Culture & Leisure

The Hong Kong Pet Show 2022 began on Thursday at the Convention and Exhibition Centre. More than 500 exhibitors have participated in this four-day Pet Show, showcasing over 1,000 brands of pet food, supplies, and services from around the world. In addition to merchandising, there are also pet pageants, dog obedience demonstrations and charity talks at the venue. Tickets cost HK$30 per person, the same for adults and children, and can be purchased both online and at the counter. Pet owners can bring one pet each but the animal must either be on a leash or in a stroller Carl Wong, Director of Hong Kong Pet Show 2022, said he hoped the show can promote products as well as foster people’s understanding of pets as part of the family through lectures and sharing. Some people abandon their pets because of economic problems, especially during the pandemic, according to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) of Hong Kong. 78% of the surveyed 777 adult Hong Kong residents said their household income has dropped since the outbreak and 52% claimed they would reduce their expenses besides buying necessities, according to Credit Institution TransUnion’s statistics. “I spend HK$6000 to HK$7000 every month on my dogs,” said Shada Shum, a visitor who raises two Bichon Frises. “A single pet grooming session can cost around HK$500.” Shum said although her financial situation has been affected by the epidemic, she still takes good care of her pets because they are precious family members and her companions in times of trouble. Apart from cats and dogs, many pet owners in China, especially those in their 20s, prefer exotic animals such as lizards or snakes according to China Pet Consumer White Paper 2021 by iResearch. However, keeping exotic pets such as a chameleon requires …

Tucked away in a tenement building on Pei Ho Street in the Sham Shui Po District is a time-honoured winery store, Kwong Yu Yee. While the simple façade looks no different from the other stores in the neighbourhood, the intoxicating aroma of rice wine from within draws visitors to stop by every time. The winery moved from Guangzhou to Hong Kong more than 70 years ago. The old shopfront originally had two stories. After being demolished in the 1960s, it was rebuilt into a six-story tenement building on the original site. The golden lacquer signboard which reads “New Kwong Yu Yee” and the wooden beamed ceiling, together with the paint-peeled floor have been well-retained. 65-year-old Wong, who claims to be very low-key and would not give away his full name to anyone, is the second generation of the shop owner. “My father was the owner and I started to run it more than 40 years ago when it was in its golden age,” he said. Wong recalled during that time, there were four restaurants nearby and his shop wholesaled wine to them. “Back then, they had to register to buy our wine,” Wong said, “And let’s say if you tie your shoelaces in front of our door, the whole street would be blocked by our customers soon.” “There’s no restaurant now,” he said, “It’s really hard for us to do business now.” Wong said that nearly 60% of the shop's business nowadays comes from neighbourhoods. “Our regular customers contribute to our business most now, but the epidemic situation is putting us in a tricky situation since every customer is being more sensitive and concerning more about the price," Wong said, "But it seems to be better now." In addition to the foreign wine wholesale business, the winery also sells the …