THE owner of a new Hong Kong supermarket in town centre advises Hong Konger’s considering moving to the UK to ‘adjust’ to the new lifestyle and leave the ‘complaint culture’ behind.
Paul Wong has recently opened his shop, Hong United K Limited with the hope of introducing parts of his culture to the people of Warrington but insists that Hong Kong nationals need to embrace the new way of life in the UK.
The Supermarket, located on Barbauld Street opened in November and is ran by Paul and his wife, Crystal.
After moving their lives to the UK only recently in the summer, the pair and their 13-year-old daughter have settled well into British life but have noticed a societal shift in behaviours between their home country and here.
“As Hong Konger’s, we have a complaint culture. We have to change our mindset.
“If you decide to move your life to the UK you need to adjust your mindset to this culture,” Paul said.
“I am delighted to have made the choice to come over here.”
As well as the change in culture, the 55-year-old shop owner explained how life in Hong Kong is ‘fast’ paced and non-stop.
He added: “We have to slow down our lives and enjoy the slow life in the UK.”
Having previously worked as an officer for the official examination’s board in Hong Kong for over 30 years, Paul has taken a big leap in changing careers to open the supermarket.
He detailed his aspirations for the shop to be a space to help others to integrate into British life.
“We have opened this to have a place for the Hongers. A place to gather, share experiences and share the Hong Kong culture,” he said.
The shop is stocked with all sorts of goodies and essentials with many foods originating from Hong Kong.
Included in this is an extensive selection of flavoured noodles, delicious oriental sauces and condiments, sweet and savoury products, juices, and fizzy drinks and even a frozen section for prawns, dim sum, dumplings and other delights.
There is a membership also on offer that is £5 per year and allows 5% discount on everything in-store, with a reward system included to gain more offers.
If you think the shop may be hard to spot, look out for the unique collector’s action figures that are displayed in the window - a small passion of Pauls.
The couple decided to name the shop ‘Hong United K’ to show resemblance of the two cultures coming together.
The Hong Kong national also disclosed where his British name, Paul, originated from, having moved over, and found a passion for the Beatles music, he decided to adopt his British name after the artist Paul McCartney.
Similar to other Hong Konger’s who have moved over to the UK in the past few years, Paul and Crystal made the decision to leave their home country after witnessing a shift in the political environment.
“Hong Kong’s political climate is changing. I don’t want to be monitored by the government.”
As well as the general change, Paul emphasised his concern for the education system, with him teenage daughter having been uprooted from her education in Hong Kong to now be enrolled in Latchford High School, Cardinal Newman.
Referring to the political changes in Hong Kong he said: “They are looking to change the mindset of young people.
“They are introducing mandarin to children as young as three now.
“I don’t want my daughter to have her freedom of speech limited.”
Hong United K Store, situated next to Flame Grill House on Friars Court, is open Monday to Friday 9:00am to 8:00pm and open on weekends 10:30am to 12:00 noon, be sure to check it out.
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