Hong Kong Stories

The early 19th century marked the beginning of Hong Kong’s development – the ferry and tram also emerged during that time, growing alongside our budding city. Apart from being the most historical forms of transportation, the Star Ferry and the tram are also Hong Kong’s most economical means of going places. Furthermore, the Star Ferry has been named as one of the “50 Places of a Lifetime” by the National Geographic Traveler. A journey on the ferry or tram provides us with a temporary escape from the hustle and bustle of the city, giving us time to slow down and relax a little. The Star Ferry Company was founded in 1871 by Dorabjee Naorojee Mithaiwala, a Parsee merchant. Its pier was originally constructed on the waterfront between Ice House Street and Connaught Road Central, and was relocated five times before settling down in its current site by the International Finance Centre. The ferry’s white-and-green colour scheme represents the sky and the sea respectively, merging the fleet with the surroundings of Victoria Harbour. In 1842, only 5,000 people lived on the land in Hong Kong, but the population began to grow as social stability was achieved. Consequently, more land was developed by the government and a transport network was eventually deemed necessary. This system, which we now know as the tram, was implemented along the coastline of Hong Kong Island by a group of merchants. The tram’s track began from Sai Ying Poon in the west and ran eastward until the Quarry Bay terminus (as Shau Kei Wan was still an undeveloped area in the post-war 40s). The Star Ferry and the tram are still alive and kicking today after having been around for more than a century. In addition to being indispensable forms of transport for Hong Kong’s citizens, they have also become icons of our metropolis – two very classic local “brands” indeed!

Hong Kong is a multi-national city and also a free port. The first appeared department store was the British-owned Lane Crawford. Until 1900, Sincere Department Store emerged and became a pioneer of Chinese-owned department stores. Other Chinese-owned department stores like Wing On, Daxin and Zhong Hua went on to join the competition. They were named “The Big Four Department Stores”. There were many oyster sauce and soy sauce shops at the early time in Hong Kong. Actually, the birth of oyster sauce was because of chance in the 1880s’. But just like sugar, a simple bottle of oyster sauce enriched the flavours of dishes in the old days and subtly affected the tastes of the Hong Kong people. Sugar is one of the main ingredients of manufacturing soy sauce. It is also a basic seasoning for people’s daily cooking. The westerners use it in tea and coffee drinking. The Chinese have a higher demand because of using it in Chinese pastries and desserts. The emergence of the Taikoo Sugar Refinery in 1884 has been providing refined sugar manufactured through machinery and made a difference from the bulk sugar. While the Chinese comprador was one of the keys in the sugar industry developing vigorously in Hong Kong, the Moks family was a legend of the Chinese comprador. According to Christine Loh, a descendant of the Moks family, said, "The relationship between the comprador and the boss of foreign firm was as partners. The comprador must rely on his financial resources and relationship network to make a successful business.” She simply pointed out the importance of comprador. In those years, the comprador was responsible for the procurement of raw materials and sales network and had to have good English communication skills so that to work with the Taipan (the boss of foreign firm) harmoniously. The Chinese comprador indeed contributed to the successful development of sugar mills.

After Hong Kong was opened up for trade, the construction of infrastructure increased tremendously, and two electric companies soon started providing light and other energies for this little city. One of the early objectives of the establishment of the HK Electric was to support street lamps. In the late 19th century, a small-scale power plant was erected near Wing Fung Street and Star Street in Wan Chai. It did not have many customers and the demand of electricity was not high. Many local people were amazed by the street lamps outside the power plant, since they automatically switched on when the night fell. However, most of the conservative Chinese still used the old style coal oil or kerosene lamps for lighting purpose. Therefore, at the beginning, it was the westerners living in Mid-levels who asked for power supply, because they needed pump rooms and generators to bring water up to the Peak. In 1894, the bubonic plague in Hong Kong caused a high number of casualties. In order to encourage its citizens to fight against rats, the government attached bins to lampposts to collect dead rats. A small bin attached to a tall lamppost thus became a remarkable scene representing the dark moments of the city. In the late 19th century, although the Hong Kong Island was already brightened up by electricity, Kowloon Peninsula was still in complete darkness after sunset. CLP established its first power plant in 1903 on Chatham Road, serving the most populated area at that time, Yau Ma Tei. “Who Brighten up the City?” unfolds the story of the establishment of the two electric companies in Hong Kong, showing us how our city life has changed in the past century.

While Hong Kong in the 1940s witnessed wars and many other changes, its people grasped all the chances to make endeavours to improve their life. The 1940s was a difficult time in the history of Hong Kong. As a result of the Japanese invasion into China in 1937, many refugees came to the city. Series of events that followed, including the occupation and the surrender of the Japanese, and the Civil War in China, continued to threaten the city's stability, and soon, the change of government in China in 1949 led to another influx of immigrants. The seemingly chaotic scene, on the other hand, provided chances for the city, since the refugees also brought with them capital and technologies – the necessary conditions for economic development. Many enterprises nowadays actually started their business at this period of time. An airline company, which was established in 1946 in Shanghai, decided to move to Hong Kong for further development. Starting with one single plane, it has now become a homegrown international airline. Nowadays its planes travel around the world, carrying people in and out of the metropolitan. A soy milk was produced in 1940 to provide the weak and poor population with a substitute for the relatively expensive milk. Now, more than 70 years later, although the general public have become much healthier and the market is full of different beverages, the soy milk still stands as a popular local brand. Because of the city's geographical advantages, many Southeast Asian companies came to Hong Kong in the 1940s and 1950s to open branch offices. A medicated oil which uses white flowers as its trademark is one of the examples. The company was established in Singapore in 1927. It moved its production line to Hong Kong in 1950 in order to sell its products in China. It was once a very popular item, since many people regarded medicated oil as a daily necessity, and its image was widely spread in the Brands and Products Expo. Its long-standing packagi

