Hong Kong’s Lan Kwai Fong operators claim cheap 7-Eleven store alcohol is killing business
Bar operators complain that competition from cheap outlets is harming their earnings, but drinkers say Lan Kwai Fong is just too expensive
It’s only 10pm on a Wednesday night and there are already people loitering outside 7-Eleven in Lan Kwai Fong, tossing their empty beer cans onto an ever growing pile of discarded leftovers.
Three German tourists, who did not want to be named, summed up the general thinking of everyone who has ever bought a drink at 7-Eleven: “It’s fast, there’s no service tax and most importantly it’s cheap.”
While partygoers may revel in the low cost of inebriation that the convenience store offers, bar owners and operators are worried.
“Lan Kwai Fong used to be considered ‘hip’ in the 90s. It’s just too noisy now, there are always bottles lying on the street, a lot of people just drinking outside on the steps beside 7-Eleven,” said Peter Karl, manager of long-standing bar Schnurrbart.
The German bar, which has been in operation for over 25 years, lies right next to a 7-Eleven on D’Aguilar Street. According to Karl, Lan Kwai Fong now has an “image problem”.
