On 4 May 2025, five HSBC scholars volunteered at the Mums@PLAY Mother’s Day Market at the Hive Sheung Wan. They supported Mehroo Turel, the Founder of Mums@PLAY and the Community and Events organiser, by setting up the event, locating the booths for different vendors, helping with registration, and inviting guests to join the event.
Mums@PLAY started in 2017 with a group of mothers. It is a community platform that brings together women entrepreneurs, small business vendors, mums in particular, offering them an opportunity to sell their products or services through our bazaars, empowering them to learn business skills through the workshops led by experts and giving them a common safe space to share and exchange ideas and belong to a community of like-minded women entrepreneurs.
The Mother’s Day Market was held in collaboration with Foundation of Shared Impact (FSI) and GuideFong, the Hive Sheung Wan, Little Steps Asia, SENsational Foundation, and Top Schools Asia. Around 30 local entrepreneurs were given the opportunity to showcase their businesses and sell handmade, organic, and cultural products at the market.
At the event, Mehroo expressed her gratitude to her supportive vendors, venue holders, sponsors, FSI’s Executive Director, Vivian Seo, as well as FSI’s Project GuideFong and the HSBC scholars we help to nurture into a force for good.
“A great partnership is going between Mum@PLAY and FSI’s GuideFong. They have really supported us through our partnership, especially with this event. The team of young students (HSBC scholars) is standing outside trying to bring in walk-ins, and the HSBC scholars have been helping me around throughout the day. This level of support is something that I never had in the past, so thank you, Vivian and team,” said Mehroo.
Chung Yin Lam, who received the HSBC Hong Kong Scholarship in 2021 and is working as an Assistant Manager in Analytics in DFI Retail Group, said, “There are people from all walks of life with different backgrounds living in the society, and there are also lots of possibilities in one’s career. It’s up to each of us to imagine and try out different ideas and businesses. And it’s also important that we help each other and support initiatives that will make a positive social impact. This way, our community will continue to thrive.”
Chung Yin added that it was great to attend an event that is so multicultural and meaningful, as he and his fellow HSBC scholars had the chance to support mothers at work and also entrepreneurs from across cultures. He also took some time to check out the booths at the market, which piqued his interest in different products and services that he hadn’t seen before.
Wing Yan Wong, who is a year-four university student studying Chinese and History at The City University of Hong Kong and received the HSBC Hong Kong Scholarship in 2024, talked about her learning from knowing more about the community, especially the ethnically diverse group. According to Wing Yan, she was able to socialize with new friends, especially with the HSBC scholars, while volunteering at the market. Meanwhile, she realized that the greatest, longest-lasting happiness came from helping others. Moreover, for someone who typically meet people from similar family backgrounds, she found that the most meaningful thing was meeting family groups from different backgrounds and people with special education needs.
“I feel great about the event. The best part of the event is that I can gain more insights into families from different cultures. For instance, I can chat with people from India,the UK, and Australia. I have learned more about the importance of organizing a market where people can socialize with each other. When I successfully invited people to come to the market, I felt really satisfied. After hearing their feedback, I was glad, especially when the guests mentioned that the event was great and meaningful. These feedbacks motivate me to join more community services in the future,” said Wing Yan.
Chi Chung Lee, who studied Bachelor of Business Administration in Hospitality and Real Estates at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and received the HSBC Vocational Education Scholarship in 2021, said, “I feel happy and grateful to be able to join today’s event. I saw the energetic side of the community of mumtrepreneurs in Hong Kong, who want to be more than just a housewife and bring positive change and hope to other moms. It’s a unique experience to see that cultural differences don’t matter when the heart is united for change.”
