Krystal Koo: Building Communities and Big Ideas on the Foundation of Culture 古菁藍: 建構理想生活圈
ENGLISH 英 : Leanne Delap | CHINESE 中 : 謝慧玲 Linda Tse
VENUE: Daphne Restaurant, Forma Presentation Centre
ART DIRECTION: Deborah Lau-Yu · Photography: Jackson Huang, Ikonica Images
VIDEOGRAPHER: Karl Man, Eyespie Productions
PHOTOGRAPHY ASSISTANT: Jonah Wiley, Ikonica Images
FASHION DIRECTION & STYLING: Nicholas Mellamphy
STYLING ASSISTANT: Matthew Mederios · MAKEUP: Robert Weir
HAIR: Tony Pham · COORDINATION: Rebecca Thompson, Rhonda Lam
Krystal Koo’s journey of integrating her diverse worlds came to a head at the May 2023 UNMET Gala, which she co-chaired on behalf of the WoodGreen Foundation and its clients’ unmet needs. Held at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, the event played on the celeb-stacked Met Gala that Anna Wintour throws annually at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. The theme, Come as You Are, gave her guests—representing the cream of Toronto society drawn from the younger generation of Westons, Rogers, Websters, and Bitoves—the opportunity to showcase their heritage. Koo, who is Chinese, chose to wear a stunning white cheongsam by Zuhair Murad paired with a billowing Kelly-green cape by Greta Constantine. Additionally, she opted for a traditional Chinese banquet, served family-style and catered by Toronto’s Michelin Bib Gourmand-ranked restaurant MIMI Chinese.
一提到古菁藍(Krystal Koo)這個名字，除了是跨國房地產女強人，亦是時尚優雅的代表。這位在士嘉堡長大的移民後代童年經歷病患，長大後不但事業家庭美滿，更積極參與及推動大大小小的慈善社區活動；她的故事，像破繭蝴蝶般精彩美麗。
“Eating family style was how my family passed along our traditions,” Koo says. “It’s how we would eat and share and build our community together.”
This was a bold move for a big-ticket gala, where the food tends to run from rubber chicken to wee portions of short rib and risotto, to having guests filleting communal fish at the table. The cultural fusion approach worked, however, bringing in $1.5 million on its inaugural evening.
Top & Pants by JASON WU. Heels by SAINT LAURENT. Necklace and Earrings by BULGARI. Bracelet by TIFFANY & CO.
Koo and her husband, developer Michael Cooper, both work in real estate and spend a lot of their time and money giving back to the city, focused at the local level. “Real estate,” Koo says, “allows me to see how people interact, the way they live.” Your life, she elaborates, “extends beyond your house; it is how you feel safe and connected, how you feel part of a community.”
The WoodGreen Foundation is one of Toronto's largest social service agencies, offering a wide range of integrated programs. These include affordable housing, financial counselling, health services, child care, employment support, and newcomer settlement services. Koo believes that such resources would have greatly benefited her parents when they first arrived in Canada from Hong Kong in 1971. “It is all the things my parents needed but didn't have access to,” she says. Growing up in Scarborough, one of the first Asian families in the area, her parents’ house was full, with an open-door policy at its heart. “My parents still live in that house,” Koo continues. “They bought it when I was four months old.”
十四人共住同一屋檐下
Krystal的父母是香港移民，1971年來到加拿大，雙方均來自大家庭。「父親那邊有九個兄弟姐妹，連媽媽在內，她的家庭共有七個孩子。其中媽媽的兩個姐妹嫁了我爸爸的兩個兄弟，古氏家族人口眾多而且非常親密，小時候，我們一家三代子孫與祖父母同住一屋，一同生活，我和我的表兄弟姐妹親密得像親生兄弟姐妹，但不難想像的是，屋內亦有不少詏撟吵鬧。」她就是在這樣熱鬧的大家庭中長大。
Both sides came from very large families: her mom’s family of seven kids grew up in Hong Kong where they ran a little grocery store under a McDonald’s; her dad’s family of nine siblings in China was split up during communism when their land and factories were seized. The plot thickens: “My mom’s two sisters married my dad’s two brothers. Three families of Koos all lived in the same house at one point. I feel like we were more brothers and sisters,” she says of her cousins.
Jacket & Pants by HUISHAN ZHANG · Heels by GIANVITO ROSSI · Belt by SAINT LAURENT · Apollo Ear Clips by TIFFANY & CO. SCHLUMBERGER · Bracelet by TIFFANY & CO. Bird On A Rock Schlumberger (SIC) Brooch by TIFFANY & CO.
“We were all very close, but it also caused a lot of friction.” For instance, “If the sisters were in a fight, the brothers would be, ‘I’m sorry, but I have to side with my wife!’”
But it was from her parents, Koo adds, “that I learned so much about myself and where my values lie today.”
