On 12 November, Hong Kong-based tech accessory brand CASETiFY announced the latest of its slew of recent collaborations. This time, with the global phenomenon, the Harry Potter IP. This collaboration coincides with all entries of the film series returning to cinemas in China between 11 October and 29 November.
This isn’t CASETiFY’s first Harry Potter collab. But this time, the brand combines magic and technology to create phone cases and smartwatch bands with Hogwarts’ house graphics, as well as an Apple Pencil protector modelled after the Elder Wand, an iconic Deathly Hallow.
Just before the brand’s Warner Bros co-branding, CASETiFY launched its store at Disneytown, part of the Shanghai Disney Resort, a shopping, dining and entertainment area next to the Disneyland theme park. Dubbed the “CASETiFY Studio”, the store is designed in the style of traditional Shanghainese Shikumen architecture. A week after the launch of the store, CASETiFY announced its team-up with Mickey Mouse and friends as well as a hyper-localised Shanghai exclusive series paying tribute to the culture of the city.
On the same day as the opening of the Disneytown store, the accessory maker also launched a collaboration with the ART021 art fair in Shanghai with a pop-up stand at the fair, as well as exclusive phone cases and other accessories with artwork printed on them.
CASETiFY was founded in Hong Kong in 2011 by Wes Ng (吳培燊). With its many collaborations, it seems CASETiFY has been modelling itself as a street fashion lifestyle label. Earlier this year, CASETiFY released co-branded items with the likes of French designer fashion label Maison Kitsuné, Dutch beer brewer Heineken and manga/anime IP One Piece., as well as Mandopop legend Jay Chou.
With its frequent and often popular collabs, and creative design of accessories and even wearable devices, CASETiFY has gained a cult following called “C门” (lit. the C Clan) similar to the “麦门” (lit. McClan) following of the meme-conscious McDonald’s.
