HK Magazine: How long have you been in the printing business?
Lee Chak-yue: I’ve been in the field for over 60 years. Following a few years as an apprentice after I left primary school, I started up my own business. I opened this shop here on Shing Wong Street more than 30 years ago. There were once over 100 printing companies nearby and now only a few remain.

HK: So you don’t really need any qualifications to enter the field?
LC: No, not really, so long as you are willing to learn. Practice makes perfect. But I must say that life as a trainee was hard. The hardest part of my job is to deal with the hiccups encountered in the printing process, such as two pieces of paper sticking together. But there is always a way to solve these problems.

HK: How old is your printing press?
LC: It’s almost 80 years old. It’s a semi-automatic model, purchased from West Germany. Look at these lead letter-punches. Initially, there were only English ones; later on, models with Chinese characters were manufactured in Hong Kong. But the companies that made them are all gone now. People in their 30s or younger probably wouldn’t have heard of these punches before.

HK: What do you print?
LC: Everything from business documents and catalogs to packaging for toys. As long as it is not something illegal, I can print anything.

HK: Your shop falls within the redevelopment zone for the Urban Renewal Authority’s H19 plan, which will see several Chinese-style tenement houses in the SoHo area demolished in the name of redevelopment. What will happen to your business?
LC: The government is giving us a hard time by being indecisive. After endless meetings and over 10 years of beating about the bush, there still isn’t an answer on whether the area will be pulled down. It would be best if they don’t, but if they do, I hope the government will agree to build a museum to display these printing tools. In fact, our counterparts are supportive and are willing to donate their tools, too. I just want to share my knowledge with the public and let the future generations understand how the printing industry developed. But if the government doesn’t take the lead, there is little we can do.