She describes a childhood spent back and forth to the hospital with a chronic childhood disease that remained undiagnosed for years. “It is now called cyclic vomiting,” Koo explains. The illness took its toll on her and her family; her dad had to quit his job as he was the only driver to get her back and forth to doctors. “But it gave me my drive to succeed,” she says. Everyone kept telling her parents she would never succeed and would always need support. “That gave me the drive to flip that scenario,” she says, “to one day take care of them.”
在Krystal四個月大時，她的父母於士嘉堡首次置業。「對新移民來說，那完全是美夢成真。我爸媽現在仍住在那房子裏。」Krystal自言其成長過程中，並沒有豐富的物質生活，家裏共住了十四人，她與兄長都沒有自己的房間，但父母的慷慨大方教曉了她與人分享、互助互愛的精神。「16歲時，我初戀男朋友被父母虐待，我爸媽二話不說就叫他搬過來，我哥和表弟跟他同住一房。我父母就是如此，任何時候都樂於伸出援手。」
Square-Neck Metallic Eyelash Tweed Sleeveless Mini Dress and Jacket from GIAMBATTISTA VALLI · 145mm Leather Platform Sandals by SAINT LAURENT.
Krystal童年時長期患有重疾，對她一家造成影響，但因為士嘉堡醫院的悉心照料，令她對該院懷有深深的感激之情。「四、五年級那年，初時只是肚子有點痛，卻變得一發不可收拾，醫院醫生也找不出原因。我爸因為要接載我來往醫院而辭掉工作，我媽只得由早到晚不停工作賺錢。」長達5年的病患，令Krystal長時期在醫院中度過童年；當時不少人也勸其父母不要對女兒抱有希望。然而，Krystal沒有被撃倒。「眼看着父母因為我而奔波憂慮，我心內有股動力要康復。我就是要證明給別人看，我不會被人看扁。」
In grade school, Koo wanted to distance herself from her Chinese heritage. She says it took her a while to realize that English wasn't her first language, though she began school speaking only Cantonese (she is still fluent today, but doesn't read or write the language). All her classmates were Caucasian, she says, “so I didn't want fried rice, I wanted a bologna sandwich and a bag of chips. I didn't want to be an individual, I wanted to be like everyone else.”
By the time she attended high school, the Albert Campbell Collegiate Institute, Scarborough had changed. “It became so multicultural,” she says. "My friends were from everywhere. I felt proud to be Chinese; my Chinese friends knew all the holidays, we would speak Cantonese together.” Suddenly, there was representation. “You no longer needed to hide who you were,” she says.
The multicultural model of the Scarborough of her childhood is the reason she chose real estate as a career, today bringing together designers and architects to imagine communities. Koo is the head of sales and marketing for the Dream group of companies, founded by Cooper. The Dream group of companies has $25 billion of assets under management focused on residential and commercial real estate. Together they also founded the Dream Community Foundation.
“The mandate is to bring communities together,” she says. “It is about what happens after you build the office tower or condo block.”
Jacket, Top, and Skirt by Hermès · Heels by GIANVITO ROSSI · B.Zero1 18k Link Earrings in Rose Gold by BULGARI · Bracelet by TIFFANY & CO.
建構美好社區
獨立堅強、且熱衷於聯繫社區的 Krystal，在畢業後順理成章地選擇了房地產作為職業。「我之所以投身房地產是因為我喜歡建設社區，關心區內人與人之間如何互動、如何生活。住所周遭是否安全？鄰居相處如何？有甚麼設施？這些都是很重要的。正如在我成長階段中，醫院、老師和社區中心等對我影響甚深。房地產讓我可以聯同設計師、建築師一起實現建設社區的理想。」
她與丈夫Michael Cooper合力經營 Dream Unlimited Corp.房地產公司，集團旗下資產總值達250億元，業務包括住宅和商業用地。另外，二人又創立了Dream慈善基金，期望能凝聚社區。「一般傳統地產建築商的想法是把房子建成後，賣出去就完事了。我們想做的不止如此，對於社區建構而言，我們要做得更深更遠。」Eat together、Play together、Grow together是Dream基金營運的三大方向。2016年，基金捐款予位於多倫多櫻桃街(Cherry Street)的YMCA，正正就是要實現建構社區的實際行動：通過不同的青少年活動，讓小朋友可以有健康身心發展；貼心的長者配套服務提供專車接載長者出入、覆診。完善的配套，讓不同年齡、不同背景的人士都可以在社區中生活得多姿多彩。
The big initiative which bears their names is the Cooper Koo Family YMCA, on Cherry Street. Built in 2016, it is a community hub for the Canary District. As housing gets smaller and smaller, Koo says, “we need to think beyond the four walls and into the community; what does it look like, what does it feel like?”
