Ex-Pats, Tycoons, and Hand Carry - Hong Kong Wine w/ Polly Aylwin-Foster & Ian Ford, Nimbility Asia

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Revolutionized by eliminating taxes on wine in 2008, Hong Kong has become a significant wine investment and trading hub for China and Asia in general. Polly Aylwin-Foster and Ian Ford of Nimbility Asia go deep into all aspects of the Hong Kong ("HK") wine market. From the HK wine consumer, the retail landscape, cross border transactions with China, the large "hand carry" market, and the British influence on the wine culture, they provide lots of essential data and detail for HK wine. Detailed Show Notes: 2008 - all wine duties removed for anything Wine importers - 310 (2008) - 790 (2021)Speciality wine shops - 140 (2008) - 470 (2021)HK wine consumers - 7M peopleExpats - 500k - consumed wine at 5-star hotels, int’l restaurantsIndigenous people - wine consumption not part of daily culture"Tycoons" - wealthy people, drive fine wine consumption, high value of wine purchasedConsumption mostly at restaurants and bars, big eating out culturePre-pandemic - 5-star hotels, int’l on trade, & large restaurant groups sold most of the wineCulture of private kitchens, wine clubs, private room dining - for top winesHK's more mature wine marketBordeaux historically, massive Burgundy growth, some iconic American winesThe influence of British wine culture over many decades created HK wine culture (e.g., trading houses, merchants)Average fine wine consumer more advanced in HK than China (started in 60s vs 90s in China)HK retail landscapeSupermarkets drive bulk of sales (2 main players - Welcome, Park n Shop; Watsons wine owned by a supermarket) - sell big brands, sub-HK$ 100 (~$7-9/bottle)Independent wine shops - importers' retail / private client arms, a few independents, British wine merchants, Enoteca (Japan) -fine wineOnline very small, Auctions influential - attract attention for brands, provides halo effect for in mainland China, mainland buyers participatePandemic - local airline encouraged uses miles on products, including wine, 1 importer sold $1M in wine via airlineHK wine market4.3M 9L cases imported (2021), +10% from 2019, expected to grow 5-6%/year over the next few yearsHKTDC figures - 26% officially re-exported (to China, Asia), 74% conveyed out by individuals, in storage, and local consumptionThe "hand carry" marketPeople are allowed to take 2 bottles/person into China w/o paying taxes (~50%)At HK/Shenzen border - many people would take 2 bottles, drop them off on the other side and go back and take 2 more bottles repeatedlyImpossible to know the scale, but a significant amount of wine goes across the border this wayWines then put into commercial distribution in ChinaHK as a trading hub - initial idea of shipping to HK and re-exporting flawedAdd’l logistics costs make it more expensiveTaxes are paid on landed costs, including the add'l shipping costsNeed diff back labels for SE Asia and China (HK doesn't have requirements)Cross border e-comm into China (TMall, JD.com)Chinese consumers buy offshore at favorable tax ratesLimitations per year and per transactionsOpens up the availability of products to consumersHK has a more Western media landscapeDouyin illegal (Chinese TikTok)Does not have KOL (key opinion leader) industry like ChinaJames Suckling invested a lot in HK, has a wine club, eventsInt’l wine critics are critical - Jancis Robinson, Wine Spectator, Wine Advocate Get access to library episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.