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Preface
At the beginning of the last century, a 20-year-old Jewish young man came to Hong Kong with a dream, and in Hong Kong, a place "full of gold", he never went to university in Hong Kong, and created the bustling "Lan Kwai Fong".
Not only did he settle down in Hong Kong, but in 2008 he renounced his original Canadian citizenship and became a Chinese citizen, and he is Zeman, a figure who influenced Hong Kong's development.
"Wake up" Ocean Park Hong Kong
Ocean Park Hong Kong has become one of the must-see attractions in Hong Kong, and although it is very bustling now, 20 years ago, Ocean Park was nowhere near as popular as it is now.
In the early years, Ocean Park was not well managed and there were relatively few visitors, especially in 2003, when sales were even more dismal due to the impact of SARS.
Tung Chee-hwa, who was then Hong Kong's chief executive, made a lot of efforts to revitalize Ocean Park, and he began to screen talent, hoping to find the right people to run Ocean Park.
When Tung Chee-hwa thought about it, he thought of Zeman, who was already very famous at the time, and he thought that Zeman was very business-minded, so he was the perfect person to run Ocean Park.
As a foreigner who came to Hong Kong in the last century to develop his career, Zeman has an extremely high status in Hong Kong's political and business circles, so Tung Chee-hwa can think of Zeman at the first time.
After receiving the invitation from the chief executive, Zeman directly declined, saying that he was just a businessman and had never run a theme park, so he was not able to run a marine park well.
In order to get Zeman to accept the invitation, Tung Chee-hwa called him six times in a row, but Zeman still did not agree, only promised to go to the park to have a look.
After Zeman conducted a field trip, he took the initiative to call Tung Chee-hwa and asked him if he had any other candidates, and after receiving a negative answer, Zeman took over Ocean Park and became the chairman of Ocean Park.
During Zeman's tenure, Ocean Park's turnover grew exponentially and Ocean Park was rejuvenated by beating out the popularity of Hong Kong Disneyland as the World's Best Theme Park.
The biggest reason why Tung Chee-hwa strongly invited Zeman, a foreigner, to run the Ocean Park is that the "Lan Kwai Fong" built by Zeman is so popular.
"Father of Lan Kwai Fong"
Lan Kwai Fong is an uphill path in Hong Kong that gathers a variety of bars and restaurants, and after years of development, it has become one of Hong Kong's famous tourist attractions.
Lan Kwai Fong originated in the 70s of the last century, when Hong Kong's bars and restaurants were basically located in high-end hotels, and there was even a formal dress requirement to go in, which was very inconvenient for young people at that time.
While Dr. Zeman was talking about business, he heard the complaints of his business partners, and in order to make it easier for him to talk about business, Dr. Zeman began to look for a place to open a restaurant of his own.
So Zeman took a fancy to an uphill path in Central, bought a house in the neighborhood at the time, opened his own Western-style restaurant, and named it "California," which was fashionable at the time.
At that time, young people who worked near Central wanted to find a place to chat after work, so "California", which is close to the city and has a good environment, became the best choice for them.
Later, the restaurant became more and more famous, attracting not only many customers who came to visit, but also many merchants who wanted to open a shop on this street.
With the development of Hong Kong's economy, this street has gradually become lively and has become the main leisure area of Hong Kong's nightlife.
Zeman was a visionary and decided to continue investing, buying 70% of the property ownership on the street and naming it "Lan Kwai Fong".
It is precisely because "Lan Kwai Fong" was developed by Zeman that he is also known as the "Father of Lan Kwai Fong".
Lan Kwai Fong quickly became popular in Hong Kong after its opening, and not only young people, but also many celebrities also frequented Lan Kwai Fong.
But it is precisely because of the popularity of Lan Kwai Fong that Zeman has attracted many "underworlds" who want to rent bars.
But Zeman did not want these people to smash his signboard, so he refused these people's request, in the last century in Hong Kong, where the "triad" was rampant, he could have the courage to refuse these unreasonable people, and Zeman's wisdom should not be underestimated.
Later, the expatriate businessman became active in Hong Kong's public affairs and was awarded medals of honour such as the Grand Bauhinia Medal, which would have been a step away from Allan Bun if it was just to make money.
Only with a deep affection for this land will Zeman give so much for this land.
The rich man on the green train
Zeman's family was so poor that his parents' salary barely supported the family in New York, but when he was 7 years old, his father died, leaving only Dr. Zeman's mother and son to live together.
Because the family lacked a source of income, Dr. Zeman's mother's salary alone could not support their expenses in New York, so she moved to Canada with Dr. Zeman.
Because of his small income, Zeman and his mother have been living a poor life, and in order to help his mother reduce some of the burden, Zeman Zeman, who was only 10 years old, began to work part-time.
On the mornings when he needed to go to school, he got up early to deliver newspapers and worked in restaurants on his days off, and with his own hands, Dr. Zeman was earning $60 a week, while his teachers were paid only $35 a week.
Not only did he improve his and his mother's living conditions, but when he was 16 years old, he used the money he earned to buy a car, and he was the only student in the school who had a car.
At the age of 17, Zeman decided not to continue his studies, he wanted to drop out of school and go to work.
In Zeman's view, it is very important to participate in society, and he will not study a profession such as a lawyer and doctor, so a university degree is dispensable, and since he likes to do business, work experience is more important than a degree.
So at the age of 17, he lied about his age and entered a clothing company, because of his intelligence, he was appreciated and reused by his boss.
Zeman discovered the mysteries of the apparel industry after working for a while, so he decided to start his own business, and at the age of 19 he made his first million dollars.
It's just that Canada's tax rate was very high at that time, and Zeman set his sights on Hong Kong, because Hong Kong's tax rate was only 15% at that time, so Zeman came to Hong Kong.
In Hong Kong, Zeman enjoyed the dividends of the times, and his clothing brand soon became popular, and by 1979, Zeman came to the mainland to find his own factory.
At that time, the Guangzhou-Kowloon train had just been reopened, and it could be said that it was difficult to find a ticket, so Zeman took the ticket he bought at a high price and squeezed into the green train to the mainland, preparing to set up his own office in the mainland.
At this time, Zeman was only 30 years old and was already worth more than 100 million, and in an interview decades later, Zeman said that he still remembered the green train at that time.
In 2008, Zeman renounced his Canadian citizenship, rejected a green card invitation from the United States, and chose to apply for Chinese citizenship.
Zeman truly regards himself as a Chinese and has his own sense of belonging to China.
epilogue
"Look east" is a phrase that Zeman often says, and with his unique vision, Zeman has realized his value in Hong Kong and won the respect of the Chinese people.
Zeman has a different kind of affection for China, he is the same age as New China, he grew up with New China, although he is a foreigner's face, he has a "Chinese heart".
文 | ST
Edit | Canned green oranges
Resources:
Zeman: Lighting up the "night economy" and injecting new momentum into Hong Kong's development - China News Network
"Father of Lan Kwai Fong" Zeman Zeman: I am a "foreign face", but I have a "Chinese heart" - China News Network
Zeman: The "Father of Lan Kwai Fong" who got the hometown return permit - China News Network
Allan Zeman, Chairman of Lan Kwai Fong Group in Hong Kong: I have never regretted becoming a naturalized Chinese, I am a white-shell egg - Observer.com
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