Dressed in a slick suit and sporting well-coiffed hair, English tutor Alan Chan Cheuk-lun reeled off a list of English expressions students could use for writing essays. About 30 students in the Kowloon Bay classroom of King's Glory Education paid rapt attention to what he said.
The fact that it was 9.30pm, after a long day of classes and commuting, did not keep students from hanging on his every word, with nary a suppressed yawn or drooping eyelid among them.
Commanding several thousand students, the 30-year-old is one of a rising number of star tutors in the burgeoning cram-school industry that has been estimated to be worth as much as HK$1 billion a year.
In a highly competitive industry, where tens of millions of dollars are spent on advertising blitzes to promote star tutors, Chan said he had to work extra hard to keep his student base growing.
'I give my mobile number to all my students,' he said. 'My students can SMS me their English queries. The personal touch can make students feel that you care about their learning progress.
'When exam season approaches, I provide extra lessons, which are free of charge, to give them an additional boost in academic help.'
In addition to free extra lessons, a sharp image and lively presentation skills that appeal to young students are the stock-in-trade of tutors.