Travis Ling: The Philippines watchmaker Levy Hermanos had a HK branch in Queen’s Road, Central at the end of the 19th and start of the 20th centuries. Armand Levy was the manager of the Hong Kong branch, and E. Levy, J. Weill and Albert Weill were watchmakers. Armand Levy resided at 61 Wyndham Street and Albert Weill at Stillingflete, 4 […]
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IDJ has sent the following advert and newspaper article about Phoebus Neon Light Company, Hong Kong. HF I have retyped the article to improve clarity and aid research. Thanks to SCT for proof reading the retyped article. NEON SIGNS MADE IN HONG KONG Skilled Workmen In New Factory. SECRETS OF PROCESS. Business Had Spread Far In Few Years. Phoebus Neon […]
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York Lo: The Three Kings of Biscuits – M.Y. San, M.P. San and Pacific In the history of the biscuit and confectionery industry in Hong Kong, M.Y. San, M.P. San and Pacific Biscuit & Confectionery were three prominent firms which shared a common root – they were all started by members of a Filipino Chinese family hailed from Zhongshan (formerly […]
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York Lo: In the 1950s and 1960s, Cosmos Aerated Water (大同汽水廠) was a major soft drinks manufacturer in Hong Kong. The Wong family, which founded and managed Cosmos in HK, was also the founder and owner of Cosmos Bottling, which was the first and second largest soft drink manufacturer in the Philippines. The Cosmos story began in 1918 when Wong […]
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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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Jennifer Lang: I just returned from a visit to Shanghai and a look at the many wonderful Bund buildings from the 20th century. Here is more detail on the Asiatic building. It was designed by the architectural firm of Moorhead & Halse and built in 1916. The records I accessed show that it was originally called the McBain Building and […]
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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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