Next on the agenda is partnering with universities to study the foundation's programs, which currently include work in Weston with youth at summer camps through libraries and seniors through socialization and transportation programs, to determine what is needed most where, and what is most effective.
Cooper and Koo have their own cultural mashup at home. The couple shares son Jack, 10, and daughter Vivienne Isabelle, 7; Cooper's older four make six offspring in the family. “Jack’s name was simple,” says Koo. “It stands for ‘Jewish-Asian Cooper Koo.’” She recounts that Cooper wanted to call their daughter Finale, which she flat out balked at. Then he suggested Six, to represent his sixth child. “He's really good with numbers,” she jokes. They came to a compromise.
Suit by GABRIELA HEARST · Apollo Earring by TIFFANY & CO. SCHLUMBERGER · Cooper Bracelet - Emeralds Diamonds by TIFFANY & CO. SCHLUMBERGER.
Krystal 近年與美國娛樂及時尚集團 INK Entertainment 合作，於多倫多市中心金融中心地段開設高級餐廳Daphne，這項合作正正體驗了Eat together的理想生活。她說:「Bay Street一帶有很多歷史建築物，但區內大多數是只限租戶及其員工進出的商業大樓，辦公時間過後便變得死氣沉沉，怎能吸引人流呢？根據我的亞洲智慧，美食就最能召喚人！」不同於市中心常見的傳統扒房，Daphne採用明亮優雅的設計，刻意利用地理位置，將一條小巷改造成寬敞室外餐區，打破隔膜，為該區帶來朝氣活現的新景象。
“I told him he could have the Roman numeral,”—VI—which doubles as Vivienne's initials. The kids have gone to both Hebrew school and Mandarin classes. Her parents are around a lot, and there are big Sunday dinners every week. “Michael often quips that he is Asian, because we are so immersed in the culture. The first time I took my husband to visit my grandfather at the cemetery, he said, ‘You go and give respects, but then there is a feast?’”
Koo, too, had to adjust to her husband’s world. The newfound glamour of her life with Cooper took some getting used to. “I had a sense of what fashion was, I had staples,” she says. But that meant going to the mall and buying something. Cooper invited her to a gala early on in their dating life. “What do you wear to a gala?” was her response. “It was very scary,” she shares. “I grew up poor, but I never felt poor until then.”
A swift introduction to Greta Constantine's designers Kirk Pickersgill and Stephen Wong (now designed by Pickersgill alone) was Koo’s first foray into next-level shopping. “I went to the studio,” she says, “to buy a gown for a gala with Bill Clinton and the Clinton Foundation. I paid $525. Oh my God, I had never paid anything like that before! It was the start of a journey for me.”
Dress by JASON WU. Heels by AQUAZZURA. Necklace and Earrings by BULGARI.
時尚亦可以回饋社會
Krystal經常現身於各大時尚版面。其中時尚達人Nicholas Mellamphy向她引薦多位新晉時裝設計師，同時亦介紹了一群同樣熱愛時裝及回饋社會的女性好友。「她們教我分析慈善機構，以及挑選那些與自己價值觀相同的機構合作。」
2023年5月，Krystal代表WoodGreen基金會主持Unmet慈善晚會。宴會參照紐約大都會藝術博物館每年舉辦的Met Gala，假多倫多皇家安大略博物館舉行，主題是Come as You Are。當晚雲集加拿大各界頂尖人物，當中包括年輕一代的 Weston、Rogers、Webster、Bitove 家族成員，衣香鬢影，成功籌得150萬善款。晚會上，Krystal透過時裝及宴會細節向賓客展示中華文化傳統。她穿上Zuhair Murad設計的驚豔白色長衫，配以Greta Constantine設計的翠綠絲綢斗篷。菜式方面，她選擇了多倫多米芝蓮推薦餐廳MIMI Chinese提供的傳統中式家宴。
Then, around 2007, she met Nicholas Mellamphy, who was then, and who has recently returned as, director of The Room at The Bay. He is the man who dresses Canada’s beau monde. “I knew the shapes I liked in clothing, but he pushed me to explore further. He was bringing in new and exciting designers.” More importantly, he was also introducing her to a network of women who combined careers with giving back. “These were individuals who taught me to ask questions, like how do you think about [this charity]? How does it reflect your values?”
For his part, Mellamphy says Koo stands out for her embrace of fresh ideas. “A lot of people, when they enter that world, they gravitate towards the big labels that show they are part of the club.” By contrast, he says, Koo “has a confidence that enables her to try new things. She has a strong point of view but also an openness, an excitement for fashion.”
Fashion and design are integral to Koo’s latest high-profile project: revitalizing Bay Street. In partnership with her husband and hospitality mogul Charles Khabouth of Toronto’s INK Entertainment, Koo launched the ultra-buzzy restaurant Daphne. Nestled at 67 Richmond St. W. in the heart of Toronto's Financial District, Daphne opened its doors in June 2023, breathing new life into the area with its chic ambiance and innovative menu.
