Society

Holding bags of pastries from the well-known mainland bakery brand, Bao Shi Fu, 32-year-old housewife Li Lanlan, a Shenzhen resident, starts her daily routine. She prepares to deliver goods from Shenzhen to Hong Kong, ordered by Hong Kong customers, at Futian Port.   “Daigou” are personal shoppers who take orders directly from customers, make the purchases for them and deliver the goods to them, all for a commission fee.  Li started her daigou business right after the Lunar New Year, and is already getting a steady stream of orders, usually three to four orders a day.  “As a housewife, I can only schedule one trip to Hong Kong each day to earn some pocket money,” Li said. A few years ago, daigous mainly purchased high-end goods such as milk powder in Hong Kong and brought them to the mainland. As consumption habits change, the trend is reserving. Nowadays, many daigous takes orders through social media, many of them delivering food or daily necessities directly from Shenzhen to Hong Kong. Hong Kong Immigration Department figures show that more than 81 million headcounts made the crossing between Shenzhen and Hong Kong last year.  “As more people went to Shenzhen to spend their money, some people found it profitable to help deliver goods via ports, and there are plenty of accounts on RedNote doing reverse daigou,” said Li.   People use social media platforms like RedNote and Facebook to find agents and place orders. These agents deliver the shopping to Hong Kong at agreed-upon MTR stations. Li usually earns around HK$200 to HK$300 a day.  “If the client requires home delivery, I will charge HK$600 to HK$1000 for a single errand, depending on the distance,” said Li. "Some customers are quite generous with the delivery fees, especially for home delivery services. I once …

Wong Lam lost her 12-year-old pet dog named Peach in January. “Peach is irreplaceable to me and I wanted to have a proper remembrance,” Wong said. She considered spending on a “Life Crystal” souvenir, a keepsake made from dead pet's ashes and fur. But the hydration process alone would cost HK$800 to 900. After hesitating for a long time, she decided to buy a simple urn with two animal paw prints for HK$800. “My budget was only about HK$2,000,” she said. In 2018, about 242,000 households had cats and dogs, according to government figures. It is an increase of almost 40% since 2005. Burying dead animals in public places is against the law. In this case, pet owners can choose to leave it to the government or go to a specialised agency that charges more expensive fees. The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department transport animal carcasses collected in plastic bags and bury them in landfills. Pet owners who can afford the higher cost may choose to have their pets institutionalised as they feel this will allow their pets to depart this world in a more dignified manner. Mathew Wu is the owner of Pet to Nature, Hong Kong's first hydration hospice for pets. He said although more young people are coming to the shop, they are becoming more “rational” in consumption compared with five years ago.  “Business used to be good and people were willing to spend money,” said Wu. “Maybe it's the economic environment now, fewer people are willing to buy souvenirs.”  Iris Chan, the owner of Pet Memorial, a high-end pet hospice, said that the importance Hong Kong people place on their pets has increased in recent years.  “Most people regard their pets as family members,” she said. “ Some families even come together to see it off." …