered by hanging debris.
The studio didn’t hang a nameplate or install a doorbell. I tapped on the door and heard approaching footsteps. When I opened the door and saw He Meihua, I felt calm and modest at first sight. It looked simple and unassuming, but my head was relatively high. All my friends nicknamed it “Dragon” and I didn’t know what it was.
Introducing the door, I took advantage of Master He to help me place my wet umbrella, and I looked at it at a glance. The studio is small and clean, with side hangers, shelves, people’s tables, ventilation ironing tables and other professional tools. It has no appearance of the usual custom-made shop at all, and it is just a miniature workshop.
On the right hand side of the door, there is a small cupboard full of books, and I stopped and flipped through it, mostly some modern and contemporary western literature … 1984, The Great Gatsby, The Jade Bird, one of the three major works of dystopian novels, and Goodbye in the Sky, the French 2013 Gongul Prize novel.
There are also some miscellaneous books, such as Elon Musk’s autobiography Retirement on Mars, social science monographs Iranian Contemporary Society and Culture, Tale of Genji, American virology popular science reading “Pandemic”, Japanese Kenichi Ohmae’s “Low Desire Society” … There are not many costumes and customizations, only a few hardcover picture books published in English and French abroad.
There are not many books, and they are not very complicated, but they can appreciate the faint humanistic atmosphere.
The main function of the studio is to measure and try on clothes, and to repair and modify them. The masters are not working on the spot. On the day when there is no reservation for guests, Master He is usually busy delivering fabrics, wool samples and finished products, or shopping for special accessories, or visiting the store. The online work related to order taking and customer service will make use of the broken time at any time. It is often after a busy day that I have time to sit down and read when the lights are still at night.
The temperament of managing people is often the temperament of the store. When I was there, I realized that this is a real studio. The table around the sewing machine is full of various fabrics, linings and wool samples with beads pinned after the test.
One step further, the floor-to-ceiling mirror for fitting is leaning in the gap near the left-hand wall, and the clothes left for the guests to try on are hung on the front and rear sides, which are full. A large electric lifting workbench is across the window, which is very suitable for drawing and cutting fabrics at first glance. It is also full of all kinds of fabrics, hand stitches and customer measurement materials.
Next to the workbench is an old-fashioned lattice steel window. Looking out, the first thing you see is the Lujiazui three-piece suit, the middle scene is the old roof, and then the Suzhou River winding downstairs. Even if the picture is mixed with many modern buildings, it is full of the color of nostalgic filters, and I am in a trance and don’t know time and space.
In the corner on the left, there is a floor-to-ceiling steel door with glass lattice, which is a small balcony painted with dark blue wall paint. Because the external wall of the building is under maintenance, the floor-to-ceiling windows and balconies are covered with dust, and there is nowhere to go. Maybe it’s because I just moved here, and there are a lot of sundries piled up, and the cover is covered with dust … But when you go, it may become a clean tea break or smoking place. I’m afraid this is the perfect angle where the owner is infatuated with Suzhou Creek.
He Meihua, the owner of HMH, has an almost obstinate affection for Suzhou Creek. Sniff the moist ebb and flow of the Huangpu River not far away, and listen to the majestic flute from the inadvertently passing seagoing ships; In the twilight, count the long bells of the customs; Standing in front of the window, overlooking the seagulls flying high and shallow, hearing the rain ticking down the river bank and bathing in the twilight morning light on the Bund.
On the way home, I think about HE Meihua’s daily life. From noon to late at night, work and life are completely mixed together. Weekends and holidays are often the busiest times, and it is rare to have a rest for a few days in 365 days. Asked why she didn’t hire a helper, HE chuckled: The salary is not high, so there is no money to earn if you hire more people.
What power is supporting it? Is it due to professional diligence, love of customization, or pressure from life? In any case, if life is not fun, is the external expression of the beautiful vision you created for your customers immersed in the residual color of hard work? I also recall the occasional stubbornness of HE’s indifference, and there is no trace of burnout in explaining the trivia of customization.
I hope that in the future of He Meihua, we can go for an outing at will on holidays, walk with peace of mind on weekends, and laugh at our guests easily when we come back. Less biting, more laughing.
In the time building along the Suzhou River, there is a hidden studio for young artists. HMH, go sit down.
