Entrepreneur designs his success (hktdc.com)


	Interior designer Clifton Leung says Hong Kong's international image is a role model for the Chinese mainland

	With its Parisienne feel and outdoor seating, French restaurant Lot 10 survived when others failed

	Coffee and dessert shop NoHo Caf?is Clifton Leung’s second F&B venture

For entrepreneurial interior designer Clifton Leung, "the time was right" to set up his own design firm in 1997.

Unfazed by a mood of uncertainty that pervaded some business sectors in the lead-up to the Handover*, Mr Leung started Clifton Leung Design Workshop full of optimisim.

His confidence paid off, and just one decade on, his Hong Kong business has an international following with prestigious brands such as D&G, Just Cavalli, Calvin Klein, Converse and Siemens among his growing retail design clientele.

The business has also diversified, with Mr Leung indulging his love of fine food by starting a food and beverage division. His first restaurant, Lot 10, opened in Central in 2003, followed a year later by NoHo Caf?(which means, north of Hollywood Road). He then began a product division, distributing imported designer homewares to retail outlets in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

Vibrant pace

Born in Hong Kong, Mr Leung was raised in Toronto, Canada, where he completed an interior design degree. When he'd decided he had enough work experience to start his own design firm, Mr Leung headed back to Hong Kong.

"In Toronto the pace is a lot slower, and you don't get much done in a day," he explained. "Hong Kong is much more vibrant, (and) has more energy. It's much less complicated to set up a company here, and the business environment is favourable."

Starting from home with himself as sole employee, Mr Leung focused his minimialist, user-friendly style on mainly residential interiors. He found it slow going at first. The Asian financial crisis hit soon after he began, and while this didn't reduce inquiry as investors were buying property to take advantage of lower prices, it was harder to secure a contract. "People thought everything should be cheap. It was tough to seal a deal when they didn't know who you are, and they were hard bargainers," he said.

But after two or three years, it started to pick up fast and Mr Leung "couldn't believe the figures" when he found business had doubled. It continued to double for the next three years, before settling into a steady growth pattern that persists today. The firm now has an office in Central, a staff of 15 and a growing portfolio of projects both in Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland cities of Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai.

Restaurant launch

With things going well, he took the plunge and launched Lot 10, a cosy, 30-seat French restaurant with a Parisienne feel, complete with tree-fringed al fresco dining. The doors opened in February 2003, and six weeks later Hong Kong was hit by Sars. Mr Leung remembers this time as "a nightmare", but while the outbreak forced many restaurants to close down, Lot 10 survived – saved by the fact that it could offer patrons outside seating.

That success led to the set up of NoHo Caf?a coffee and dessert shop, and then the designer product arm The Workshop Company Limited (or simply The Workshop).

While his restaurant business continues to do well and the product line business is developing, Mr Leung says it is the interior design element that promises the biggest growth, driven by demand from the Chinese mainland retail sector.

"The Chinese want to upgrade their image, even within their own domestic market," Mr Leung said. "(Shops) refresh their design every two years because for every business, there are at least 100 similar brands doing the same thing. China wants to be more international, and it's using Hong Kong as a marketing tool. They all want the Hong Kong image."

Boom times

Ten years after the Handover, Mr Leung says it's a very exciting time to be in Hong Kong where the economy is booming, and a feeling of prosperity fills the air. "There is a lot of money being made. People are confident, working hard, having fun and enjoying their lives. They're also buying great properties, which is good for my business."

While not planning any major expansion, Mr Leung says Hong Kong's word of mouth network will enable Clifton Leung Design Workshop and his flagship restaurant Lot 10 to continue building steadily, and expand the brands' presence in Greater China.

* "The Handover" refers to Hong Kong's return from British to Chinese rule on July 1, 1997.