Daylight is fading over Hong Kong’s harbor. From the 21st floor of the K11 studio building, there is a majestic 360-degree view. An eagle with outstretched wings soars above the glass façade. Below floats a garbage boat, lost in this environment of glass and concrete. In the distance, towards mainland China, on the site of an old airport converted into a cruise ship terminal, is this huge horizontal floating structure. Read more.

A family estate based on a jewelry empire 

Welcome to a financial capital of 7 million people, where intense urban promiscuity meets unbridled real estate, where prices per square meter can reach €150,000. There is a certain fever spreading through the green carpet in the 21st-floor grandchildren’s lounge, where owner 
Adrian Cheng is devoted to table football, cushions and sofas. His office at the central office has just been alerted: « Here he comes. The son and eldest grandson of Hong Kong billionaires, whom everyone calls Adrian, has a great vision. 

At the heart of the family fortune, which ranks among the country’s 10 largest and 58th in Forbes’ international rankings, is the jewelry empire Chow Tai Fook (CTF), a world leader with a turnover of €5.3 billion and 2,400 boutiques, and the real estate and business development company New World Development (NWD) with a turnover of €5.87 billion. The conglomerate has close to 50,000 employees and its investments span China and the world. 

Luxury, culture, nature 

Instead of confirming financial results, the revolutionary Adrian has shaken things up. He wanted the same for his three children: ‘to think differently and influence the world’. In ten years, this resourceful man has transformed a family group into a reference platform for luxury brands in China. His target group: millennials, generation 1988-1994 and generation Z 1995-2010 – a future market of 566 million consumers, well-informed, versatile and without boundaries. 

To the decades-long one-child policy, which has now come to an end, is added a Chinese twist: these children, spoiled by their parents and pampered by their grandparents, are willing to make any financial sacrifice to improve their standard of living at the age of six. An entrepreneur’s dream. Disruptive Adrian appeals to the millennial generation and accompanies their lifestyle: luxury, culture, nature. After the Great Saviour, Bean’s big brother.