How Hong Kong is losing its culture and can learn from US and Britain to defend it: G.O.D. co-founder
- Douglas Young believes Hong Kong needs a major makeover and is dragging its feet in many respects, especially its vision to make the city a cultural hub
- He says the key to preserving and defending Cantonese culture is to make it appealing and attractive, like American and British cultures have done
When it comes to the raw and raunchy side of Hong Kong Cantonese culture, Douglas Young undoubtedly has the Midas touch – especially in the swear-word department.
Young is a co-founder and chief executive of the city’s iconic lifestyle store G.O.D., which is known for its naughty and street-smart interpretations of Hong Kong Cantonese swear words. It burst onto the local design scene in 1996 and became an overnight sensation.
Many were gobsmacked when they first saw Young’s iconic slogan “Delay No More” emblazoned across some of his signature products. Thought up during public discussion on widening democracy in Hong Kong, the term sounds phonetically similar to a common local profanity.
Young has unwittingly turned Cantonese profanity into an art form, and his innovation has spawned huge commercial success and international fame for the G.O.D. brand.
He strongly believes the most successful brands are those that incorporate national identity. This has been a winning formula for G.O.D. as it prides itself on being very Hong Kong and unashamedly flaunts its local roots.
However, Young insists he is not a rough, tough potty mouth in real life, but has just been typecast due to the brand’s famous – or infamous – motto.