Interior designer and architect Steve Leung likes to plan ahead
Steve Leung has built his career with the same attention to detail he brings to every building and design project. "It was always my aspiration to set up my own practice, even on day one when I started my university studies," says the founder and managing director of Steve Leung Architects and Steve Leung Designers. "I'm the kind of man who likes to plan ahead - plan my career, plan my life. I always have my target for the next year. In the beginning of the year, I'll think about what I'm going to do this year and also what I'm going to do in the next year, in the next five years, or even in the next 10 years."
He later merged with another company, eventually setting up his own architecture and interior design firms in 1997. After focusing on architecture for the first decade of his career, Leung's firm now spends 90 per cent or more of its time on interior design for everything from show flats and shopping malls to iconic buildings such as 39 Conduit Road. Based in Hong Kong, the company has three offices on the mainland and a combined staff of 360.
"There's a saying in the Western world that 'architecture is an old man's business', because you need a lot of time to get the right opportunity to demonstrate your ability," Leung says. "With architecture, you need five, six or even 10 years to complete a project, whereas with interior design projects you only need about one year, or at the most two years."
