It's a rooftop bar at the boutique Emperor Hotel that opened a few months ago just outside the east gate of the Forbidden City, a stone's throw from the moat.

"I wanted to do something for my country, " she says. She worked for the Ministry of Finance setting up budgets; and ran a boutique hotel.

The Best Fashion Street "should offer an eclectic mix of boutique and high street, designer and high street for all clothing tastes and ages.

It had seen off Apple, relegating its rival to the role of a boutique computer maker.

East of Commercial Drive, things are a bit edgier, as is south of Main Street (SoMa), but both are filled with alterna-boutiques, galleries and restaurants.