A little break in Japan


Finally squeeze a few days to take a break from the busy work. Just arrived at Tokyo. Looking forward for tomorrow walk around!

today is good with lots of meeting

Office at Night

理由


From CK's blog...

早兩日，響唔知邊本八掛雜誌道，睇到鄧麗欣既專訪。

其中有一句令CK有比較深既印象：「我響屯門長大，又係單親家庭，查實都有足夠理由要我去學壞…」

係呀，我都覺。要學壞，要沉淪，要放縱，要搵足夠既理由俾自己，查實話都冇咁易啦。

問題係，你搵唔搵之嘛。

咁，其實要搵個理由俾自己，好好地咁生活，都一樣唔係好難。都係同一個問題囉，就係你搵唔搵之嘛

Why Facebook is the Future?

Facebook unique visitors grow from 14.07M per month in May 2006 to 27.97M per month in Jan 2007. Indeed, many Hong Kong friends joined Facebook since the last two months.

Facebook was started by Havard student in 2004 as tool for meeting with other Havard students, and it still has a reputation as a hangout for teenagers and the teenaged at-heart. Which is ironic because Facebook is really about making the Web grow up.

Facebook is structured around an opt-in philosophy; people have to consent to have contact with or even see others on the network. Facebook has taken steps this year to expand its functionality by allowing outside developers to create applications that integrate with its pages. Facebook is primarily a feat of social engineering. The most important function of a social network is connecting people and that is second most function is keeping them apart.

H&M Fast Fashion Business






Today H&M has 1,400 stores in 28 countries, including 114 in the US, there it is still a small player but its $687 million in sales in 2006 has retailers such as Banana Republic, Wal-Mart and Abercrombie & Fitch all launching fast-fashion initiatives.

H&M has struggled to compete with Zara’s short turnaround time but that advantage disappeared in Asia. H&M source more than 60% of its products in the region with more than half from China compared with Inditex’s 34%.

Which way should H&M go in China?

H&M should concentrate on the luxury market where Shanghai young people aspire to. Brand names are effective in China as its nouveau riche try to emulate the West’s fashionista. It’s a mistake to discount as young people aspire to luxury. H&M should leverage on its celebrity designers such as Karl Lagerfeld and Stella McCartney.

Saturday



We have a whole day meeting! Walking out the office at night, saw a group of protector against the destruction of wanchoi old district.

China-Free


Browse here for another news on the return of China commodities in US. It's no surprise some US senator advocate the lable of "China-Free"

Definition \ A term proposed for use on food labels to show that the products are not made in China

Context \ In light of recent health and safety scares regarding Chinese-made food and precuts, a US-based company called Food for Health International has announced plans to put “China-free” sticker on its goods. The subtext: These products won’t make you sick or have harmful contaminann

Hospital Helper


Someday, robots could replace humans as nurses’ aids. It is the RI-Man - under development. With sensor to enable it to see, smell, and hear its environment, it also have 320 pressure points on its arms and chest allow it to sense the exact position of whatever it’s holding. It can lift 36KG. Browser here

Going Fast or Going Together

Reading an interview on Al Gore on his passion on environmental protection. I likes that Al Gore is not going to provide a definite answer for everyone, but the path for people to walk together for the common direction.

Al Gore cites an African proverb that says” If you wish to go quickly, go alone. If you wish to go far, go together.” He recited a famous line from the poet : Antonio Machado: “Pathwalker, there is no path. You must make the path as you walk. “

Al Gore said” We have to go far quickly.” “We must find a path that we create together quickly”. Gore is not selling himself; he’s selling a cause, a journey. “The path I see is a path that build consensus to the point where it doesn’t matter as much who is running.”

YouTube has removed the category browsing several months ago. Yet YouTube users have expressed many comments / concerns. Finally YouTube editor added back the category browsing and users are now very happy about it. Browse here for the YouTube Editorial Team blog which outline such changes in the last few months.

It is not surprised to understand why YouTube is so popular.

• Category Browsing is important / critical to users (even though Search is so popular nowadays).
  

• Open environment to take users comments (login members) to improve the website with an open blog / forum for users comments + youtube proactive feedback, making the website more user centric and sticky.

Vietnam Trades Up

China and Vietnam are two dragons in Asia, sharing similar rumbling characteristics.

While China Annual GDP growth reach close to 9% for several years, Vietnam reach 8% from 2003-2006.

China exports annual growth reach 25.5% for 2001-2005 and Vietnam ranked second in Asia, reached 17.7% and overtook India.

Despite the uncertainties, optimism over Vietnam’s economic prospect runs deep.

