On the sunny Sunday afternoon of 6 July, the basement of the iconic Chungking Mansions came to life as Hongkongers (people currently living and working in Hong Kong) gathered at Foundation for Shared Impact (FSI)’s Know Your GuideFong: TST event, to engage with and support the small local businesses run by the city’s multicultural entrepreneurial community.
Know Your GuideFong is an immersive and community-driven event series that celebrates the multicultural spirit and vibrant entrepreneurial community quintessential to Hong Kong. For those who don’t know, “guidefong“ is the Cantonese word for “neighbors” or “friends in the community”. The Know Your GuideFong event was a truly wholesome and one-of-a-kind experience that brought Tsim Sha Tsui’s vibrant community to life.
The event showcased 31 small, ethnically diverse businesses from our vibrant community and was attended by more than 150 visitors who came to support and participate in other activities, such as the Treasure Hunt, Walking Tour, and Pop-up Market, each designed to provide participants with an immersive experience in the heart of Hong Kong.
17 HSBC Scholars from the Hub for the Future community volunteered at the event. The Hub volunteers were involved in various tasks, including engaging with vendors and attendees, promoting the event on the streets, managing guest registration, distributing raffle tickets and discount coupons, setting up stalls, and providing guests with brief overviews of the event schedule. Additionally, the volunteers took on rotating and active roles throughout both the morning and afternoon to enhance the event’s visibility and boost foot traffic.
“The food cooked and sold by some GuideFong businesses is really good. I love the food very much,” said Wing Yan Wong, a 2024 HSBC Hong Kong Scholarship recipient currently studying a Bachelor of Arts in Chinese and History, who thought the event was wonderful as she could network with different people and enhance her understanding of the ethnically diverse community. “The ethnically diverse entrepreneurs were really talented. When I walked around the market, I really appreciated their handicrafts and merchandise!”
“When we say ‘local Hong Kong’, it is not just the Cantonese, it’s also the diverse cultures that are here,” said Davide Andrea Rongji Sallustro, who received HSBC Hong Kong Scholarship in 2024 and is studying Global Economics and Finance
The sentiment is echoed by Siu Man Angela Chan, a HSBC Hong Kong Scholarship recipient in 2024 and currently studying Economics: “I have learnt to be inclusive. We need to respect the different cultures in Hong Kong and support our local economy.”
“The event is amazing as I could meet people from various backgrounds, and have nice chats about community and culture,” said Tsz Wun Wu, who received the HSBC Social Work Scholarship in 2024 and is studying social work. “The biggest takeaway from this event is that as long as we connect with people from different backgrounds, we can be a powerful and impactful community.”
