Meliá Ho Tram Beach Resort is dressing its staff in a runway-worthy collection of apparel that brings a bold, contemporary layer to Vietnamese culture, after joining forces with a sustainable fashion house.
The 17-hectare resort overlooking Ho Tram beach has teamed up with Hanoi-based Chula Fashion to put a Spanish spin on the traditional Vietnamese “ao dai” garment.
A tight-fitting silk tunic worn over pants, the ao dai is to the Vietnamese what the kimono is to the Japanese. Defying pigeon-holing as a dress or a pantsuit, the ao dai has a 1000-year history and, it is said, reveals everything and shows nothing at the same time.
Meliá Ho Tram’s door women and waitresses don abstract interpretations of the iconic Vietnamese ao dai costume designed by Chula Fashion, turning many a holidaymaker’s heads with captivating experiments in pattern and color that also retain the feminine lines of the iconic garment.
As a result of guests asking after the striking creations to take home, one-off dresses by Chula Fashion are also for sale in the resort’s gift shop.
“As both our resort and Chula Fashion have a deep affection for Vietnam and deep Spanish roots, and we both bring a fresh, contemporary approach to what we do, it’s only natural for Melia Ho Tram to join fashion forces with Chula Fashion, a sustainable and community-minded fashion house, to create one-of-a-kind ao dai,” said the resort’s general manager Manuel Ferriol.
Meliá Ho Tram celebrated its opening in April last year as the first property to open in southern Vietnam under Spanish company Meliá Hotels and Resorts.
Founded by Spanish couple Diego Cortizas and Laura Fontan in 2004 after they arrived in Vietnam as tourists – and fell in love with the country so much they decided to stay – Chula Fashion employs mostly people with physical disabilities and focuses on slow, sustainable fashion with zero-waste.
Chula Fashion has become a popular reference in the Vietnamese fashion and art industry, with its dresses appearing in international fashion shows and winning global awards. In addition to its headquarters in Hanoi that also hosts live concerts and fashion shows, Chula Fashion has shops situated in Hanoi, Hoi An and Ho Chi Minh City.
Meliá Ho Tram is home to 152 rooms and suites, 73 villas and a host of world-class facilities such as three restaurants including a beach club, three swimming pools, a swim-up bar, a coffee shop, a 10-treatment room spa, an executive lounge, a ballroom and conference facilities, a kids club, gymnasium and more.
All 73 The Level Villas feature their own private pools as well as access to the executive lounge and a host of bespoke privileges. The two-, three- and four-bedroom The Level Villas range in size from 220sqm to 465sqm and also have their own BBQ areas, outdoor showers and gardens, living areas and separate dining areas. Spacious terraces and/or balconies jut from all of the Mediterranean-style villas.
