Fun of the fair: enterprising Hong Kong students monkey around with MTR-themed merchandise

Creative young students are getting into the festive spirit by opening a business at the Lunar New Year fair in Victoria Park – while having some good-humoured fun at the expense of the MTR.

The group from a Polytechnic University dormitory clubbed together to raise HK$70,000 to open a stall selling bags, postcards and stickers that put a comical spin on the names of railway stations in the city.

One line of bags is printed with transfers alluding to the viral picture of a Hong Kong schoolgirl who was stopped at Tai Wai station last year for carrying a guzheng, or Chinese zither.

Poking fun at MTR’s policy on oversized luggage, the bags also feature a Chinese couplet which reads: “Loading parallel goods in Sheung Shui, Big bags surround Tai Wai”.

“MTR station names touch the daily lives of Hongkongers and we felt products with a local character would attract people’s attention and sell very well,” said Sun Yi-chung, who collaborated with 30 fellow students living at the university’s Chengde Hall at Polytechnic University to set up the stall, which opens today.

Anticipating strong interest from young customers, Sun said she and her friends were undaunted by the economic slowdown that is hitting the city’s retail sector as the Year of the Monkey approaches.

“We have come together primarily to have fun. As long as we don’t lose money, we are OK,” she said. “And if our products resonate with visitors and bring a smile when they pass by our stall, we will feel happy.”