Davy Ye's basic requirements for his clothes and accessories are a low-key logo or no logo at all; a unique design; comfortable fabric; and exquisite workmanship.

Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Omega, Versace and Hugo Boss? "No," said the 45-year-old managing director of a foreign communications company. "Although these luxury brands have been admired by some Chinese people, to others, like me, they are somewhat synonymous with parvenu - a rich second-generation, or of graft-taking and bribery bureaucrats in China."

On that day, Ye wore a suit custom-made in a specific tailor's shop, a Swiss-made and limited-edition Jean Richard watch, and custom-made shoes, made in an independent shoe studio in Milan. Concerning bags, he said he likes the Punch series from Bree, a German bag-and-case brand established in 1970.