JNA Awards 2020 - Jewellery Industry Best Practices

JNA AWARDS 2020 25 brand.“It’salways satisfying to see your customers happy. I would even help the craftsmen design jewellery before promoting and selling these items to the customers myself,” he says. In 1997, Wong joined the Group’s executive office, wherein he helped establish a modern and centralised operation model in Hong Kong. Simultaneously, he was tasked to break new ground for the brand in Mainland China, where Chow Tai Fook would eventually open its first store in 1998. It was only a matter of time before Wong became a formidable force in developing the strategies of the publicly listed group, whose network had grown to nearly 4,000 stores as of 2020. Progressive leadership As a businessman, Wong believes in saving for the rainy day. Such a mindset had helped Chow Tai Fook weather a number of storms in the past. “The economy fluctuates every five to 10 years. As leaders, we need to prepare while the economy is still good. Adversity, after all, always come at the end of prosperous times,” he shares. This proved particularly useful during the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s, wherein Chow Tai Fook forged ahead with its carefully laid-out plans, even in the midst of economic turmoil. The Group took advantage of the declining rental rates and opened more stores in Hong Kong. It even launched manufacturing facilities in the Shunde District of Guangdong, Mainland China. The Group’s earlier computerisation also enabled branch managers to run their stores more efficiently while minimising operational costs and eliminating overlapping expenses. Wong says that Chow Tai Fook pioneered the “Fixed Price” policy in Hong Kong at this time. The same foresight helped the Group in 2003 when the jewellery trade was rocked by the SARS outbreak. While Chow Tai Fook had to wait for the health scare to subside, it most definitely hit the ground running when the market finally reopened – enabling it to recover in just six months. Chow Tai Fook remains undeterred, even in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. “As always, we need to adopt a new way of thinking; find ways to serve customers even in these challenging times,” he says. People person “In Chinese, the word ‘leader’ is composed of two characters – ‘lead’ and ‘guide.’ To lead is to become a trailblazer who can bear risks and responsibilities. To guide is to give direction to the staff and ensure that they are not lost,” says Wong. A leader who was positively influenced by the guidance of his mentors, he expresses gratitude for his boss, Dr Cheng Yu-tung. “I look up to his great wisdom and attitude, as well as his humility and the way he treats people. Such compassion cannot be learned from mere books,” he shares. Cheng’s influence on Wong is most evident in how the latter cares for his staff. “I value people. We have 30,000 colleagues from different areas. That is why it’s important for us to find harmony in diversity. We maintain an environment that encourages our staff to speak their mind,” says Wong, who also created a specialised department that provides in-house training for Chow Tai Fook’s new hires. In doing so, he aims to help them work smarter and reach more customers, with the use of modern technology and creativity. 3 4