Guo Desheng
Kwok Tak-seng was one of the founders of Sun Hung Kai Properties in Hong Kong. A British Dependent Territories citizen, he was originally from Shekki, Zhongshan, Guangdong Province. Born in Macau and raised in Shekki, his family ran a grocery and wholesale business. During the Japanese invasion of China, he fled with his family to Hong Kong. After the end of the war, he opened Hung Hing Hop Kee Grocery Store in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong, selling groceries and industrial raw materials. He later expanded the business into Hung Cheong Department Store Wholesale and, in 1952, established Hung Cheong Import & Export Company, specializing in the wholesale of foreign goods. He was involved in import-export trade in Hong Kong, with business extending across Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macau, and Southeast Asia, earning him the nickname "King of Foreign Goods."
Life
In 1952, he co-founded Hung Cheong & Co. with Yeung Yiu-chung, operating in the wholesale of foreign goods. Foreseeing the growth of the garment industry in Hong Kong, he secured the exclusive agency rights for Japanese YKK zippers in Hong Kong in 1954, leading to prosperous business and earning the title “King of Foreign Goods.”
In 1958, Kwok Tak-seng, Lee Shau-kee, and Fung King-hey co-founded Eternal Enterprise Company to enter the real estate sector. In 1963, the three invested HK$1 million to establish Sun Hung Kai & Co.
At the time of his death in 1990, Sun Hung Kai Properties had a market capitalization of HK$25.4 billion, a 62-fold increase from its initial listing.
At 11:23 a.m. on October 30, 1990[1][2], Kwok died of heart disease at Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital[2][3]. His funeral was held on November 5 at Hong Kong Funeral Home[4][5] and he was buried at Tseung Kwan O Chinese Permanent Cemetery[4][5][6].
Legacy
- Kwok Tak Seng Catholic Secondary School (located in Sha Tin, New Territories, Hong Kong)
- Kwok Tak Seng Heart Centre (located at Grantham Hospital, Hong Kong)
- Hong Kong Federation of Women's Kwok Tak Seng Service Centre (located on Lockhart Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong)[7]
- Kwok Tak Seng Building, Hong Kong Metropolitan University (located in Ho Man Tin, Kowloon, Hong Kong)
Family
Kwok was married twice. His first wife was Wong Sau-king; his second wife was Kwong Siu-hing. With Kwong, he had three sons and three daughters: Walter Kwok (died October 2018), Thomas Kwok, and Raymond Kwok; and daughters Wong Kwok Yin-ping (married surname), Wong Kwok Yuen-kwan (married surname), and Chan Kwok Yuen-yee (married surname). His first wife Wong Sau-king, eldest daughter Wong Yin-ping (died in 1980[8]), and second daughter Wong Yuen-kwan (died June 25, 1978) all passed away before Kwok's own death.
References
- ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%83%AD%E5%BE%97%E5%8B%9D#cite_ref-1
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%83%AD%E5%BE%97%E5%8B%9D#cite_ref-2
- ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%83%AD%E5%BE%97%E5%8B%9D#cite_ref-%E5%A4%A7%E5%85%AC901103_3-0
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%83%AD%E5%BE%97%E5%8B%9D#cite_ref-%E8%8F%AF%E5%83%91%E6%97%A5%E5%A0%B119780701_4-0
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%83%AD%E5%BE%97%E5%8B%9D#cite_ref-%E5%B7%A5%E5%95%86%E6%97%A5%E5%A0%B119780702_5-0
- ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%83%AD%E5%BE%97%E5%8B%9D#cite_ref-%E5%A4%A7%E5%85%AC901106_6-0
- ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%83%AD%E5%BE%97%E5%8B%9D#cite_ref-%E5%A4%A7%E5%85%AC901031_7-0
- ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%83%AD%E5%BE%97%E5%8B%9D#cite_ref-8
See also
- Kwok Tak-seng family