The intersection of business, art, and science with Nathon Kong (MBA ’12)

People often believe that a major career change is next to impossible, that once you’ve planted roots in one industry, you’re committed until the day you retire. However, a complete career switch is a lot more common and doable than you may think.

Recently, Nathon Kong, founder and artistic and concept creator at La Maison Nathon Kong, was awarded the Telfer Young Achiever’s Award to recognize his career achievements, philanthropy and sustainability initiatives. Read about his unconventional journey.

About Nathon: Finding inspiration in family, academia and sustainability

Nathon grew up in a humble family: a single mom in Thailand raising four children while grieving the passing of her husband. At the age of 14, fulfilling his mother’s wishes, Nathon went to boarding school to learn English. With the independence he developed, he moved across the world at 19 to pursue a bachelor’s in microbiology with a minor in management at McGill University.

After his bachelor’s, Nathon worked in pharmaceutical biotechnology at a hospital. He planned to continue down this path.

However, he felt he needed to push himself. He wanted to start his own business like his mother. So, he decided to do an MBA at the Telfer School of Management.

Eager to apply his new learnings to the health care industry, Nathon faced a setback just a year and a half after starting his first job after his MBA. The company did mass layoffs, and he was let go.

Fortunately, this ended up pushing Nathon to take the leap and start his own fashion label.

Today, Nathon crafts custom suits in his design studio located in the lower plateau, just steps away from the bustling streets of downtown Montreal.

Nathon’s philosophy

Nathon is a storyteller. He creates tailored pieces for his clients, incorporating their personal style in his signature designs. He doesn’t just create clothes to dress people — he does it to spark conversation on art and culture, building a community of people who appreciate fashion as a form of art.

“I want to focus on the quality. I want it to last. I want to use beautiful fabric. I want them to take care of the creation we made for them,” Nathon says.

Nathon’s goal isn’t to mass produce his creations, but to create high-quality, made-to-order suits that reflect his clients. They have an appreciation for all aspects of La Maison Nathon Kong’s brand, from the design and quality to the overall service experience. In his work and his personal life, he considers himself a minimalist, believing less is more, and his custom creations are made to be loved for a lifetime.

Nathon is always trying to find ways to connect people with art. Recently, he released a collection of 100% mulberry silk art pieces made in collaboration with the Jean Paul Riopelle Foundation. With only 100 of these “print on silk” pieces in circulation, they are truly unique. For every sale of these silk squares as well as any of his other creations, he donates 10% of the proceeds to a non-profit, usually in the Greater Montreal area.

For Nathon, fashion is about feeling, and about how it fulfils his creativity, uplifts his clients and supports non-profits.

How Telfer opened the doors to opportunity

While completing his MBA at Telfer, Nathon was involved with the MBA Student Association (MBASA). MBASA’s goal is to enrich the MBA student experience at the school by creating opportunities for students to develop their academic, professional and social skills.

As vice-president of networking, Nathon learned first hand the importance of putting yourself out there and building a strong network.

“I didn’t know how to network myself. I didn’t know how to get a job that I wanted before I joined (the MBA program). And I came to realize that I need to sell myself.”

Through his academic and extracurricular experience at Telfer, Nathon achieved his goal of taking control of his career and his network, building a reliable foundation for his namesake label.

Textile sustainability and the future of fashion

Fashion and textiles are known to be the second biggest contributor to global pollution, just after the oil industry. Independent designers, such as Nathon, have considerable control over their textile usage and waste, and many do their best to minimize their environmental impact.

For Nathon, sustainability is embedded in his business’ practices and strategy. He’s always considering ways to minimize fabric waste and he sources the bulk of his textiles and trims from local stores specializing in deadstock material.

Heading a design house that creates custom pieces allows Nathon to focus on creating a few high-quality garments rather than many that are mediocre. He ensures clients purchase pieces as they need them instead of buying numerous items at once.

Typically, his clients respond positively to this request, as it allows them to be more mindful of their consumption and personal style. Sometimes, consumers just need a gentle reminder to slow down.  

Looking forward

Nathon is working on redecorating his home and new showroom. “People in fashion may be attracted to the creative side, right? The creative side is not only fashion,” he says. He’s also attracted to interior design as another form of creativity and art.

The intersection of fashion, business, and science inspires Nathon’s creations. The last thing he wants is to limit his creativity by creating silos — when he knows that his combined academic, professional and philosophical perspectives make for something much more beautiful.

This article was written by Etana Dang

Etana Dang is a 4th-year Business Technology Management and Marketing student at Telfer School of Management and serves as a special projects and communications assistant within the Alumni and Community Engagement team at Telfer.