Festive spirit in the air but not all tills ringing

The biggest financial crisis since the Depression is still being felt as we approach Christmas. While some businesses such as Christmas tree sellers and certain restaurants and hotels say the festive season has been good to them so far, others say they are not out of the woods just yet.

The repercussions of the Lehman Brothers collapse and the bailout of banks by governments have resulted in a much more restrained corporate Christmas party scene this year.

One person who has felt the effects is Massimo Sfriso, the founder of Italian delicatessen chain Il Bel Paese and our video guest this week.

His six shops in Central, Wan Chai and Happy Valley offer Christmas hampers, wine, chocolates and other produce from Italy, restaurant meals and catering for Christmas parties.

'This year has been very slow,' Sfriso said. 'The financial crisis has forced many companies to cut down on their expenses. Many companies are careful about their spending.'

He added that investment banks cutting back on their staff led to many expatriates, several of them loyal customers at his shops, leaving Hong Kong to return to their home countries.

Venice-born Sfriso came to Hong Kong in 1989 on an academic project and, like many other expatriate entrepreneurs, stayed much longer than he had intended, taking on various jobs before setting up Il Bel Paese, which means 'a beautiful country'.