This week, Emirates Woman speaks to Cheryl Leung, founder of SAU LEE, a contemporary womenswear label that integrates Chinese heritage with modern silhouettes.
Welcome to the Emirates Woman weekly series ‘How I got my job as…’ where we speak to some incredible entrepreneurs and businesswomen both based in the UAE and globally to find out about their career paths that led them to where they are now; what their daily routines look like; the advice they’d give to those starting out; and the hurdles they’ve had to overcome.
Leung’s professional foundation began at luxury fashion retailer Lane Crawford, where she gained experience in buying, merchandising, and operations during the retailer’s expansion into Shanghai and Chengdu. This tenure highlighted a significant lack of Chinese representation within the global luxury landscape, prompting her to launch a brand that elevates traditional craftsmanship for the international market. The label has recently gained significant visibility on the F1 paddock, notably through Alexandra Saint Mleux (Leclerc), and has also become a consistent choice for prominent content creators globally.
Read through the interview below to get to know the mastermind behind this up-and-coming label.
What was your favourite subject at school?
My favourite subject was Drama. I loved stepping into different characters and seeing the world from a different perspective. I think that sense of imagination and emotional connection has stayed with me and still shows up in how I approach design today.
What was your first job?
I always knew I wanted to go into fashion, but coming from a traditional family where my parents and siblings built careers in finance, there was an expectation to follow a more traditional path. I started my career at Bloomberg, working on the production crew for Bloomberg News. I began on the teleprompter and later became a floor manager, making sure everything ran seamlessly and on time. It was a fast-paced, high-pressure environment, and it really taught me how to stay calm and focused. But it also gave me a lot of clarity. I realised that while I respected that path, it wasn’t where my passion was. That became a turning point for me. I decided to pursue what I loved, which led me to the Lane Crawford management program, where I began to understand both the creative and commercial sides of the fashion industry.
What inspired you to enter the fashion space and launch your brand?
As I entered the industry, I started to notice a gap. Chinese design was appreciated, but it wasn’t always positioned in a way that felt modern or desirable on a global stage. That stayed with me. Over time, it became something I wanted to explore more seriously, which eventually led me to start SAU LEE. I wanted to offer a different perspective on Chinese design to a global audience. One that moves beyond outdated or exoticised perceptions, and instead feels modern, relevant, and exciting, something women genuinely want to wear today.
What are the key elements of your role?
I’m involved in every part of the business, from design to brand direction to overall strategy. As Founder, Creative Director, and CEO, my role is about setting a clear direction and making sure everything feels aligned. That includes the product, how we communicate, and how we grow the business. It also means staying close to the details, while always thinking about where the brand is going next.
Talk us through your daily routine.
No two days are ever the same, but during the week, I usually spend my mornings with my kids. I have a newborn at the moment, so it’s a bit of a juggle between feeding, cuddles, and playing with my toddler. It’s a few hours of blissful chaos before the day begins, and it’s really important to me. I’ll usually get into the office at 9 am, and from there, the day moves quickly. A couple of days a week, I’m on calls with our US-based sales and PR showrooms, and on other days, I start by catching up with the team leads across the business. From there, it’s a mix of reviewing samples, fittings, planning upcoming shoots, and delving into meetings across product, sales, and operations. I block out one day a week to focus purely on design. Those days are a bit different. I like to step away from the office so I can design without distractions, usually with a reality show running in the background. My guilty pleasure is RHOBH, and I find it oddly relaxing while I work. In the evenings, I head home to spend time with my family, and then usually finish off a bit more work before calling it a night.
It’s not just about having a strong aesthetic. You need to create something people genuinely want to buy, and something that can sustain itself over time.
What advice do you have for anyone looking to follow in the same footsteps?
Be very clear on your point of view, but also be realistic about building something that works as a business. It’s not just about having a strong aesthetic. You need to create something people genuinely want to buy, and something that can sustain itself over time. If it’s not commercially viable, it’s very hard to keep going.
We’re not trying to recreate traditional pieces, but reinterpret them in a way that fits into how women dress today.
What are the design pillars that define your brand?
At the core, everything we do comes back to three things: craft, sensuality, and modernity. Craft is about respecting the level of detail, beauty and technique that exists within Chinese design, but applying it in a way that feels intentional and wearable. Sensuality is about how the clothes make a woman feel. It’s about confidence, feeling comfortable in your own skin, and creating pieces that allow women to express themselves. And modernity is what ties it all together. We’re not trying to recreate traditional pieces, but reinterpret them in a way that fits into how women dress today.
What are the hero styles for SAU LEE?
We’re best known for our modern cheongsams. We take the tailoring and silhouette of the traditional cheongsam and reinterpret these heritage elements in a way that feels modern and fun, whether that’s through interesting fabrications such as sheer crystal mesh, or adding unexpected details such as cut-outs and corsetry.
What is the best piece of advice you ever received?
Be very clear on your point of view. Not just aesthetically, but in what you stand for and what you want to say. It’s easy to get pulled into what’s trending or what seems to be working for others, but that rarely builds something lasting. The brands that truly endure are those that feel distinct and intentional. That comes from having a strong perspective and staying committed to it.
And what is the worst?
Don’t start your own business. If I had listened to that, I would have missed out on one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done.
What has been the biggest challenge you had to overcome?
One of the biggest challenges has been shifting how people perceive Chinese design. For a long time, it’s been seen as something very traditional, tied to specific occasions, or presented in a way that feels overly exoticised. That can create a distance, where people don’t always see it as something that fits into their everyday wardrobe. A big part of what we’ve had to do is reframe that. To show that Chinese design can feel current, wearable, and part of how women dress today, without losing the depth and meaning behind it.
What are your goals for the future?
To continue expanding the SAU LEE world globally. That means growing our presence across more channels, not just online but also through physical retail, whether that’s through our partners or our own spaces. It’s about making the brand more accessible while continuing to build something that shows Chinese fashion can be modern, desirable, and part of how women dress today.
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Images: Supplied and Instagram @saulee
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: emirateswoman.com
