Patron
Ms Sim Ann
Senior Minister of State
Ministry of National Development
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Sim Ann is currently Senior Minister of State (SMS) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Development. Prior to entering politics, she worked as a civil servant from 1998 to 2011, serving in the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Ministry of Trade and Industry, amongst others. She has been an elected Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Bukit Timah ward of Holland-Bukit Timah GRC since 2011. She has also been appointed by the 37th PAP EXCO to chair the PAP Women’s Wing.
Council 2024/2026
Office-Bearers
Sharon Lim
President
Sharon Lim is the Chairwoman of Browzwear, a leading fashion tech company that partners with leading fashion retailers, brands & manufacturers globally in their digital transformation. A well-recognized tech visionary for the fashion industry, she has been both an advocate & consultant for sustainable change in the industry through technology for 20 years.
Prior to her technology career, she was the General Manager for Tommy Hilfiger in Latin America where she oversaw in the region the product development, supply chain, retail and wholesale functions of the company. This experience showed her the unsustainable challenges of the industry, and triggered her transition to the technology world with the intent to develop tech and consulting solutions for the industry globally.
Browzwear was included in the 2021 Fortune Impact 20 list as a business that offers products and / services that have a positive effect on the world – a testament of her tenacity to the mission of enabling digital transformation in the fashion industry.
She is also a board mentor to TBN Asia, a network that supports Social Enterprises to achieve their impact goals. In addition, she volunteers as a mentor for Digital Mission Ventures – a faith-based incubator that trains early-stage tech founders.
Felicia Gan
Vice President
Ms Gan joined Ghim Li since 2006 starting as a legal officer and have rotated in various roles in business development, product development and design, factory operations before her promotion CEO in 2019. Under Ms Gan’s leadership she continues to build on Ghim Li strategic direction, grow and develop the organisation, strengthen partnerships, and build new relationships. Ms Gan has been conferred The Public Service Medal by Singapore’s President at the 56th National Day 2021 by the President of the Republic of Singapore. This Award recognises her efforts, and GLG Group’s commitment and contribution to the nation during the pandemic. On 18 July 2024, under Ms Gan’s leadership, Ghim Li being conferred Company of Good Award demonstrating commitment at the national level to Corporate Purpose and making a positive impact across the People, Society, Governance, Environment and Economic dimensions.
Clarence Lee
Honorary Treasurer
Clarence is the CEO of Lee Yin Apparel Group, and an Advisor to the Singapore Fashion Council.
He believes that sustainability rests strongly on two touchstones – effective and timely application of technology, and acting now with the cards we have rather than holding out for a better hand. Since joining Lee Yin, Clarence has emphasized the adoption of renewable energy, beginning with the installation of a first solar power plant in their production facility in 2016. Beyond such top-of-mind sustainability initiatives, he also champions process innovation (e.g., digitalization throughout the business) and product innovation (e.g., smart garments), which all contribute towards reducing carbon emissions in the supply chain. He continues to explore new upcycling and recycling perspectives and opportunities in their manufacturing and retail businesses. Before joining Lee Yin, he spent time as a practising lawyer. His strong interest in technology then took him to places like Visa, Yahoo! and Adobe for an inside view of these visionary brands.
Rajul Mehta
Honorary Secretary
Rajul Mehta is an established International Artist who has been recognized for her unique art styles used in all of her renowned art works. Her works can be seen in many art exhibitions and galleries all over the world.
Rajul is also the creative mind and founder of the Queenmark brand. In 2013, while visiting Mongolia, Rajul saw the amazing quality and beauty of cashmere that was being produced there which gave her much inspiration in transferring her artistic styles onto a gorgeous cashmere shawl. Her creative ideas hence brought forth the start of the Queenmark story Malaysia, India and Vietnam.
Ordinary Council Members
Nicole van der Elst Desai
Council Member
Nicole van der Elst Desai is the founder of VDE Consultancy, a consulting and advisory firm for companies in the textile and fashion industry.
She is a member of the Supervisory board of Lenzing, the chair of Singapore Fashion Councils’ Sustainability Steering Committee, an advisory board member at Delvify, an AI fashion tech platform, and a mentor at Fashion for Good.
