The mysterious Singaporean owner of Aupen spoke to WWD

As it turned out, Aupen’s Nicholas Tan is our former national swimmer, who, became a model and, in 2014, was one of the faces for Dolce & Gabanna’s spring/summer campaign of that year. His true identity was finally made public in a WWD editorial after two months of speculation, following the YouTuber Tanner Leatherstein’s doubt of Aupen’s claims that their bags were manufactured in Singapore. The owner of Aupen finally spoke about his desire to remain mysteriously private in a business that value personal branding: “Before starting Aupen,” he told WWD, “I had achieved success in a variety of areas from being a champion national swimmer for Singapore, to being a fashion model, to doing tech IPOs. I didn’t want to be pigeon-holed into a particular category or industry so that’s why I kept a low profile.”

Success, even in other areas, had not allowed him to take on new roles without the fear of being unfairly categorised. Mr Tan, who graduated from Harvard with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology, is perhaps most remembered for his swimming, having represented our nation in the SEA Games and other regional and world meets. He joined our national team at age 15 and came to the city’s notice when he won the gold medal in the 4 X 100m freestyle relay at the 2007 SEA Games, clocking 59.47 seconds. It is not known when he retired from swimming to go into modelling. He told Men’s Folio in 2014: “To be honest, I’ve never seen myself as a model.” And he did not wish to pursue a modelling career as he “wanted to do something challenging. Something that would push me to learn new things.” He mentioned other things he liked—acting and producing dance music—but not the making of bags.

Nicholas Tan, who graduated from Harvard with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology, is perhaps most remembered for his swimming, having represented our nation in the SEA Games

Mr Tan also clarified with WWD who the other guy, also surnamed Tan but unrelated to him, is—the equally mysterious fellow who goes by the moniker Sky. The other Mr Tan was the brand’s photographer, but is no longer employed by the company. According to models.com, the man of the moment was, in fact, discovered by Sky Tan. Nicholas Tan also confirmed that Aupen was founded by him in Singapore and he is the sole owner. There is no mention of the funding he received in creating a brand that has been courting the world and celebrities. It is true that Aupen will be launching a new line of products with the “support” of LVMH Métiers d’Art in Paris, which includes arrangements that would allow Aupen access to expertise such as Tannery Roux, whose clients are not just LVMH labels, but other French brands, such as Hermès.

When the new Aupen products will be launched, he did not disclose, only saying they were preparing the Paris launch, and then teased: “maybe next month”. No news either if they would be made available in his homeland (although sales are conducted through their homepage and purchases are delivered worldwide). He did reveal that there would be a new category, and that he is in the midst of setting up a Paris design studio so as to work better with the ateliers under LVMH Métiers d’Art. The optimistic among us are wondering if this might be the making of Singapore’s first true luxury brand.

Photo: Want Management