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Sandy Li

LAM SAI-WING HAS already created the world's most expensive lavatory.

Now he wants to build an indoor 'gold mine' in Hunghom, designed as an attraction for mainland tourists.

The chairman of jewellery manufacturer Hang Fung Gold Technology was responsible for making the HK$38 million solid-gold toilet at the company's 50,000-square-foot 3D-Gold Tourism Exhibition Hall - a gold and jewellery showroom and retail outlet in Hunghom.

The commode has so far attracted more than one million visitors since it was constructed in 2001. It has also won two Guinness World Records: The Most Expensive Bathroom and The Most Expensive Toilet.

But this is serious business. While other retailers fight for survival amid weakening consumer spending, Hang Fung's showroom alone generated sales of about HK$32 million in the first 10 days of the Lunar New Year. One Shanghai shopper spent HK$400,000 on gold jewellery and diamonds. The company now expects revenue to reach HK$500 million for the year to March 2004.

The Informer  spent some time sifting for nuggets of wisdom from Mr Lam.

Q: What will the proposed gold mine look like?

A:  'Gold mine' probably will be the theme of our proposed fifth phase of development at our gold and jewellery showroom.

I would like to offer something different in our new phase. My idea is to provide an indoor environment exactly like a gold mine, allowing tourists to experience the fun of sieving sand. Tourists can also have a glass of red wine or a coke if they feel tired.

Q: What will be the main attraction for tourists at the mine?

A: Tourists can either sell back the gold sand that they get from us or exchange it for an equivalent value of jewellery.

Q: Will the admission charge be expensive?

A: No. The charge will range from HK$10 to HK$100 for the purchase of different sizes of sieves, that are provided by us. Of course, the bigger the sieve, the better chance of getting gold in your sand.

Q: What does the average mainland tourist spend in the showroom?

A: Mainland tourists account for about 70 per cent of our business, on average, spending HK$2,500 each, the highest of any nationality.

Tourists from Shanghai, Guangdong, Fujian and Wenzhou are the highest spenders.

Hong Kong people, by comparison, are the lowest, spending just HK$200 each. Americans and Europeans spend HK$300.

Q: How much will the mine cost to build?

A: It depends on the size of the premises we get in Hunghom. We are looking for a place with an area of up to 100,000 square feet.

The decision is still subject to the growth in mainland tourists arriving in Hong Kong.

Q: Will the company benefit from the rally in gold prices?

A: Absolutely. Our gold washroom and gold statues appreciated about 58 per cent last year, or HK$140 million in paper value.

We spent a total of HK$240 million when we made these gold figures. Now their value has shot up to HK$380 million.

Q: What is the total weight of these gold statues?

A: The glittering monuments in our showroom have a total weight of four tonnes.

We prefer to make use of our gold reserve as a tourist attraction instead of just putting it in banks.

Q: Why a gold toilet and not a gold kitchen  or bedroom?

A: When I was 16 and still lived in China, I read an article written by Lenin who advocated the triumph of communism over capitalism. Lenin said gold, which represents the status of wealth in the capitalist world, should be used for public toilets, allowing all people to enjoy the precious metal.

It was unbelievable as China was very poor at that time. We even had problems feeding ourselves and had never seen gold before. So, I deeply believed it would be more joyful to share precious thing with others, and I proposed making a gold washroom for the public.



Digging for gold in Hunghom