HK malls bank on Olympics hype to drive footfall

Several shopping malls in Hong Kong have started opening up earlier to broadcast the final of 200 metre freestyle where swimmer Siobhan Haughey competed and won silver.  For example, apm, located at Kwun Tong, opened three hours earlier than usual and started livestreaming of games at 8 am on its big screen at the atrium. According to The Standard, some restaurants at the mall will start operating at 7:30 am to allow customers people to watch the swimming final after breakfast. Two days ago, apm also broadcast the final of men's foil event where fencer Edgar Cheung Ka-long won Hong Kong's first gold in fencing and its second-ever gold. Hundreds of spectators gathered to support him across different storeys. 

Meanwhile, East point City, located at Tseung Kwan O and also operated by Sun Hung Kai Properties, also livestreamed the event while the mall also livestreamed the quarter-finals of the table tennis singles where Doo Hoi-kem competed with Chen Meng of China. Sino Group's Olympian City at Mong Kok and tmtplaza at Tuen Mun opened an hour earlier to livestream the event and welcome customers. 

Retail sales in Hong Kong saw improvement in May 2021, growing by 10.5% in May 2021 according to the Census and Statistics Department. This is compared with the same month in 2020. While the first five months of 2021 taken together, it was provisionally estimated that the value of total retail sales increased by 8.9% compared with the same period in 2020.

(Read also: How can HK physical retailers compete with the convenience of online purchase?)

Haughey sealed Hong Kong's second medal of the Tokyo Olympics on Wednesday morning. She is Hong Kong's first swimmer to reach an Olympic swimming final. According to the Elite Athletes Performance Recognition Scheme, Haughey will be awarded a total of HK$2.5 million after winning the silver medal. The same scheme already awarded Cheung a total of HK$5 million after he won the gold medal.

Meanwhile on Monday, Kelly Chan, who represented TVB to cover the Olympic Games, was heavily criticised by netizens for her inappropriate questions and reaction when interviewing Cheung, right after his win of the gold medal in fencing. Some criticised her over excitement and professing of love and admiration for the athlete asking questions such as "Now everyone is watching you through livestreaming [...]I love you so much and what can I do?" She also made remarks such as wanting to blow him a kiss but couldn't because of social distancing. Chan later issued a post on her Instagram account and apologised to Cheung, audiences, and TVB for her inappropriate mannerisms. 

Previously, brands in Hong Kong also rolled out a series of promotional offers, discounts or social media posts to celebrate the success with Hongkongers after Cheung's success. Some businesses have even taken to provide bespoke offers for Hong Kong athletes.

For example, IKEA Hong Kong published a post with an image yesterday at about 8:29pm, one to two minutes after Cheung's triumph at the Olympic Games, promoting its artificial flower Smycka. The writer of the post said, "Although I am just a flower, I am proud to have the same initial as foil! Add 'foil' Cheung!" In Hong Kong, the term "add oil" is often used to show support to others, and this post played a pun on "add foil" to support Cheung.

MTR also launched bespoke offers for Hong Kong athletes participating in the Olympic Games as every one of them will receive a ticket that offers them one-year free journeys. Meanwhile, MTR has also decided to offer Cheung a lifetime ticket that enables him to travel for free.

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