A clinic on a quiet street in Fortress Hill on Hong Kong Island saw a slew of women come in on January 6. Fifteen types of premises, including beauty parlours, were to close the following day and the women were desperate to get one in last treatment before the city reimposed some of its toughest Covid-19 social-distancing rules to fight the fifth wave of infections . Like always, Rainbow Wong Siu-hung was there to greet her clients at Sonkei, her beauty parlour that has been in the area for almost two decades. Wong is now in her late 50s and says her fair, age-spot-free complexion is not down to Botox or laser treatments. Instead, she says, it is thanks to her beauty treatments. They can be made up of over 70 Chinese medicinal herbs, crushed into powder and made into a paste that is applied on the face for up to an hour at a time. “We don’t use any machines, no body massages, just facials,” says Wong, adding she meets each potential customer to assess their skin and determine the treatment needed. Many have typical issues, like acne or dark spots . Others want to lighten their skin. (“The treatment can make their skin more fair, but it’s not whitening,” Wong says, unlike creams that bleach the skin .) Gua sha: why the ancient TCM practice is now a viral skincare trend After Wong decides the client can be treated, she explains to them the process that they must follow: they must complete five consecutive sessions and not wear any make-up for two days afterwards. “They have to agree to this, otherwise we cannot do the treatment,” Wong says. “The first five days, we detox the skin and clean it very well so that it breathes. We also need to see how effective the treatment is, if we need to boost the formulation or not.” She also advises her clients to avoid eating shellfish, such as shrimp or crab, or deep-fried or spicy foods, as these can counteract the facials’ effectiveness. “Most people drink traditional Chinese medicines (TCM), but when you put it on your face, the effect is stronger,” she says. Wong first encountered TCM facials in the late 1980s after her son was born. “My skin is very sensitive, it swells easily from allergic reactions. After I gave birth, many dark spots appeared on my face. That’s when I went to see my paternal aunt and uncle who practice TCM,” she says. “They spread paste on my face and, after a few days, there was a big improvement [and my spots were fainter]. It was so good that I wanted to provide the same service to my friends.” She began studying TCM and says she is qualified, though she has yet to take the examination for certification. Wong opened Sonkei in Fortress Hill around 18 years ago, and some of her clients have been coming to the clinic for over 10 years. A number of the city’s celebrity crowd, too, come to visit Wong – such as actresses Cecilia Cheung Pak-chi and Rosina Lam, Donnie Yen Ji-dan ’s younger sister Chris Yen Tze-ching and 2014 Miss Hong Kong winner Veronica Shiu Pui-sie. Some of this set have even been photographed in Chinese-language magazines coming out of the clinic. The treatments Wong offers cost HK$23,800 (US$3,000) for a set of 15, and she tells all her clients, celebrities or not, that they have to follow her directions for the best effects. “We don’t hard sell products to our customers. They pay the flat fee and that’s it,” Wong says. “All the Chinese herbs are sourced from China and we grind them ourselves and have their own formulas for acne, dark spots and so on.” The herbs include rose root, an antioxidant that helps get rid of acne and reduces the appearance of fine lines; ginseng , which slows the loss of collagen and is anti-inflammatory; black nightshade, which reduces abscesses and swelling; and Chinese ground orchid, which moisturises, lightens dark spots and fights free radicals. The coronavirus pandemic has prevented clients from mainland China from entering Hong Kong in the past few years, which has given local clients more opportunities to book appointments – up until the recent social-distancing restrictions, anyway. Not all of Wong’s clients are women, and some of them are quite young. “One mother brought her teenage son, his face was covered in acne . She had instructed him to avoid eating deep-fried and spicy foods but he wouldn’t listen,” Wong recalls. “After he did his treatments with us, he was a complete convert – when he would arrive in Hong Kong from the UK, one of the first things he would do was call us to make his appointments.” Another was a father who brought his son in to treat his skin. The father was so impressed with the results that he started getting treatments too, and has since encouraged his female friends to go. Clients often tell Wong she should open more shops in Hong Kong or across the border in Shanghai and Beijing, even in Britain, but Wong insists on just having her one location to ensure the quality of the treatments is up to her standards. Wong says that, when compared to other women around the world, Hong Kong women look much younger even when they are middle-aged. Singapore’s TCM clinics see rise in patients with pandemic side effects “Western women don’t pay as much attention to skincare as Hong Kong women do,” she explains. “Hong Kong women also see beauty as a cultural thing. When we meet people, it’s not just about what we are wearing. It’s not good if you wear nice clothes, but don’t have good skin. “Hongkongers understand this better compared to mainland Chinese who will spend tens of thousands of dollars on clothes, but their skin is not looked after. But most important is to have good health.” Sonkei is at 18 Jupiter Street, North Point, tel: 2806 2811