Launching pad for a 'super-connector'

After making his first pot of gold in the early 2010s, Clarence Ling Chun-kit invested in a series of internet-based startups. Some of them have become bellwethers today, such as Lalamove, a Hong Kong-based technology company that provides delivery services in cities across Asia and Latin America, and DayDayCook, a food and lifestyle brand.

Riding on the global digital boom in 2014, Ling and his two partners set up Ztore — an e-commerce company aimed at creating new business models for Hong Kong's grocery shopping market. In August, Television Broadcasts and Shaw Brothers said they would invest HK$200 million (US$25.7 million) to acquire about 75 percent of Ztore's shares.

Ling is now setting his sights on the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and encouraging more young people in Hong Kong to be proactive in seeking business opportunities in the region.

He recalls his trials and tribulations, and shares his insights into the business prospects for Hong Kong as well as the entire Greater Bay Area. He speaks to Kathy Zhang.

You co-founded an e-commerce startup in 2015. Before that, you were already an investor. What inspired you to start your own business in Hong Kong?

After graduating from university in the United States in 2005, I went into business in 2006. I started helping Chinese State-owned enterprises and private businesses expand overseas in 2009, basically looking at investment opportunities in Europe, the US and Southeast Asia. In 2013, I gave investment advice to Wanda when they made their first acquisition in the United Kingdom, that is, the company's 320 million pounds (US$442 million) acquisition of British yacht maker Sunseeker.

After making my first bucket of gold, I started investing in companies, including Lalamove and DayDayCook in Hong Kong. At the end of 2014, I started talking to my two co-founders of Ztore.

What inspired me was I felt Hong Kong needed a change. We were very far behind the rest of the world, especially the Chinese mainland, in terms of internet businesses and development.

Starting Ztore was a way to bring about that change, encouraging Hong Kong people to understand more about the internet business.

It was about time to do this and it was a huge challenge because there was not much an ecosystem in Hong Kong for startups. Everything we had to build from scratch. From warehouse operations to delivery services, there was really no one who had ever done it before (in Hong Kong).

How did the people around you respond to the idea?

A lot of my friends never thought we would succeed.

What is it like being an entrepreneur?

I would say there's a lot of sacrifice you have to make being an entrepreneur, be it time with your family or friends.

My wife and kids have already given up on me (he chuckles). They've now got used to, for example, not having me home for dinner most nights.

Which cities in the Greater Bay Area do you think hold the most promise for would-be entrepreneurs?

It depends on which industry you are interested in. For example, in terms of new media or social media related businesses, I think it's probably better to start in Guangzhou. For businesses related to the creative industry, design, and intellectual property, probably Foshan would be a good choice. In terms of technology-related businesses, obviously, it would be Shenzhen.

You need to do more research on which types of talent there are in different cities before entering the market.

There are also the differences between Hong Kong and the mainland in terms of culture, way of life and the way of doing things. For example, in the property market, the regulations are very different. Hong Kong and the mainland have totally different systems, different taxes.

It might be easier for Hong Kong people to understand the UK's property or tax systems because, over the years, we've followed those kinds of regulations and it's easier for us to understand.

In terms of culture, I have talked to many Hong Kong teenagers and encouraged them to spend some time on the mainland and try to get some exposure to the way of life there.

But I understand if you don't know anyone, it's quite hard to make the first step going there.

My first time going to Beijing as a grown-up was in 2006. I was very scared.

It is about whether you are willing to get out of your own comfort zone or not.