A foreign couple go sight-seeing in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Wednesday. Edmond Tang
On a fine Sunday afternoon, Miho Takaaki strolls among the fashion boutiques in the Sogo department store in Causeway Bay, accompanied by her young niece. The elderly lady selects a light cardigan, then waves to the salesperson. The clerk steps forward with a smile, greeting Takaaki in Japanese before showing her to the fitting room.
"My husband and I used to live here before he retired three years ago. Now I visit the city to see my extended family and to shop," said Takaaki, 61. "The service of salespeople has definitely improved in recent months. In the past they only cared about middle-aged customers who looked like extravagant spenders."
Takaaki's observation may serve as a bell weather for the future of our city's tourism. With the aim of increasing the numbers of visitors and the amount tourists spend, government and local businesses are making efforts to attract tourists in their "golden years" - the elderly retired, who have time and money to travel.
Often their financial security is established and they are able to enjoy life without having to pay day to day regard to the global economy.
Tourism decline
According to the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), the number of visitors is expected to drop by 1.6 per cent in 2009. In its effort to place Hong Kong in the spotlight, HKTB is organizing a host of promotional events. Large-scale food fairs are planned in hot spots like Knutsford Terrace, Lan Kwan Fong and Soho.
Grand as these affairs may be the ideas do not seem to strike a chord among older people. Paul Rikhelme, a 65-year-old food lover from Holland who often visits Hong Kong, said there are plenty of smaller food festivals to visit. Those are usually in local restaurants and chain stores like city'super and have more "character".
"The small ones are much better suited to people my age. They're cozier, and they talk about the subtle differences between cuisines," she commented. "It's more effective if the government strengthens Hong Kong's image as a food paradise by encouraging local eateries to organize more events."
The tourist's sentiments find resonance among restaurant owners. Leung Ka-kwok, owner of a French restaurant in Wan Chai, pointed out that many younger visitors have cut back on spending, while elderly tourists continue to order fancy dishes and fine wine.
To cater to this latter group of customers, Leung has added new luxury items on the menu and expanded the wine collection.
"I heard some elderly tourists from Europe say they don't intend to stop enjoying life even if the economy goes down. Their savings have been stable despite the financial crisis," Leung said.
Another new event planned by HKTB is the Hong Kong Hiking Festival. It will become a part of the Oxfam Trailwalker in October. Some places for participants may be reserved for overseas visitors.
The HKTB will also launch some new "green" tourism products to attract elderly tourists who like hiking, notably those from Japan.
Foreign tourists look for bargains at a street market in Hong Kong in early December. AFP
Miho's husband, Yamane Takaaki, thinks it is an "interesting move" to promote green tourism in Hong Kong among foreigners. "Few people will think green when they think Hong Kong, even less when they're planning a trip to this town. It's true that some older Japanese like to go hiking in different places so they may be interested."
Sean Henry, a 57-year-old French scuba diver, is less intrigued by the idea. Henry pointed out that other Asian countries like Thailand have more appealing natural attractions. And Hong Kong pales in comparison to most mainland cities as a hiking destination, unless visitors have limited time.
"Hiking in Hong Kong is more convenient for sure," he said. "It's better if hiking is advertised as part of a suggested itinerary alongside other attractions, so the tourists feel they can make the best use of their time. I'd be curious to see how Hong Kong will be packaged as a destination for green tourism though."
Mainland influx
As Hong Kong's reputation as a shopping paradise remains solid, local stores are working to capitalize on the influx of mainland tourists.
While some salespersons tended to younger customers in the past, they now are shifting their attention to the silver-haired compatriots from the north who come shopping in Hong Kong.
"We used to focus on the middle-aged couples rather than their elderly parents, and we'd pay a bit less attention if it's a rather old couple coming in," said Lam Chung, owner of a camera shop in Tsim Sha Tsui. "Nowadays, my retired father works in the shop at times since he's good at communicating with the older mainland tourists."
Lam's father explained the dynamic behind these elder mainlanders' shopping sprees: "Most of them know how Hong Kong's economy is suffering and that we rely on their spending, so now they expect better service from us too. It's not too hard to win their business if you're courteous."
The shifting focus requires changing business strategies for some entrepreneurs as well. Cindy Chung, owner of a fashion boutique in Tsim Sha Tsui, said she had expanded her collection to include fashion for elderly Asian ladies, who are for the most part, polite and generous customers.
"Elderly people who travel a lot are the ones who have money, regardless of what is going on with the economy," Chung contended. "They're easy to deal with as long as I stay patient when they take their time. The younger ones are getting more cautious now, probably because their jobs pay less or their investments are at risk."
Mrs Zhang, a 55-year-old visitor from Shenzhen, agrees with Chung's observation. "My daughter used to come on shopping trips with me. Now she's busy with her job because her company is short-staffed. I come to Hong Kong every now and then to shop for myself, and get some baby formula and other stuff for my relatives."
