DECEMBER 4, 1998, was a day of mourning for thousands in Hong Kong - it was the day the hugely popular Japanese quality houseware chain Muji shut its four shops and left the SAR.
Since then, numerous shops have appeared in Causeway Bay and Tsim Sha Tsui arcades importing Muji products directly from Japan. But the selection has never been as comprehensive. Some devotees of the store have gone so far as to stuff their luggage with Muji items whenever they fly to Japan. But that's not exactly convenient.
But Muji has returned - its new store opens in Sha Tin today - saving fans the cost of the air ticket. 'We were always receiving messages from Hong Kong fans, saying that they hoped Muji could come back soon,' says Kondo Shintaro, managing director of Seiyu (Sha Tin) Co Ltd, the company which operates Muji in Hong Kong.
'We had the idea of bringing it back about two years ago. It is now the 10th anniversary of Seiyu and we consider this the right time to open the shop.'
Muji started life as a private brand of Seiyu Ltd in 1980 and was sold in Seiyu department store. Its 'no-brand-name' products, ranging from stationery to clothes and food to furniture, became highly sought after by Japanese youngsters. The first Muji store was opened in the Aoyama district of Tokyo in 1983.
The brand was first marketed in Hong Kong in 1986, but the shop, in Causeway Bay, closed three years later. Muji made its second appearance in 1991 and was operated under a joint venture by Wing On department store and Seiyu department store. The first official store was opened in Harbour City, Tsim Sha Tsui, and at its peak there were eight stores with counters also set up under the roof of gift chain Loft (now a department of Seibu).