Fighting Eel Celebrates 20 Years with a New Store
Designer Lan Chung spills on what to expect from Fighting Eel’s newest O‘ahu location.
Photo: Aaron K. Yoshino
It started back in 1999 with a simple pair of culottes, sewn by hand on Lan Chung and Rona Bennett’s living room floor. Today, the local fashion brand boasts a die-hard following, 45-plus employees and four O‘ahu stores with a fifth on the way.
Chung now heads the company solo and continues to push it in fresh directions. Along with its popular apparel and swimwear collections, the label’s latest boutique, set to open on East Mānoa Road this winter, will offer the most expanded array of Fighting Eel home goods to date. Expect bedding, drinkware, towels and more. The 1,200-square-foot space will also stock several new Fighting Eel categories, including pet items and plateware. Additionally, Chung is developing a dressier apparel range she’s calling the Black Label.
SEE ALSO: Sneak Peek: Fighting Eel Opens a New Boutique in Kapolei
Chung’s gusto for branching out has been key to Fighting Eel’s success. “There’s still a lot of room for us to grow,” she says. Expanding to other islands is on the table. “I’d even love to open a Fighting Eel café one day—the Mānoa store has a courtyard in the back, with a stream next to it. That would be a great spot.”
And while many brands nowadays are solely online, Fighting Eel is leaning heavily on its brick-and-mortar model. “Our customers like feeling the products and connecting with the team selling them—that’s how they connect with the brand,” Chung says. “They get to know you, then they’re not just supporting the brand, they’re supporting you.”
