The “King of Mandopop” Jay Chou has officially signed on as Dior’s newest menswear ambassador. In the role, the Taiwanese artist, who is also a songwriter, director, and actor, will now represent the French luxury label at key events and during public appearances.

Per the House, Chou “embodies the spirit and singularity of Dior style, a modernity with a timeless signature.” With the ambassadorship, the brand has “the special ties uniting Dior and culture in all its forms.”

Chou joins an ever-expanding roster of global ambassadors for Dior. Presently, the men’s lineup includes actor Robert Pattinson, K-pop singer Jimin (of BTS fame), soccer player Kylian Mbappé, K-pop group Tomorrow x Together (TXT) and Grace Kelly’s grandson, Pierre Casiraghi.

Chou is revered as one of the most-popular Chinese-speaking artists, with record sales tallying over 30 million units. He made headlines last year for featuring legendary department store La Samaritaine in the music video for his single “Greatest Works of Art,” which currently boasts more than 26 million views on YouTube. Notably, La Samaritaine operates under LVMH, like Dior.

On screen, Chou is most remembered for his acting roles in The Green Hornet, which marked his film debut in 2011, and Now You See Me 2, which premiered in 2016.

Cat owners in Singapore can now take their beloved pets on a luxury sunset cruise.

130 humans and 15 feline companions can board the Royal Albatross tall ship on each sailing. Owners can enjoy a four or seven-course meal while their cats lounge around, enjoy the sights and socialise.

“The cats get their own little spacious cabanas - cat-banas, we call it, like a cabana, where they can lounge in there just to enjoy the sea breeze and the sunset,” says Sylvia Lee, partnership sales manager at Tall Ship Adventures.

After sailing alongside the resort island of Sentosa with views of Singapore’s skyline, the experience ends with a short fireworks display.

“I think they're doing very well... they're enjoying the view and I guess the perceived freedom that they get," says Marissa Ng, a 28-year-old human resources professional who took her five-year-old ragdoll cats Coco and Bobo on the cruise.

Is the cruise safe for cats?

Tall Ship Adventures, the company that runs the cruises, says it consulted with experts and cat welfare organisations such as the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to ensure a safe experience on board.

When they get on the ship, pets need to be in a carrier. While onboard, the cats have to be securely harnessed and leashed at all times. They also need to be vaccinated and spayed or neutered to take part in the luxury experience.

“Harnesses and leads are supposed to be on all the time - it's compulsory,” says Lee.

“We make that compulsory and then we advise them to bring portable fans, some ice packs, and their own little water bottles so that it's all their own little comfortable things that they use.”

Mahmud, a four-month-old shorthair kitten, stayed calm snoozing beside his family despite it being his first time in a harness.

"This is a good time to spend the day as a family, since we just got Mahmud," says Aziana Aziz, a 41-year-old teacher sailing with her son and husband.

"He's enjoying it... he's curious, he's looking around, so yeah, happy cat, I guess."

The cat cruises are just the latest offering from Tall Ship Adventures but the company has been welcoming dogs since 2021. Around 2,000 have set sail with their owners so far.

She is the first woman to represent the UAE at the global competition and beat 45 others to this year's title.

“It's so overwhelming,” Kamstra, 36, tells The National. "And I couldn't believe that I would be the person that will bring this crown to the UAE. And on top of that, this is the year of sustainability, which is a big, big thing for us.

“I'm feeling grateful. And I'm feeling very happy, and successful. I want to be one of the winners who can be an inspiration for many other girls and many other kids who want to represent their country.”

The environmental-focused Mrs Earth contest is not affiliated with Miss Earth, which has been held since 2001.

Last year, Kamstra became the first woman to represent the UAE at the Mrs World contest, which the organisation says “celebrates the uniqueness of married women”. The beauty queen, who is originally from India and a mother of two, has lived in the UAE for 15 years.

She was among 72 contestants vying for the crown, and was named second runner-up. Mrs America Shaylyn Ford won the contest, followed by Mrs Jordan Jaclyn Stapp as the first runner-up.

Kamstra says that falling short of winning didn’t deter her from wanting to try again and that her past pageantry experience greatly helped.

“The time was so short from the time of winning to the global pageant that I did not get enough time to prepare as much as I did for Mrs World,” she says. “But thank God all the training I had for Mrs World was instilled within my system. So it was easy for me to work walk on stage, however, it was a lot of pressure.”

She only had a few days to prepare for Mrs Earth and used the same national costume she wore for Mrs World. Filipino designer Cary Santiago, who created the falcon-inspired dress, previously told The National it was a nod to the UAE's national bird as well as Dubai's reputation as a “city of gold”.

Kamstra will soon begin her duties, which include championing sustainability and the environment as well as doing charity work. Although she says she isn't revealing her future plans just yet, she says she is confident the platform is one that the UAE will be proud of.

Now that she is Mrs Earth, she has also shared her advice for other women looking to follow in her footsteps. She says it is important to remember competing is more than merely looks.

Dolce & Gabbana is far from alone in looking to the superstars of K-pop to front advertising campaigns and make high-profile appearances at fashion shows, often sitting front row.

In signing Doyoung, Dolce & Gabbana hopes to build a connection to the “passionate fan base” of K-pop, as well as the “fashion enthusiast worldwide”.

It is easy to see why brands from the West are keen to tap into the phenomenon of K-pop. The genre boasts millions of fans around the world, with Spotify reporting almost 8 billion K-pop streams a month last year. It has also driven a spike in Korean language classes.

A wave that started with Psy's 2012 hit Gangnam Style (the first video to hit one billion views on YouTube), its popularity has been bolstered by the screen success of the film Parasite – which won Best Picture at the 2020 Academy Awards – and the series Squid Game. Interest in Korean culture is skyrocketing worldwide, including in the UAE.

With big brands eager to tap into this interest, both to be part of the zeitgeist and to connect with the next generation of consumers, they are falling over themselves to sign up K-pop stars.

Doyoung’s NCT 127 bandmate Jungwoo was named the first male brand ambassador in South Korea for Italian brand Tod’s in September, while Taeyong, who is also part of the band, was appointed global brand ambassador for Spanish fashion house Loewe in June.

In May, Jeno Lee, from another NCT spin-off, NCT Dreams, joined Ferragamo as its first global male house ambassador. Something of a fashion veteran already, Lee walked in the Peter Do spring/summer show last September in New York.

As the world's biggest boy band, BTS unsurprisingly has several of its members aligned with big-name brands. Kim Namjoon, popularly known as RM, joined Italian house Bottega Veneta as its ambassador in March, while V (real name Kim Tae-hyung) became brand ambassador for Hedi Slimane's Celine in March.