How a Hong Kong fish-ball maker bucked decline of the industry
By modernising and diversifying the fish-ball business his grandfather founded in the 1970s, Hui Kee’s owner has given it a fresh lease of life
“People think it’s a bit weird that our office is in an old tong lau in Cheung Sha Wan,” says Niki Tang Yee-ki, sales and marketing manager at Bill Kee, the parent company of fish-ball maker Hui Kee. “But we can see two of our shops from the balcony of the office, and Cheung Sha Wan is where it all started.”
Founded in the 1970s by Hui Yan-hoi, Hui Kee has always had its own shops in Cheung Sha Wan.
“Back in the day, the shops were actually a factory floor, and there would be a couple of counters at the front to sell products from,” says Alfred Hui Chun-fai, the founder’s grandson and Tang’s husband. Hui took over the company in 2010 with plans to expand, and the ground-floor spacewasn’t large enough for what he wanted.
“It just looked so messy,” says Tang. “One day I walked past and complained to him about how disorganised it all looked, and he said angrily, ‘Why don’t you help me then?’”
Tang quit her job in fashion (“It was quite hard for her, she really enjoyed it,” admits Hui) and did just that.