Nicole, a graduate of the Amsterdam Fashion Institute and an alumnus of INSEAD’s Leading the Business of Sustainability, is passionate about creating better products and processes in the fashion industry that leave behind a better planet for future generations..
Esther Tay
Council Member
Esther Tay is a pioneer Singapore fashion designer, and was the first Singaporean designer to enter into the Japanese retail market by way of department store giant Takashimaya in the early 90’s. Her label, Esta, also stocked collections in El Corte, Spain’s largest departmental store chain, and in local retailers like Isetan, Daimaru, Tokyu, Yaohan, Galeries Lafayette, and Metro. In 2023, she was inducted into the Singapore Women’s Hall of Fame for her achievements in business and enterprise.
She is now currently the MD and Creative Director of ESTA Pte Ltd, a one-stop uniform provider that offers both turnkey uniform services, as well as ready-to-wear styles for quick turnarounds.
Dione Song
Council Member
Dione Song is the CEO of Love, Bonito. She believes in working with the startup community and is a mentor with 500 Startups. She is also a board member at Ramblin’ Brands, a sexual wellness consumer brand out of Asia.
Prior to being the CEO of Love, Bonito, Dione was at Sephora Digital heading up the Australia & New Zealand and the Digital Marketing for the region. Before this, she was the Managing Director of ZALORA Singapore, the largest online fashion marketplace in Southeast Asia.
Dione, a graduate from NYU Stern School of Business and Università Bocconi, is also strongly passionate about female empowerment, diversity, wellness & education.
Associate Council Members
Dro Tan
Council Member
Dro Tan is Matex’s Executive Director since 2010. He is responsible for the group’s business, branding projects, and product innovation and development. He is also actively involved in the group’s diversification projects, to complement core businesses. Prior to Matex, Dro was with architectural firms in Seoul, Korea and Singapore.
Dro graduated with a Masters in Architecture and Minor in Technopreneurship from the National University of Singapore, focusing on the global study and development of sustainable suburban communities.
Esther Huang
Council Member
Esther is currently Head of Digital and Experience design for National Gallery Singapore. An experienced professional with over a decade’s experience, she has driven numerous first-to-market and high-impact strategic projects in key markets such as China, Singapore and Australia.
Some of her significant achievements include end-to-end transformation projects in complex retail ecosystems, often including multiple disciplines such as digital innovation, marketing, design and real estate.
A diverse thinker and strategic thought leader, Esther is also a recipient of the Vice-Chancellor Award for her practice field research in sustainable fashion value creation, intersecting with technology practice. She was also awarded “Young Designers Award” by Design Council for her fashion design concept collection inspired by stationery. Esther has also been invited as a jury panel for the ICSC APAC marketing awards; panel for FUTR (Millennial 20/20) to share her learnings and experiences.
Sonja Prokopec
Council Member
Prof. Sonja Prokopec is a professor of marketing and the Associate Dean of Faculty at ESSEC Business School in Singapore. Her research explores consumer judgment and decision-making. She is also interested in understanding the factors that affect brand perceptions of luxury brands. Prof. Prokopec’s research has been published in the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Psychology, and International Journal of Research in Marketing among others, as well as a variety of media including the Harvard Business Review, Huffington Post, the Business of Fashion and the Business Times Singapore.
She was the ESSEC LVMH Chair Professor of Luxury Brand Management for 12 years, from 2010 – 2022. She was named one of the Top 40 under 40 Business School Professors worldwide in 2015 (Poets&Quants ranking). Outside of teaching and research, she actively advises companies from the luxury and automotive industry as well as start-ups with regard to consumer behavior trends, consumer research and marketing and brand management issues. She is also an advisory council member of Singapore Fashion Council and VOGUE Council. Prof. Prokopec received her PhD in Marketing from the University of Houston in 2007
Danelle Woo
Council Member
Danelle Woo is the founder and designer for Singapore label Aijek, a contemporary womenswear brand stocked across US, Asia and the Middle East. Stocksts include Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus, Shopbop, Anthropologie, Revolve, ASOS, Tangs, etc.
