Concern about deforestation on the mainland has helped Janne Telin's company which produces wooden pallets for exporters, sourced from sustainable timber resources.
'There was an obvious crying need for the development of more environmentally conscious packaging here in Hong Kong, especially with the recently implemented bans on styrofoam and PVC in many countries,' says Mr Telin.
Start-up costs for Vida Hong Kong involved HK$1.2 million to renovate a warehouse and equipment and HK$800,000 for timber supplies.
'We expect to spend HK$1 million in marketing over the next 12 months,' Mr Telin says. 'Vida Hong Kong currently employs six staff and will employ 15 people when its factory is fully operational by the end of this year. Production capacity in Hong Kong is expected to be about 500,000 locally produced pallets, but quantities are unlimited for importation.'
A carpenter by trade, Mr Telin arrived in Hong Kong from Sweden in 1989 with then-employer Ikea. He left Ikea in 1996 to form his own company.
Vida Hong Kong is a result of his experience in the packaging of household products and, more recently, his Thailand experience, where he was involved in the upgrading of the saw-milling industry. It was here that the seeds of awareness regarding deforestation across Asia were planted.
'The banning of plastics led to a natural progression towards recycled wood products and packaging systems, which fit into warehouses in Europe, require less handling, materials wastage and man-hours at the destination,' he said. 'Given the huge volumes of goods exported out of Hong Kong, the production of internationally and environmentally acceptable pallets out of Asia seemed obvious.'