To gain WTO entry, Vietnam made greater concessions than other nations have been required to make upon joining, agreeing to lower trade barriers, reduce many subsidies and allow virtually unfettered foreign competition in some sectors of its domestic economy. It’s tougher deal than even China got. Local industries and business will need to withstand the foreign competitions.

Vietnam economy is characterized by culture of corruption, secrecy and state intervention.

Vietnam does not have any deep-water port to handle the new larger super container ship, most exports must first go to Singapore before shipping to US and Europe, meaning more expensive and delay.

With the WTO membership promising even up the odds, Vietnam is ready to rumble.

Magazine Subscription

Each year I take some times to review my magazine subscription. Rethink whether I really take my times to read the magazine I have subscribed and what else I want to know more.

In List

• Time Magazine - This is my flagship magazine that I have subscribed for over 10 years. I have renewed my subscription for 3 years more and my expiry subscription date will be in Year 2011. With the Times Magazine, I have the foot print into the Asia and World business and issues where I can broaden my outlooks and perspectives. It is so wonderful to know more about Burma political unrest, India uprise, the Northrock bank criris and the US presidential election.

• Cheers Magazine (Taiwan) - This is my favourite monthly magazines from Taiwan, talking bout career development of business executive. With this magazine I always remind myself to keep "double positive" about career hurdles and challenges ahead. I have subscribed this magazines since its early release 5 years ago.

• Mckinsey Quarterly - This is the dream bi-monthly magazine that I would like to subscribe when I worked in Stock Exchange of Hong Kong. I have come across this Quarterly in our research library but it was too expensive to subscribe as outsider. Mckinsey clients or alumni will get a free copy. Mckinsey quarterly offer me the hot business consulting theme and key business issues what global executive is thinking about. I just start my two-years subscriptions and looking forward to receiving it shortly.

Any good magazines to share?

Terminal 2 of Hong Kong International Airport

I am always in a hurry to catch the plane when I go for business trip or vacation trip. Never got time to visit the new Terminal 2. This Sunday I've taken a walk there. Just look around and get a coffee break in Tung Chung. It's a spacious and well designed terminal. There is a plane museum and a big game shop there. It's worth to pay a visit!

Death of Circulation

NY Times just stop their online subscription model (US$49.95 per year) for accessing their content online on 17 Sep. The entire sites is now open to all readers.

• NY Time said the subscription had met expectations with 227K subscribers and generating with US$10M a year, but the growth projection of subscribers were low, compared with the growth of online advertising. In the long run, advertising revenue will dominate over subscriber revenue model.

• More readers come to NYTimes.com through search engine (rather than directly on NYTimes.com) and they're not likely to be subscribers. Advertising is the best way (rather than subscription model) to monetarize the traffic.

Other similar online newspaper example (Los Angeles Times also stop their subscription model and go for advertising model)

Busy Busy Busy

Have not wrote anything on my Blog for more than one month. I have been busy with works. Yet work continue...and life carry on. I will try to catch up my thoughts here.

A 5 minutes Break at Bookshop
I've been to Central to have lunch with my friends two weeks ago. During the lunch hour, I have the chance to squeeze into a little bookshop" Hong Kong Book Center", which is at the underground of the buzy central street. It's tranquil and peaceful

Quote From Paulo Coelho, my favorite writer

Everything tells me that I am about to make a wrong decision, but making mistakes is just part of life. What does the world want of me? Does it want me to take no risks, to go back where I came from because I didn't have the courage to say "yes" to life?

Paulo Coelho's Eleven Minutes

From Google CEO Listing Document

"Sergey and I founded Google because we believed we could provide an important service to the world—instantly delivering relevant information on virtually any topic. Serving our end users is at the heart of what we do and remains our number one priority."

"Our goal is to develop services that significantly improve the lives of as many people as possible. In pursuing this goal, we may do things that we believe have a positive impact on the world, even if the near term financial returns are not obvious."

"We want Google to become an important and significant institution. That takes time, stability and independence. We bridge the media and technology industries, both of which have experienced considerable consolidation and attempted hostile takeovers."

"When Sergey and I founded Google, we hoped, but did not expect, it would reach its current size and influence. Our intense and enduring interest was to objectively help people find information efficiently. We also believed that searching and organizing all the world's information was an unusually important task that should be carried out by a company that is trustworthy and interested in the public good. We believe a well functioning society should have abundant, free and unbiased access to high quality information. Google therefore has a responsibility to the world."

Sunny Day

We have the luxury to see the sunshine and no more musty cloudy sky for over 10 days. Thanks God!