With Hong Kong's mobile phone sector in the middle of the largest transformation since deregulation of the industry in 1996, the spotlight continues to fall on SmarTone-Vodafone as the only operator untouched by the recent spate of merger and acquisition activity.
But having spent the best part of a year fielding questions about consolidation, it was little surprise that SmarTone Telecommunications chief executive Douglas Li was eager to get back to the more serious business of competing.
'In our business we deal in very large volumes - we serve the entire population on a day-in day-out basis, so we are talking about industrial scale,' Mr Li told the South China Morning Post. 'The challenge is not losing sight of the fact that we are also dealing with one customer at a time.'
Hong Kong's mobile phone market has experienced savage price wars thanks to a penetration rate of more than 100 per cent that ensures a subscriber gained for one operator is one lost for another.
Survival, Mr Li said, depended on being able to see the entire picture, including consolidation.
The chief executive's all-seeing eye - including shop visits on Sunday afternoons to gain a feel for the market - is well-known among SmarTone staff. He has even been known to order a complete store mock-up to be built in the company's Kwun Tong offices to test the impact of new lighting, or display cabinets.