Nostalgia in miniature

King & Country has been a staple at Pacific Place for years and more than a few people have wondered why. How can a shop specialising in toy soldiers, with a name harking back to colonialism, survive in a modern Chinese city? The answer, paradoxically, is that this nostalgia shop has marched with the times.

Owner and sole toy designer Andy Nielson has transformed the shop from dealing exclusively in toy soldiers to specialising in models of Hong Kong street scenes such as rickshaw pullers, street-side schools, labourers, and even a Governor.

In the process, his customers have broadened from being exclusively European males to an equal mixture of Europeans and Asians with a healthy representation of women.

'People are surprised [at our success] and one of the things they tend to ask is how we can make money out of this,' Mr Nielson said. He gapes in disbelief at the question. 'I've been in Pacific Place for seven years. Do people honestly think they would keep us there if we didn't make money?' Turnover is $15 million a year, about two-thirds of which comes from overseas orders, particularly the United States where the Hong Kong street scenes are popular. It is a healthy sum considering the change in focus.

The original idea of starting King & Country came more by accident than design. The shop was set up in 1984 after Mr Nielson's brother sent him toy soldiers for his birthday and he lamented that he could not buy them in Hong Kong. His ex-wife, Laura McAllister, pointed out he was in the toy capital in the world. Why not set up his own shop? 'I wasn't a toy soldier collector - I'd only collected them when I was a kid - but my two interests are the military and art,' Mr Nielson said. So he jumped at the idea.

He tracked down the last company in Hong Kong that was making hand-painted, metal toy soldiers and started designing his models, using skills honed in art school in Glasgow and expertise picked up during a stint with the Royal Marines.

Then, as today, he works with a professional sculptor and painter who help him perfect the models before they are sent to Shenzhen for manufacturing.