Alumni Stories Felix Wong (IBBA 2010) and Terry Ku (QFIN 2010): Venturing into Blue Ocean of Self Storage in Mainland

Felix Wong (IBBA 2010) and Terry Ku (QFIN 2010): Venturing into Blue Ocean of Self Storage in Mainland

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    Self storage, a peculiar business genre that caters for land shortage in Hong Kong, was new to Mainland consumers until Felix Wong (IBBA 2010) and Terry Ku (QFIN 2010) tapped into the blue ocean by localising the concept to create opportunities and value.

    Felix embarked on his career pursuit in Guangzhou after his graduation from CUHK in 2010. In the space of just few years, where he witnessed the economic boom in the City of Rams, Felix has become increasingly aware of the shortage of space in urban areas. “A friend in the e-commerce industry said that storage was a real headache,” Felix explained. “It is inconvenient to store merchandise at home, but renting a warehouse in remote area can also be hard to manage.” The concept of self storage might provide a solution, he thought. He interested his former CUHK classmate Terry Ku in the idea and after a thorough market research, they decided to give it a try. In 2017, the entrepreneur duo opened their first facility in Guangzhou. Born out of a wise use of space that is quintessentially Hong Kong and evolved alongside the IoT (internet of things) trend in China, their King Kong Mini Storage business has grown into a vast self storage network with almost 40 branches in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), enjoying the fruits of integration.

     

    From Classmate to Partner in Entrepreneurship

    From choosing location for facilities to marketing and promotion, they built their self storage business from scratch. “Those knowledge and skills that we learned in the university, from business models to accounting principles and to marketing concepts, turned out to be exceptionally useful in practical situations,” Felix enthused.

    Neither of them had thought their friendship, with its roots in CUHK Business School, would grow into a thriving business. Felix and Terry were roommates back in their undergraduate years when they went to classes together. Their friendship continued after graduation. “We ran a stall in a holiday fair together and that was a success; we were in tune with each other,” said Terry who values mutual trust and synergism in a partnership. “Felix is well-versed in marketing while I have rich experience in property investment; the synergy offers a good foundation for our entrepreneurial pursuit.”

     


    From classmate to business partners, the mutual trust between Terry Ku (left) and Felix Wong (right) grows on the basis of their genuine exchange of ideas.

     

    China’s New Take on Self Storage

    Self storage is a novelty in China. Communicating the need and creating a market was therefore their first challenge. “There are consumers who think of us as traditional warehouse, if not pet shop selling hamsters (because of the similar pronunciation in Mandarin).” To promote the new concept, the duo adopted a multi-pronged strategy, notably with the self-explanatory term of “shared storage” and a graphic, manga-style image. On social media, the company has a strong 3D and VR presence thanks to the trending Internet Plus concept.

    Their efforts paid off. As mainland consumers started to familiarise themselves with self storage, they were eager to explore the concept to the fullest. “Mainland consumers are generally receptive to new ideas,” the duo gushed. “They experiment with new possibilities, such as using mini storage space as a cloak room or ever a private showcase for their toy collections. In response, we have adjusted the storage sizes and brought in new features such as glass door. This kind of organic interaction adds to the dynamics of our business.”

     


    Changes are made to the configuration of self storage thanks to new demands of Mainland consumers.

     

    New Horizons for Self-Betterment

    Looking back on their entrepreneurial journey, Felix and Terry were grateful to have based their business in Guangzhou, using the Greater Bay Area as a springboard to grow sustainably. “Guangzhou and Hong Kong share similar dialect and cultural milieu. Many young entrepreneurs from Hong Kong and Macau choose to start their business in Guangzhou too because of the city’s flourishing e-commerce and rich talent pool. We benefit a lot from the constant intellectual and industrial exchange.” They added that the highly developed urban environment and stable supply chain of the Greater Bay Area also provide fertile soil for their business to thrive.

    Faced with a highly treacherous market environment, Felix and Terry believed that they could navigate challenges ahead with a proactive attitude, buttressed with strong adaptability and a will to learn. This spirit of exploration is not crippled in the slightest by pandemic. At the time of the interview, they were just back from Guangzhou and getting ready to fly to Singapore for an industry update. For those young aspirants seeking inspiration, the duo encouraged them to leave their comfort zone and go after the opportunities in new markets. “Be well prepared and capitalise on the market dynamics to unlock possibilities with your skills and acumen.”

     


    The duo have high hopes for young aspirants to scale new heights in the Greater Bay Area with their language abilities, diligence, creativity, and a will to succeed.