The influx of immigrants in the 1950s and 1960s brought much labour force to the city. As part of its population policy, the government established several industrial areas, including Kwun Tong, Chai Wan and San Po Kong, to develop light industry, which was characterized by small scale of machines and intensive labour. Most factories were located in multiple storey factory buildings, and they hired workers living in the vicinity. Such easy journeys for workers also meant that they could bring some work to finish at home with their family members. As result, this helped to increase the income of many families and lead to the development of many industries, for example textile, garment, plastics, electronics, watch and toys etc., and the export amounts of watches and toys once excelled the world in the heyday. While Hong Kong products were featured by relatively low prices, high qualities and standard design concepts, they soon began to be recognized internationally. Although most of the early industries did not require high technologies, there were some exceptions. In the late 1950s, industrialist Haking Wong gave up the prosperous plastics business to turn to the production of optical products. He invested a large amount of money to set up factory to produce cameras and was regarded as “The King of Optical Appliances.” He overcame all sorts of technical difficulties in this new sector and produced a 100% made-in-Hong-Kong camera, Halina, which was soon exported to major countries in Europe and the U.S.A. Apart from professional cameras, a plastic camera produced in the 1960s also stood out from all sorts of local products and became very popular in the 1970s. The camera, called Diana, has become a hit again in the 21st century, and even new versions of Diana have been produced to satisfy the needs of young photographers for today.

In the 80s', the era of the rise of the middle class, also created a booming of Japanese culture in Hong Kong. In the late 70s' and early 80s', the Hong Kong society gradually became affluent. One of the most obvious features was the Japanese food and culture began to become very popular in Hong Kong. The goods with European and American names were praised. Traditional items were also widely accepted through modern packaging. The development of Japanese food in Hong Kong can be traced back to the 1960s’. The first Japanese restaurant was opened in Imperial Hotel on Nathan Road. It particularly served the Japanese residing in Hong Kong. Later, the Daimaru Department Store was open. It established a food section but only sold Japanese canned food. In the early 70s', Mr. Dai Tak Feng founded a food company. He began to introduce Japanese snacks like “Three-sugar", "Space Sugar" and "Kam Dai Zi" and advertised them on TV. The youngsters growing in the 1970s’ started to contact the Japanese culture through these classic snacks. In the 80s', the society became prosperous. Due to a large amount of food introducing by trading companies, the Japanese food widely spread and the marble soda was popular for a time. Prior to the 1980s’, Japanese department stores were not popular. Their target customers were confined to the upper and middle class. Until the mid 80s', more Japanese department stores stationed in Hong Kong, the target customers were the emerging middle class, of whom born in poor families in the 60s', and benefited from the livelihood improvement policy engineered by Governor MacLehose in the 70s'. They had the opportunities to receive higher education and seized the chance to enter into management level because of Hong Kong transforming into a financial centre. The new emerging middle class on one hand could not get rid of the traditional burden inherited from the previous generation, and also failed to fully accept the modern westernized thinking

The 90s was all about entertainment and having fun. The people of Hong Kong fell in love with karaoke and overseas travel, both of which are still their favourite pastimes to this very day. There were already several travel agencies operating in the 60s and 70s, albeit with a limited scope of services. They mainly dealt with receiving overseas tourists and booking sea and air tickets on behalf of clients, as not many people could afford holidaying abroad back then. Towards the end of the 70s, however, Hong Kong's industrial sector flourished and the economy took off. Consequently, overseas travel became more affordable and the city's various agencies began to thrive. Amidst the ups and downs of the tourism industry between the 70s and 90s, some of the longest-standing companies have borne witness to the sector's continual evolution. Some agencies capitalised on Hong Kongers' particular fondness of Japan and came into prominence by specialising in tours to this particular destination. The success of these companies was not only testament to the hard work of their founders and operators, but also a reflection of the social environment and the mentality of the better-off citizens at the time. In addition to boosting outward tourism, the craze for all things Japanese, along with the growth of consumerism, also influenced the development of local entertainment. In particular, karaoke, which was introduced into Hong Kong in the late 80s and rose to immense popularity in the 90s, became an irreplaceable aspect of our city's entertainment culture. Karaoke boxes run by different chains lined the streets, with each trying to differentiate themselves from their competition through marketing campaigns such as television spots and singing contests. These efforts the Japanese invention become an indispensable part of Hong Kong’s popular culture, and even propelled the creation of local popular music. A significant portion of our city's population grew up with karaoke,

The Hong Kong lifestyle became more and more digitally- and internet-reliant after the year 2000. The Octopus electronic payment system came into operation on September 1st, 1997. It was first implemented on public transportation such as the bus and MTR, but it wasn’t long before the system was widely employed, greatly reducing the need for coinage. Various aspects of Hong Kongers’ lives became linked to this smart system, from shopping to consumption, transport to accommodation and even roll call at school. Dr. Jim, a former IT technician from the banking sector, made the most of the dot-com frenzy during the period of rapid internet technology development by setting up a website disseminating PC- and hardware-related news with his colleagues in 1999. With the change in social culture, the site has further evolved into a one-of-a-kind forum representative of the Hong Kong psyche – a place nurturing sub-cultures such as image parodies and even facilitating the formation of an orchestra. With broadband technology coming to maturity after the millennium, a parenting website saw a boost in user numbers due to the 2003 SARS outbreak. Connecting a younger generation of mothers and fathers together, this platform enabled families to search for information and exchange thoughts with each other. The site has also provided a means for users to arrange group activities in real life. Hong Kong stepped into the age of electronic transactions and online interactions with the onset of the millennium, a time when our brands became more hi-tech and abstract.