Rise and fall of Hong Kong’s ‘shop kings’: How plunging rents, debt crushed their empires

Shop prices in the city have fallen more than 40 per cent from their 2018 peak, but they may not have hit rock bottom yet

They were the “shop kings” of Hong Kong, owning dozens of properties in the same district and even the same street. But over the past few years many of these landlords have gone bankrupt, hit by the collapse in post-pandemic rents and tighter bank lending.

Shop prices in the city have fallen more than 40 per cent from their 2018 peak, but they may not have hit rock bottom yet, according to Centaline Commercial.

“There does not appear to be any clear sign of a turnaround today, nor any glimmer of hope on the horizon that might trigger a rebound,” said Stanley Poon, managing director at the agency.

According to Colliers’ data, in the first three quarters of this year, the total value of loss-making transactions involving street shops priced at over HK$100 million (US$12.75 million) reached HK$485 million – surging 81.6 per cent compared with HK$267 million the same period last year.

Originally a neon light repairman, Tang later became a real estate broker and started investing in commercial property in the 1970s.