Thomas Wee

Thomas Wee (born 1949) is a Singaporean fashion designer. He was active in the 1980s and the 1990s. He returned to designing in 2008.

Early life

Wee's mother was a seamstress from Shanghai. He made his first cheongsam when he was 14.^[1]

Career

In the 1970s, Wee was employed at the boutique Flair as a designer.^[1] In 1978, he entered the Her World Young Designer’s Contest.^[2]

In 1983, he established his first high-end boutique, "Thomas Wee". He established "Mixables", the first career wear line for women by a Singaporean designer. In 1985, he was selected to represent Singapore in "The Best of Asian Designers", "The Best of the Best" and "The Premier Designer Show".^[3] By the late 1980s, he was considered to be one of the "Magnetic Seven", a group of pioneering fashion designers in Singapore, along with Tan Yoong, Bobby Chng, Celia Loe, Esther Tay, Kelvin Choo and Peter Kor.^[1][4]

From 1999 to 2010, he taught fashion at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts.^[3] In 2001, he established another boutique, "Thomas Wee Luxe", which he closed in 2003.^[2] In 2008, he launched a show at the Singapore Fashion Festival.^[5] In 2016, he established the boutique Maison Thomas Wee at the Mandarin Gallery.^[2]