York Lo: Union Ceramic Industries and Heart Brand Enamelware Left: Union Ceramic Industries’ ad from 1949 (China Mail 1949-5-26); Right: Union Ceramics’s factory (Source: Ta Kung Pao, 1956-1-1) During the heyday of the HK enamelware industry between the 1940s and 1960s, Union Ceramic Industries (一心搪瓷, hereafter referred to as UCI), the maker of Heart Brand enamelware, had the distinction of being […]
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York Lo: Lo’s Mee Kwong and Join-In Shirt Left: the name Lo’s Mee Kwong lives on in the LMK Development Estate in Kwai Chung; Centre: an advertisement from the early 1980s promoting the “colorful world” of Join-In Shirt; Right: Early 1980s picture of Join-In Estate (now Prosperity Centre) in Kwai Chung. From the late 1970s to early 1980s, Join-In Shirt (鍾意恤) […]
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York Lo: The Tales of the Two Smart Shirts – Standard Shirts Dyeing, Weaving & Finishing Mills and Smart Shirts Manufacturers Ltd In the history of the garment industry in Hong Kong after WWII, there are two “Smart Shirts” and both had ties to Shanghai. The first “Smart Shirt” (司麥脫) is a popular shirt brand made by Standard Shirts Dyeing, Weaving […]
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York Lo: Hua Nan Motors – HK distributor of DeSoto, Peugeot and Renault automobiles from the 1940s to 1960s From the 1940s to the 1960s, Hua Nan Motors Federal Co Inc (華南汽車公司) was a major car dealership in Hong Kong which served as exclusive distributor of American automobile brand DeSoto and French car brands Peugeot and Renault. In the 1950s, the […]
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York Lo: Unsung Kingmakers – the low-key Song Brothers who conquered the Shanghai Bund and Victoria Harbor and backed the development of several key industries in post-War Hong Kong V.J. Song (left) and V.K. Song in Hong Kong in the 1950s (Wendy Song) Before the emergence of Chinese tycoons such as Li Ka-shing and Sir Y.K. Pao in the 1970s, […]
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York Lo: From No 1 on the Bund in Shanghai to Kaolin Mine in Cha Kwo Ling – the Century Old China Coast Saga of the McBains Left: The former Kaolin mine in Cha Kwo Ling; Right: The former McBain Building at No 1 on the Bund in Shanghai (now known as Asia Building) From 1903 to 1983, kaolin clay was […]
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York Lo: From Ships in Cheung Sha Wan to Shoes in Sham Shui Po – the Chan family, Wing On Shing Shipyard and Po Shing Shoe Company Left: Po Shing Shoe in the Posco building at 165 Un Chau Street (Source: Flickr). Right: The original Po Shing building in 231-247 Un Chau Street in the 1950s. (Source: Facebook) The Group has […]
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York Lo: Shanghainese Wood Carvers and the Development of the Wooden Furniture Industry in Hong Kong As mentioned in the article “There was Something About Hong Kong Old Mary…”, Chiuchow natives Mary Wong and her son Jimmy Tse of HK Old Mary Sing Shun Co. were pioneers of the export carved wood furniture industry in Hong Kong and Jimmy himself actually […]
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York Lo: The authorized agent for YKK zippers in Hong Kong since the 1950s has been Hung Cheong Import & Export Ltd ( 鴻昌進出口有限公司, incorporated in 1972), which was founded by Kwok Tak-seng (郭得勝, 1911-1990) and Yeung Yiu-chung (楊耀松, 1921-2003). The profits from selling YKK zippers formed the foundations of […]
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York Lo: J.H. Vaughan – An American Shipbuilder in Hong Kong San Pablo from the movie The Sand Pebbles – JH Vaughan’s highest profile creation (Source: Sand Pebbles movie website) Americans have been involved in the Hong Kong shipbuilding industry since the early days of the colony when two Bostonians – Charles Emery and George Frazar set up their shipyard in […]
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