In 2002, Singaporean fashion brand Raoul was a mere local name specializing in men's shirts. Six years later it has developed into an international brand with more than 33 stores in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, with collections for both working men and women.

It will be opening franchises in New York next year, according to owner Douglas Benjamin.

The secret to Raoul's success, according to owners Douglas and Odile Benjamin, was by responding to customer feedback, in particularly from the women who came to their shops and requested Raoul to make shirts for working women as well. The Benjamins were in Jakarta late last month to attend the showcase of Raoul's 2008 Fall/Winter collection at Pacific Place Jakarta.

"So Raoul is a brand not where, you know, we sit in the office and we say *Ok how can we drum up more business; let's do this, let's do that'. It's really from the feedback from the customers who come to the store," Douglas said.

Douglas is responsible for the business part of Raoul while Odile is responsible for the designs.

The couple said women would come to the stores with their male counterparts who were buying shirts for the office, and they -- the women -- would then buy Raoul shirts as well and have them altered to fit their bodies.

"And it looked awful."

Later the female customers requested Raoul to make feminine shirts for them as well. Raoul launched its women's wear line in 2005.

"We started off with ladies shirts. Our customers came in and they bought one shirt, three shirts, five shirts and seven shirts. And then they came in and said *Ok I have enough shirts, what I need are fashionable tops, for the weekend, or if I want to go out at night or something'. So then we said OK, and then we made shirts from nicer fabrics, such as silk and organza," Douglas said.

The women's collection has grown and now includes accessories such as shoes, belts and bags, as well as nightgowns.

For the fall/winter 2008 collection, Odile was inspired by 19th century impressionist Claude Monet's painting of an autumn tree. The blouses, shirts and gowns are in warm autumn colors of ocher, yellow, orange, plum and moss green. Meanwhile the cuts were inspired by art deco of the 1920s.

For the women's collection, Raoul has a selection of cocoon and slim skirts along with leather skirts and flare dresses. Stocking and lace-up boots are paired with knee-length dresses.

The men's shirt collection is in the same color palette as the women's.

Aiming for office wear, Raoul's style leans to the conservative side with clean cuts.

"One of the things we recognize is that our designs are more about the quality of the fabric and the finishing, instead of seeing the style a mile away and being able to say 'Oh that's a Raoul shirt'," Odile said.

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