Street Hawker Mr Lam
Street Talk A street hawker for over 40 years, Mr. Lam pushes his colorful trolley laden with preserved fruits around Tsim Sha Tsui. He talks to Sophia Chan about the hazards of the street hawking business.
HK Magazine: With preserved fruit such a popular snack, is it difficult to compete against big-name brands?
Mr. Lam: There aren’t any other street trolleys like mine, but I do have to pit myself against local sweet shops such as Aji Ichiban. However, most of my customers know that my products have a better flavor because I make them all by hand at home. This is because having worked at this stall my whole life to raise my kids, I take special care over the taste and hygiene of my products.
HK: Do you make a good living from selling your fruit?
Mr. Lam: Business was very good two or three years ago, when I was situated on Nathan Road. However, since then, the government has become very strict toward businesses like mine and has tried to shut most of us down. They won’t let us put our carts anywhere. Even though I was one of the few that had a license, they still arrested me and told me to go sell my products in the back alleys. Now, I only have my old, regular customers who come to my stall.
HK: What happened when you were arrested?
Mr. Lam: I was told to go to court. Once there, the judge ruled that I needed to pay a $2,000 fine by 4:00 that afternoon. I said it was impossible for me to get the money so soon, and I asked if could I have more time to pay the fine. They refused, saying if I didn’t pay, I would be officially arrested at 4pm. I eventually managed to get together the money, but it was tough.
HK: So you think the government is unfair to hawkers?
Mr. Lam: No, they’re not fair at all, but I guess it’s not a big deal to me these days, because my children are already grown-up. I only work now for living expenses, so I only need to open my stall a few hours each day. But it is difficult for hawkers working full-time. There used to be thousands of licensed vendors, and now in the whole of Kowloon and Hong Kong Island there are only around 200 licenses.
HK: Which is your best-selling fruit, and do you have a personal favorite?
Mr. Lam: People definitely prefer the ones that I hand-make myself, such as mui-fa guo, preserved plums and mango. I actually don’t like these sweet things so much these days, because I’m old; young people enjoy them more. I also have heart problems now because of stress with the police so I shouldn’t eat too much of this food.
HK: What would you choose to eat if it was your last day on earth?
Mr. Lam: It doesn’t matter to me, but I would certainly drink some wine.