This month’s Grow Boating, we’re delighted to announce that Asteri, a sister agency to Asia Yacht Agency, maybe our beverages sponsors. Asteri is the official distributor for Thailand for Zodiac, Bombard, and Avon’s ribs. We desire to see you at The Speakeasy Yacht Club, Royal Phuket Marina, from 5 pm. It might be a light buffet backed by the Speakeasy Yacht Club and special prices to your favored neighborhood drinks. Come and be a part of the laugh; anybody is welcome. There is no access rate; drop your business card or sign-in on the bar.,
The Grow Boating Networking Evening is proud to guide the Thai Yachting Business AssociationHong Kong is currently without a doubt one of the best examples of prosperity, wealth, and affluence in Asia. The city used to be a group of fishing villages before the British occupation. In 1842, after the British won the Opium war, Hong Kong was handed over to Britain as its colony and soon became a famous shipping port.
Hong Kong’s first boat club is believed to be started by a group of oarsmen in 1849 and was named Hong Kong boat Club. In 1894 the Royal Hong Kong yacht club was started. The yacht club was built mainly for British army officers and expatriates who recognized sailing as a leisure activity. The first typhoon shelter in HK was built in 1883 after a typhoon in 1874 devastated HK and Macau, causing 2,000 injuries and 5,000 deaths. The shipping vessels and fishing boats that were moored on the waters were destroyed by this typhoon, causing the government to build these shelters to protect all the vessels and maintain the city’s reputation as a safe shipping port. In later years, more shelters were built all around the city, creating space for mooring commercial and private vessels.
During World War II, Hong Kong was taken over by the Japanese in 1941when they bombed key places around the city and defeated the British army. The Japanese surrendered and left in 1945, giving it back to the British.
In the 1950s and 1960s, many people from China went to HK with their money to escape the civil unrest in China. They set up factories and businesses that turned the city into a manufacturing hub for textiles, plastic products, and electronics.
Hong Kong’s boating industry was also growing. In 1967, another boat club was founded in Aberdeen, which is in the southern part of the city. Despite the rise of infrastructure, the city was still known as one of the most corrupt in the world until 1972, when the Independent Anti-Corruption agency was set up to put the country back on the right track. Due to its impressive justice system, low taxes, and efficient government, HK attracted foreign investors, traders, and talented professionals. The city soon became a financial hub.
Hong Kong is a small city with a total area of 1,104 square km and 7.2 million people. Today, its stock market is Asia’s second-largest and the 6th largest in the world. HK is currently known as the freest economy in the world, with an advanced infrastructure. Many developers in other Asian countries look up to HK and try to copy their beautiful skyscrapers. Hong Kong is also a key city for boating in Asia. It is not the largest boating market in Asia like Japan but has around 12,000 leisure boats registered in its own waters.
Hong Kong is referred to as Asia’s boating capital because the city is very globalized and compact, in the sense that boating-related services and expertise are easily accessible. Most of the people in Hong Kong speak English. Maintenance shipyards and professional laborers such as crew, captains, surveyors, mechanics, and consultants are readily available in Hong Kong.
There is a large population of wealthy people in Hong Kong. As a result, there are also a lot of high-end, expensive yachts on the water. In Hong Kong, things are very well organized, and it’s possible to get things done incredibly fast, even when government departments are involved. There is also no tolerance for corruption in Hong Kong. It is one of the safest places for boaters globally, and people adhere to the rule of law. There are around 250 islands in Hong Kong’s waters, which makes it an exciting place for boating. But one of the main reasons for the success of Hong Kong’s boating industry is the fact that it’s a tax haven that imposes no tax on pleasure boats.
Thousands of full-time boat crew and captains are employed by the Hong Kong boating industry. Just the yearly salaries of the boat crew amount to around 200 Million USD. In addition, businesses around boating also supply employment, such as shipyards, yacht distributors, machinery and electronics, charters, brokers, handypersons, etc. This makes it a huge industry that creates significant employment.