Her experience ranges from working with international US buyers and showrooms, to overseeing supply chains and operations specifically in China, and international business development. Since retiring from the business in 2020, Danelle has played mentor to upcoming local designers, working closely with SFC and CRIB on workshops and consult sessions to guide young brands.
Danelle lived out of Singapore for the last 15 years, and has set up homes in Sydney, Seoul, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Guangzhou. She graduated from the University of New South Wales Australia, where she received her Master of Commerce in Marketing.
Aijek is a 10-year old Singapore fashion label. The brand won Fashion Futures 2.0 – An partnership between Singapore Fashion Week and the Council of Fashion Designers of America, and presented Singapore in the Asia Fashion Federation 2017.
Afzal Imram
Council Member
Afzal Imram is the co-founder of State Property, a contemporary fine jewellery label established in 2015 alongside his wife. With a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design from the National University of Singapore, Afzal is responsible for the business and brand development of State Property.
Under his leadership, State Property has secured prestigious retailers such as Dover Street Market London, Net-a-Porter, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Moda Operandi. The brand’s designs have garnered international attention, with notable figures like Michelle Obama, Lady Gaga, Nicole Kidman, and Taylor Swift wearing their jewellery. Additionally, Afzal’s personal works have been exhibited in renowned museums and galleries in Milan, Paris, and Singapore.
Afzal’s achievements with State Property have been recognized with several awards, including the Singapore Fashion Awards in 2017, the President’s Design Awards in 2023, and being named one of Singapore Tatler’s Best Jewellers from 2018 to 2021. He is also a member of the Diamond Exchange of Singapore, reflecting his commitment to excellence in the jewellery industry.
Advisors
Wilson Teo
Advisor
Wilson is the Executive Director of TEO Holdings Pte Ltd, a privately-owned investments holding company based in Singapore. Its group of companies are in the business of real estate, apparel manufacturing, trading and outsourcing as well as brand development for wholesale, retail and distribution in the baby products industry. The group’s investments are focused in Asia Pacific, with presence in Australia, China, Cambodia, Malaysia, India and Vietnam.
Mark Lee
Advisor
Mark is the Chief Executive Officer of Sing Lun Holdings Pte Ltd, a privately-owned enterprise, across a diverse range of business interests worldwide. The Group’s key business interests include Industries, Investments and Real Estate, and was awarded the EY-Standard Chartered Family Business Award of Excellence in 2018.
In recognition for his entrepreneur spirit, Mr. Lee was awarded “Most Outstanding Entrepreneur” during the Asia Pacific Entrepreneur Awards 2010 in Singapore. He is also the winner of the prestigious Ernst & Young (EY) Entrepreneur of the Year (Manufacturing) 2015. In 2016, Mr Lee was also one of 30 members of the Committee for Future Economy (CFE) setup by Prime Minister in 2016 to position Singapore well for the future.
Kennie Ting
Advisor
A writer and storyteller at heart with a passion for the heritage and material culture of Asian port cities, Kennie Ting is the former director of the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) and Peranakan Museum in Singapore. Over his eight-year tenure as Museum Director, he is credited for making the ACM more relevant to Singapore’s heritage and context by transforming it from an ethnographically- and geographically-themed museum to one with a cross-cultural and global outlook centred on the port cities narrative. During this time, he also expanded the museum’s collecting and curatorial scope to include works of contemporary photography, fashion and design. He has written the books The Romance of the Grand Tour: 100 Years of Travel in South East Asia (2015), the Heritage book in the Singapore Chronicles series (2015), Singapore 1819: A Living Legacy (2019) and most recently, The Great Port Cities of Asia: In History (2024).
Oliver Tan
Advisor
Oliver Tan is the Co-Founder and CEO of ViSenze, a retail tech AI company that is recognized by CB Insights, Forrester and Gartner for its innovations and solutions. An ex-corporate suit turned startup entrepreneur, Oliver is also a member of Forbes Tech Council since 2017, authoring over 40 commentaries from retail transformation, AI to digital innovations. In public service, Oliver advocates responsible AI developments and governance; serving as a member of the Artificial Intelligence Technical Committee (AITC) in Singapore and on the board of the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore.