JOHN Chung insists on meeting you outside his shop when you make an appointment to visit Margo & Smith. It is only when you arrive, greeted by a suited-and-booted Chung, that you realise why.

Clients who come to 25 Ann Siang Road without being received might feel a little confused because it is the address of a Cantonese clan association. You walk on old-school mosaic-tile flooring, past rosewood armchairs and walls covered with pictures of clan members, before you reach a staircase that leads to Margo & Smith.

The 100-year-old heritage building is perhaps an appropriate location for the newly opened business that is all about preserving precious things – in this case, handbags.