Dr. Kenneth K.K. Wang, MBE, MBBS. (1947 – 2010)
The origin and philosophy of Alvanon
Kenneth Kuk Kei Wang was born on January 15th 1947 in Swatow, China. His early childhood was spent in Swatow with his brother Calvin, his father Jimmy and extended family. At the age of nine, he moved to Hong Kong to join his mother, Beatrice. His secondary schooling was at Diocesan Boys School, where he excelled at athletics and music. He continued his education in England, where he graduated in 1973 from Guys Hospital Medical School with a Bachelor of Medicine.
In 1974, Dr. Wang returned with his wife Linda to Hong Kong to run his family’s garment manufacturing operation, Sterling Products Ltd, a multi-national children’s wear company founded in 1957 by his mother and Jack Mamiye. Dr. Wang built upon the existing relationship of trust and mutual respect with the new generation of Mamiyes to further expand the business. His dedicated staff, many of whom stayed with the Group for over 30 years, was located in many countries, including Singapore, Philippines, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, El Salvador, Mexico and China.
Dr. Wang always tried to look beyond what it was to be a traditional garment manufacturer. He innovated constantly, beginning with automated marker machines in the 70s, process control systems in the 80s, building a body scanner in the early 90s, garment visualization systems and concepts leveraging the internet in the late 90s and new fabric developments in the 00s. He has been granted numerous patents for his concepts and inventions.
Dr. Wang’s work has garnered international recognition, and in 1996 he was appointed a Member of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II. He has held positions in numerous educational institutions, was Chairman of the Clothing Industry Training Authority for 10 years and a council member of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He was the Chairman of both the Clothing Technology Demonstration Centre and the Apparel and Textile Quick Response Centre. Dr. Wang was active in trade associations and was a Vice-Chairman of the HK Garment Manufacturers Association and a Textile Council member. He was active in the community; a member of the Young President’s Organization, highly involved at DBS Old Boy’s Association and was its Chairman from 1985 – 1988. His work began in 1976 with Project Concern, a non-profit organization for medical, dental and eye care. He first joined as a part-time doctor in the TB clinic, continued to support the work and became Chairman in 2006.
In 2001, Dr. Wang founded Alvanon, a company born of his experience in the garment industry. He had a vision of how clothing could take advantage of new technologies, and embarked on a plan to realize his ideas, starting with scanners and fit mannequins. Alvanon’s mission is to revolutionize fit for the apparel industry. It is fitting that he named his company after Thomas Alva Edison, whose mantra was “I have not failed; I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work” and that “the value of an idea lies in the using of it.”
Dr. Wang believed that once a ”brand” had defined its competitive edge through fit, then standardization and training became the keys to a good working process. In developed countries, he believed that the fashion industry needed to enhance the manufacturing understanding of would-be designers. In developing countries, he believed the apparel industry required a method to teach skills to a labor force that had little education and also raise the technical expertise of the skilled workforce. Alvanon will continue to educate and follow his beliefs.
Dr. Wang lived his life according to a strong personal moral code, always trying to do what he thought was good and right. He lived each moment to its fullest always striving to learn from yesterday, live for today and hope for tomorrow. Even when he was diagnosed with rare cancer of the thymus, he took every opportunity to visit friends, family and work partners. He continued to write and lecture on his thoughts on how Chinese philosophy could garner innovative thinking in companies. He never stopped pushing the boundaries of his personal knowledge. Ultimately he was willing to experiment on himself, and worked with the doctors on implementing personalized treatments that incorporated both Western and Chinese knowledge.
Dr. Wang’s vision and his underlying core values will be perpetuated through the lives and work of his children – Janice, Jason, Jonathan, Jeffrey and Jeremy.
Dr. Kenneth K.K. Wang, MBE, MBBS. (1947 – 2010)
Christina Onusko
