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Can Hong Kong’s retail landlords weather soaring vacancy rates by running their own shops in their own buildings?
- Rather than leave their properties standing idle, some landlords are launching brand new business ventures to fill the vacant space
- Two joint owners will open their first cosmetics store in their five-storey retail complex at 53 Carnarvon Road, Tsim Sha Tsui next week
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The collapse of retail rents and high vacancy rates in some of Hong Kong’s main shopping districts is forcing some landlords to get creative. Rather than leave their buildings standing idle, some are launching brand new, totally unrelated business ventures to fill the vacant space.
Two joint owners of a five-storey retail complex at 53 Carnarvon Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, for example, plan to open their first cosmetics store on the premises on September 17.
Formerly occupied by a jewellery shop, the space will now become a concept store named Art Piece, offering more than 200 cosmetics brands from the US, Europe, Japan and Korea. Sales will take place both on and offline.
“Where there is risk, there is opportunity,” said Art Piece owner M2R Investment in a written reply to the Post. M2R Investment is run by directors Ng Kwok-chun and Ng Kwok-hing, according to a filing to the company registry.
Their bold move comes after a growing number of international brands such as Victoria’s Secret, the American retailer known for its seductive lingerie, Greek jeweller Folli Follie and the US clothing company J. Crew Group have closed their shops in Hong Kong amid a huge fall in tourist numbers and the city’s worst ever recession.
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