Dress by ERDEM. Earrings by BULGARI.
生於斯，長於斯。Krystal見證多倫多市區發展，昔日一望無際的農地今日變成一個又一個高樓滿目的新地段。變化之大，令人不禁疑問下個十年將會是甚麼境況？對此，Krystal早有答案：「我們正經歷急速發展，未來仍會繼續發展。現時我們最應反思：如何從過去汲取教訓，繼續前行？社區的建構應配合日益多元的社會，不同背景、不同收入的人士都能樂在其中。」
Koo explains the motivation behind their investment in the area. “We own historic buildings in our portfolio,” she says. “We wanted to bring them to life, especially after the pandemic when the business core was hit hard by work-from-home.”
She emphasizes the importance of Bay Street to the city's economy. “Bay Street is our financial capital,” she continues. “Downtown was absolutely dead. So how do you bring people there? Food! I learned that from my culture.” Situated where the old Fisherman's Wharf once stood, Daphne features a private alleyway with a patio to draw foot traffic. Koo notes that it's designed “to be an American grill, a place women feel comfortable. So many places downtown are men sitting in the dark smoking cigars. Steakhouses.”
Looking ahead, Koo is optimistic yet realistic about the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. “This next decade,” she says, “is pivotal for Toronto and Canada. We are evolving quickly. We need to ask the hard questions: Where did we go wrong? What can we improve on?”
As she ponders these questions, Koo remains the kid from Scarborough who grew up to build communities from the ground up. Her journey is far from over, and with her relentless drive and clear vision, she’s not just paving the way—she's redefining it.
In the spring of 2024, Nicholas Mellamphy, the man Vogue once called a fashion legend, and the harbinger of style in Toronto, returned to The Room, at The Bay on Queen as creative director. The man who dresses the most fabulous women in Canada was back in his element.
Jacket by GABRIELA HEARST · Heels by GIANVITO ROSSI · High Jewelry Serpenti Necklace by BULGARI · Earrings by BULGARI · Paquerette Collection Rings by VAN CLEEF & ARPELS
Mellamphy first revolutionized the grand-dame salon in 2009, bringing in cutting-edge international designers and a white-glove service ethos that attracted A-list Hollywood celebrities. The space was a spiritual re-creation of the fabled St. Regis Room, which was opened within the space that was then Simpsons in 1937. His ad campaigns in the early 2010s featured elite supermodels models; they stand the test of time today. In 2015 he left to found Cabine, his by-invitation private shopping boutique, shifting with the changing retail landscape with a bespoke model.
Returning to The Room, Mellamphy brings the intimate relationships with both his elite clients and the designer houses he works with on their behalf. As the fashion industry shifts again with the times, as designers swap seats at old houses and new talents emerge, the need has never been greater for a sharp point of view in a retail creative director.
Krystal Koo first began working with Mellamphy in 2007 to develop a wardrobe for the galas and events she attends. She believes the secret to his success is how he has built a community of women that he encouraged to be excited about fashion. “He created and cultivated these amazing friendships. He is the glue,” she says. “He introduced us to designers no one has ever heard of before.”
For the Fête Chinoise shoot the pair collaborated on a lineup of designers that would see Koo through her days in the boardroom and her nights on the town: Gabriela Hearst, Giambattista Valli, Jason Wu, Erdem and Huishan Zhang.
Jacket by GABRIELA HEARST · Heels by GIANVITO ROSSI · High Jewelry Serpenti Necklace by BULGARI · Earrings by BULGARI · Paquerette Collection Rings by VAN CLEEF & ARPELS
For his part, Mellamphy is inspired by Koo’s confidence. “It allows her to look outside of the box at the way she puts herself together,” he says. “It is so interesting to work with someone so free of constraints of how people think they are.” The women he dresses are modern, he says, different from the characters that society women used to play. “It is difficult to be on display,” he adds, “to walk the line between fashion and being taken seriously. That is where strong personal style comes in. And Krystal’s family is so important to her, she is so supportive of our communities, and has a passion for making the city better.”
In other words, when a women is dressed well and has a strong sense of personal style, you see the woman and her work, and not the dress.
More from Fête Chiniose
Krystal Koo’s journey of integrating her diverse worlds came to a head at the May 2023 UNMET Gala, which she co-chaired on behalf of the WoodGreen Foundation and its clients’ unmet needs. Held at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, the event played on the celeb-stacked Met Gala that Anna Wintour throws annually at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. The theme, Come as You Are, gave her guests—representing the cream of Toronto society drawn from the younger generation of Westons, Rogers, Websters, and Bitoves—the opportunity to showcase their heritage. Koo, who is Chinese, chose to wear a stunning white cheongsam by Zuhair Murad paired with a billowing Kelly-green cape by Greta Constantine.