A future springs out of the past for two island entrepreneurs

Two tourist guides during the construction of Chep Lap Kok airport decided to try something quieter after it opened - selling low-priced tourist souvenirs in the sleepy Lantau Island ferry town of Mui Wo.

Far from the glittering lights of the big city, local Gary Lo and British-born Anthony March had no great expectations, but they were taken aback by a strong demand for mementoes of the past.

'We really under-estimated the market,' says Mr March. 'We soon found we had a much more sophisticated customer than we had thought, and that there was a demand for genuine Chinese antiques.'

The space they took in the new shopping plaza just outside the Silvermine Bay Hotel soon filled with treasure collected during their frequent shopping tours of the mainland.

Mr Lo says: 'Neither of us had much knowledge of antiques and art at first, but we studied intensely and learnt a great deal browsing the antique markets in China.'

Now the pair have Red Lantern, the only antique shop on Lantau Island, with valuable stock including rare terra cotta horses and tomb figures from the Tang and Han dynasties, and old portraits.

'My advice to anyone looking for an investment today would be to invest in Chinese antiques, especially ancestral portraits,' Mr March says. 'These are becoming increasingly rare, while they have gained wide popularity in the west.