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father idolised James Bond so
much that he decided to name
me after him. The spelling was
changed to Bon to give it a more
local feel.”
Bon enrolled into the School
of Fashion & Merchandising
in Los Angeles, Cal ifornia
after high school, where he
began to really discover the
depth of menswear fashion
straight from one of its biggest
source - Hollywood. He had an
invaluable year-long job training
stint under the tutelage of Rick
Pallack, the fashion guru who
dressed all the major Hollywood
celebrities. “My job there was
as a stock person who assisted
the salesmen. I had to stand
next to them and wait until they
closed the sale before I could
start putting the items that had
been taken out back into their
places. I learned a lot about
finishing, labelling and where
stuff was made, which helped
me in my career as a designer,”
explains Bon.
Sought after
The designer gained further
work experience and insights
into the lifestyle of the rich and
famous at the Ralph Lauren Bou-
tique in Beverly Hills and Gary’s
Tux in Studio City, California,
before returning to Malaysia.
He was offered a job at Spark
Manshop as a window dresser
after showing up in a full suit
for the interview. He ended up
doing more than what the job
required by helping out with the
company’s marketing, which
helped transform the menswear
brand into a household name in
Malaysia.
Helping the brand was not
the only thing on Bon’s agenda
though. He left Spark Manshop
in 1995 to start his own company
under his own name and began
taking up consultancy projects
for local corporations. But it
was Bon’s style that caught the
eyes of his customers. “I like to
dress up and people like it too. I
got asked a lot about my outfits,
all of which I made myself. I
began to get orders for my own
designs and that is how Bon
Zainal became a brand.”
20 years later, Bon Zainal is
still one of the most sought after
menswear labels in Malaysia.
Bon sticks to his proper mens-
wear sensibility with up-to-date
cuts and designs. He is always
in suit which makes him the
perfect representation of his own
brand. “I have been wearing one
since day one. It is my pride.
Whenever I serve my customer,
it is more like serving myself. I
look into all the detailing, refine-
ment, cut and the type of look
that they want to portray. That
is what I do.”
With so many accolades and
awards under his belt, including
“Mercedes-Benz STYLO Fashion
Awards ‘Designer of the Year’
2014’ andMercedes-Benz STYLO
Fashion Awards ‘Best Designer
Showcase 2015’, Bon is ready to
plan the next five-year phase for
his label. 2016 will see more in-
ternational ventures along with
a ready-to-wear collection which
he has been putting on the back
burner for quite sometime. “This
year, I wish for things to be
better, especially economically,
since the market has been very
slow. Personally, I hope to travel
more, gain knowledge and stay
ahead of things. All these, while
staying true to myself and being
down-to-earth.”