One thing I learned from all my years in business is you really have to work with the experts: you can launch something yourself, but unless you have the expertise and the marketing strategies and machinery behind you, you'll never be successful.

John Rocha

Beautiful fabrics last; synthetics don't. Certain fabrics, such as linen or cotton, develop their own character over time.

John Rocha

Chinese people have that superstitious fix - people always do feng shui when they are opening a shop; even the Hong Kong Shanghai Bank pays people to do feng shui for them.

John Rocha

I used to play football, and then my wife bought me a fishing rod.

John Rocha

My dream home would be a fishing lodge in New Zealand.

John Rocha

Many women in their 40s make the mistake of wearing clothes that are too tight. Skimpy dresses and tight trousers can make you look older, so get the best fit you can find.

John Rocha

I turned my hand to costume design a few years ago when I created the outfits for 'This Is the Sea,' with Richard Harris and Samantha Morton. It's a very different discipline to being a fashion designer, though - you have to rein in your own vision and work to a tight brief.

John Rocha

I dress pop stars, and I dress my doctor. It's about attitude. I do what I love, and I'm lucky to do it. It's a long way from Hong Kong.

John Rocha

I think my love of form is especially informed by my background, whether this is creating a wonderful silhouette in a dress or finding the perfect shape for a bowl or the 'just so' angle of a table leg.

John Rocha

I think natural fibers look better over time. The more you wear them, they look even better.

John Rocha

One thing I learned from all my years in business is you really have to work with the experts: you can launch something yourself, but unless you have the expertise and the marketing strategies and machinery behind you, you'll never be successful.

John Rocha

I am trained as a fashion designer and do not claim to be an expert architect or anything like that. I won't do something unless I know I can do it.

John Rocha

When I was young, we always went to our posh cousins at Christmas. My dad made sure we had new shoes and clean clothes - he was really proud - and that's why I felt different from everyone living around me. We had the first television on the estate, the first fridge.

John Rocha

As you get older, your skin tone will change, and that means the colours that suit you best change, too. Take a trip to a department store and ask for advice, or simply hold colours close to your face in the mirror, as this should give you a good idea of what works.

John Rocha

I will never see myself as a businessman. I'm a designer. I have to be true to what I believe.

John Rocha

My family was quite poor, and the NHS was recruiting people from abroad to do psychiatric nursing. It was the only hope I had to leave Hong Kong.

John Rocha

Dubai is a vibrant city: Big cars, big buildings... it reminds me of my home town, Hong Kong. People are always on the move here, and there's a lot going on. There are some wonderful architecture and some not-so-wonderful.

John Rocha

At primary school, we would pick up plastic petals on the way home to make flowers. Now you might call it child labour, but we did it for pocket money.

John Rocha

As I get older and older, people like my work more and more.

John Rocha

We cater for fashion-conscious people.

John Rocha

The most important part of my work on The Orion Building was the creation within the apartments of living space which inspires people and the way they live their lives, whether they have bought a one-bedroom apartment or the penthouse. This building is beautiful to see, sense, and experience.

John Rocha