Comfort and women's fashion often go their separate ways. Not with the vibrant, ready-to-wear line of Hong Kong designer Grace Lee. For Ms Lee is a firm believer that feeling good is a prerequisite to looking good. The success of her soft, colourful, mix'n'match collections, which enable the wearer to relax yet still stand out from the crowd, shows that other women agree.

In the three years since Ms Lee launched the BabOOn label, her designs have swung into the spotlight in Hong Kong, attracting the attention of many including well-known local celebrities such as singer/actress Gigi Leung and actress Flora Chan. The feminine, versatile, medium-priced brand has also impressed buyers in the mainland, Southeast Asia and Australia.

BabOOn, with Ms Lee as chairman and design director, is built around fresh, cheerful collections of high-quality separates and accessories which enable customers to create a series of different looks through an extensive range. It is aimed particularly at women between 25 and 35, providing trendy, attractive combinations that can be worn at the office, for a night out with friends, or a romantic encounter.

The label offers a seasonal, up-to-the-minute image but the comfort factor is a constant. For being at ease with the clothes you inhabit is not only a fashion statement. It is part of Ms Lee's overall business plan. She is well aware of the experience many women have of buying clothes that are subsequently never worn and sees a blend of easy-to-wear and sophisticated design as a way to make items 'work' for customers and build loyalty over the long term.

"In the past, I've bought beautiful pieces that I only wore in the fitting room," she said. "I thought I would wear them but I ended up not doing so. We need to design wearable clothes that make the customer look good."

To put this philosophy into practice, Ms Lee is selective about the materials she uses. Fabrics come from Japan and Korea, with wool from Italy, and silks and polyesters from China. "We would let go of knits or cottons that are rougher and can sting your skin," she said. "Some materials don't breathe well or are too noisy. Some are good for sport but not so comfortable for women who want to go out. We do try to be more sensitive about these issues."

Like the clothes BabOOn produces, Ms Lee's design team is a well-matched combination: Ms Lee with her market-oriented approach and US experience gained from studying abroad; Hong Kong design graduates with local fashion knowledge; and freelance designers, including one in France, to give ideas on arriving trends. The collections are produced at different factories in Shenzhen.

Ms Lee, now in her early 30s, has been blending business and creative pursuits from an early age. Drawing and painting were encouraged by her architect-trained father while shopping expeditions with her mother produced a fascination for prints, colour, texture and how they could be matched. With both parents also business people, there was talk of the stock market at home and visits to companies at weekends.

Ms Lee later went on to gain a fine arts degree with a minor in business in the United States before returning to Hong Kong and becoming involved in the fashion world. She spent three years designing for Nike before deciding to make the leap to her own line.

When BabOON began in 2000 - the capital letters marking the label's launch in the new millennium - it offered executive suits as well as fashionable, seasonal apparel. But after two seasons, it was clear the latter's added-value look'n'feel was attracting more attention. This became the focus.

Ms Lee also opened her own retail outlets in Hong Kong to build up a total image for the brand. It worked. The use of cherry pink and mahogany red to emphasise BabOOn's feminine style, the open layout to encourage browsing and strong customer service soon had potential franchisees on the doorstep.