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Alice Woodhouse

He faced off against Saddam Hussein during the Gulf War, conducted a series of secret trade missions to China in the 1990s and has led the British Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong for 21 years.
Now, Christopher Hammerbeck faces the challenge of buying a reasonably priced pen in Central. Hammerbeck, 71, is to retire from the chamber at the end of April after a tenure that has seen its membership grow to 1,500 from 130.
The brigadier came to Hong Kong in 1992 as deputy commander for the British army tasked with preparing the withdrawal of British forces ahead of the 1997 handover.
After leading the ground attack in Iraq, Hammerbeck viewed the posting as a dead end.
"I'd won a war, I'd done pretty well, and to be sent to this military backwater out here seemed to be the real end," he said.
Two years after his arrival, Hammerbeck became executive director of the British Chamber of Commerce, where he has been ever since.
Born in 1943, in India into an air force family, Hammerbeck pursued a career in law before spotting an ad in The Daily Telegraph in 1964, offering "adventure and excitement" as an officer in the British army.
His time in the army saw tours in Northern Ireland during the early days of the IRA threat and postings in Germany.
In 1989, Hammerbeck was in Berlin with the army days after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
"If ever you wanted to justify your life's work it was to see all those people coming through the wall to buy fruit," he said. "All those things you couldn't get in East Berlin."
In 1990, as commander of the 4th Armoured Brigade, Hammerbeck briefed the troops on the eve of the Gulf war.
"They were all young men, and I was saying to them: 'We're all frightened. I'm frightened. You're all frightened. Understand it, let it come out, talk about it and you'll find you'll gain strength from each other.'"
He remains friends with his tank crew from the time and talks fondly of there being no rank in a Centurion tank.
He charts his life in a series of "chapters", with each change in direction prompted by the advice of a friend or senior. The next chapter saw his move to Asia.
Not long after his arrival in Hong Kong, the casual mention of a role at the chamber at a dinner party piqued his interest.
On resolving the small matter of never having written a curriculum vitae, Hammerbeck was hired as executive director at a time when the business community was nervous of then-governor Chris Patten's diplomacy ahead of the handover.
"To me it was quite clear: political relationships come and go, but the trading relationships are historic and long and there would always be a trading relationship," he said of his thoughts at the time.
His Wan Chai office displays photographs of his Gulf War tank crew, a Cultural Revolution-era propaganda poster featuring Mao Zedong and a bowl that was a gift from a man who secured trade dialogue with China in the 1990s.
It was through this man, who had links to Deng Xiaoping, that Hammerbeck worked to build trust with Beijing via secret meetings with the State Economic and Trade Commission.
These meetings shared British Steel's experience of denationalisation, an experience Hammerbeck thought China could adapt to State Owned Enterprises.
"My working relationship with Chinese cadres became very, very strong and as a result of that … I had here on my staff two cadres at Chinese expense," he said.

Over the past 21 years, Hammerbeck has boosted the chamber's support for small businesses and large corporations, hosting 200 events each year.
During this time, the Hong Kong government has granted the chamber access and listened to its concerns, such as the squeeze on international school places, something Hammerbeck says is unique.
He said Hong Kong and Britain continued to have strong ties on multiple levels.
"When the chief executive or chief secretary or the financial secretary go to London, 500 people will turn out for lunch. People feel very strongly about the links here.
"One of the great things through Hong Kong is the growth of the mainland Chinese relationship," he added.
Hammerbeck's retirement will be active as he takes on the role of an adviser to the European Chamber of Commerce and spends time with his partner, three children and seven grandchildren.
As he prepares to retire, he said Hong Kong's greatest challenges are its ageing population, youth unemployment and what he says is an unfounded fear of arrivals from the mainland.
However, he declined to give his views on the city's recent pro-democracy protests, as the chamber is non-political.
"The key thing that people feel is really important is the importance of people being able to express their views openly and freely."
Hammerbeck praises Hong Kong's can-do business spirit and the ease of living, although he fears the latter is changing.
"That ability to live easily is one of the great strengths of Hong Kong, and Hong Kong mustn't lose it," he warned.
"The way it's happening is that you cannot buy a pen in Central unless it's Mont Blanc."


Retiring chamber of commerce chief ends a career of adventures

Christopher Hammerbeck (left) with British troops in the Gulf. Photo: SMP

Hammerbeck is retiring as head of the British chamber. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Meeting US commander Norman Schwarzkopf (left) in 1991. Photo: SMP

News

Hong Kong

Soldier saw posting to city as dead end, then spent 21 years running chamber of commerce


He faced off against Saddam Hussein during the Gulf War, conducted a series of secret trade missions to China in the 1990s and has led the British Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong for 21 years.


Retiring chamber of commerce chief ends a career of adventures

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Soldier saw posting to city as dead end, then spent 21 years running chamber of commerce

Soldier saw posting to city as dead end, then spent 21 years running chamber of commerce