Newspaper Article

Students bid for chance at Lunar New Year profit Budding entrepreneurs, many of them in school uniform, went head-to-head to bid for stalls at the 2010 Lunar New Year bazaar in Victoria Park.

//-->BeatriceSiu Friday, October 30, 2009
Budding entrepreneurs, many of them in school uniform, went head-to-head to bid for stalls at the 2010 Lunar New Year bazaar in Victoria Park.
They are hoping to turn a buck from the 2010 fair, amid signs the city is on its way to economic recovery.
New Method College was the highest bidder for a themed dry goods stall at HK$41,000.
A supervisor of extracurricular activities at the school, surnamed Cheng, said the experience will teach students how to do business. "Making a profit is not our aim. What's more important is to teach the students how to run a business and cooperate with their partners."
Student Cheng Wing-hong said profit was not his main motivation.
"I am happy even if I make little money. All I want is to learn from the experience," he said.
Wilson Tam Chin-wai, 23, took eight attempts before he won out with a HK$30,000 bid, eight times more than the opening price.
"As Lunar New Year and Valentine's Day are on the same day, I hope more lovers will buy my products," he said.
Tam is investing HK$300,000 in the stall and hopes to double his money.
The fair opens on February 8 and interest in the auction was likely boosted by auspicious dates. It closely coincides with the first day of the Year of the Tiger - February 14 - which is also Valentine's Day on the Western calendar.
On Wednesday, keen bidding saw the most sought-after fast-food site fetch a 10-year-high price of HK
$490,000 after opening at HK$230,180. A Mr Leung yesterday secured two stalls with bids of HK$60,000 and HK$40,000 respectively, five to seven times more than the opening price.
The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department auctioned eight themed dry goods stalls and 284 dry goods stalls yesterday.
Leung Yui-hung, a chicken biscuit hawker, secured a dry goods stall with HK$60,000, six times higher than the HK$8,740 opening price.