Mourning Hong Kong’s maze of memories: 45-year-old textile hawker market winds down, lures fabric fanatics for one last sale
- Yen Chow Street Hawker Bazaar in Sham Shui Po long attracted fashion-savvy residents and bargain hunters
- Only 16 of 49 vendors plan to relocate to government’s new site about 400 metres (1,300 feet) away, with some opting to retire instead
Generations of hawkers bid farewell to Hong Kong’s oldest outdoor fabric market on Tuesday, trading right until the last minute as residents descended on the bazaar for a final glimpse of a bygone era before the iconic stalls relocate or shut down entirely.
The Yen Chow Street Hawker Bazaar, commonly known as “Pang Jai”, closed after 45 years, and only 16 of the 49 vendors plan to set up their stalls at the government’s new site at Tung Chau Street Temporary Market, about 400 metres (1,300 feet) away, which begins operations on Wednesday.
Some vendors complained of insufficient time to remove their stalls and a lack of electricity at the new site.
Li Man-sang, the 70-year-old owner of San Kee Company, told the Post he discovered the gates to the Yen Chow Street site were locked when he arrived in the morning.
“I negotiated with the officers with a letter that said we could operate until 5pm today. It took 30 minutes before they unlocked the gates,” Li said. “I’ve just come back from travelling yesterday and hoped to come back today for the last day.”