by Yolanda Lam
With Christmas just around the corner, people are flocking into department stores to do some last-minute gift-shopping (myself included). As one traverses Central, one of the busiest urban districts in Hong Kong, one will find the first and oldest department store chains in the city – The Sincere Co. Ltd.
Celebrating its 124th birthday next year, The Sincere first opened on 8 January 1900 on Queen’s Road Central, before moving to 173-179 Des Voeux Road nearby. Sandwiched between multiple glass towers is a sturdy, low-rise, sand-coloured building – though slightly battered – that used to house the city’s first Chinese-owned department store. Considered somewhat of a ‘rooftop paradise’, the building accommodated a garden, a teahouse and even a nightclub, all of which were entertainment facilities constructed on the top floor to attract shoppers.[1]
Department stores sprung up in Hong Kong in the early 20th century, and business boomed. Inspired by Australian department store David Jones while he was living down under, The Sincere’s founder Ma Ying-piu thought it wise to bring the retail model back home.[2] It offered everyday necessities and novel, imported goods from around the world in one go, and it is no surprise that these shopping complexes soon became popular destinations for local customers.
Interestingly, The Sincere’s Chinese and English names form a clever word play that embody the business’ ethos. The Chinese characters “sin si” (先施), with a similar sound to its English counterpart ‘sincere’, are derived from Confucian classic Doctrine of the Mean, which means you must first give/be giving in order to show sincerity (to your customers). Among the largest department stores at that time, The Sincere was the first to recruit female sales personnel, and during WWII, it offered free Christmas gifts to families with children.[3]
After spending a bit too long dwelling on the architectural past of the building that stood before me, I walked briskly on in search for this year’s Christmas delights.
Cover Image: A Sincere store in Central, Hong Kong, circa 1941, Wikimedia Commons.
References:
[1] Hong Kong Heritage Museum. (2019) A Day in Time – 1935 Hong Kong, Illustrated with 100 Period Objects. Hong Kong: Hong Kong Heritage Museum
[2] 陳國豪. (2023)《尋蹤覓蹟》：香港唐樓故事. 香港：中華書局（香港）有限公司
Doing History in Public 