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Stories behind top Asian brands

Hong Kong’s Lee Kum Kee sauces get a fresh spin in three new menu items at US ramen chain Kyuramen’s restaurants. Photo: Kyuramen

It’s Lee Kum Kee like you haven’t seen before: in US ramen chain’s dishes

Hong Kong’s Lee Kum Kee sauces get a fresh spin in three new items on the menu at US ramen chain Kyuramen, including omelette rice with oyster sauce, and a miso ramen with Chiu Chow-style chilli crisp.

24 May 2024 - 6:15PMvideocam

Jet Li used an umbrella from this 139-year-old company to fight

27 Apr 2024 - 11:30AMvideocam

Japan’s Nitori joins host of Asian retailers expanding in Hong Kong

21 Sep 2023 - 1:00PMvideocam

Would you buy 100 packs of cookies to find a ‘lucky’ one? How a craze began

Koala’s March cookies from South Korea’s Lotte are popular around Asia and there are more than 600 koala designs, including an ‘eyebrow koala’ said to bring good luck. Fans have gone to great lengths to find one.

20 Jun 2023 - 11:05PM

Lotte’s Koala’s March have become a hit in Asia since their launch in 1984. The filled cookies come in more than 600 different designs, including an “eyebrow koala” said to bring good luck that fans go to great lengths to find. Photo: Shutterstock

The story of Japanese whisky giant Suntory’s coveted Yamazaki single malt

Japanese drinks company Suntory started making whisky 100 years ago and now vintage bottles of its Yamazaki single malt command huge prices – if you can get your hands on one.

26 Apr 2023 - 7:28AM

How Hong Kong’s iconic Diamond Restaurant lives on as a gourmet food brand

Thanks to the founder’s daughter and grandson, the Diamond Restaurant name lives on as a gourmet food brand – even after its five Hong Kong outlets closed down in 2002.

19 Apr 2023 - 1:35PM

Bunny branding: 5 companies with hare-y logos all set for Year of the Rabbit

Forget Playboy’s bow-tied icon: the rabbit symbolises longevity, peace and prosperity in Chinese and Asian cultures, and has a long history as a brand symbol.

22 Jan 2023 - 10:00AM

A bowl of White Rabbit candies, arguably one of China’s most recognisable cultural exports. Photo: AFP

White Rabbit ice cream, handbags, cocktail – iconic Chinese candy evolves

White Rabbit Creamy Candy, a mainstay of the Lunar New Year treat box, has an 80-year history but isn’t resting on its laurels, launching new flavours and ice cream. A Hong Kong bar sells a White Rabbit cocktail.

8 Jan 2023 - 7:45AM

Staying original helps 107-year-old Hong Kong coconut sweet brand thrive

Yan Chim Kee started selling coconut sweets in Hong Kong in 2015. Descendants of its founder say sticking to its original formula while adding new products has been key to its longevity.

8 Dec 2022 - 7:15AM

The story of Watsons: from licensed opium dealer to Asia’s biggest pharmacy

Watsons today is Asia’s leading retail health and beauty chain. It’s an empire that was built on selling opium and opiates in colonial Hong Kong, writes Patrick Chiu in this excerpt from a forthcoming book.

30 Apr 2022 - 1:45PM

Watsons went from an eye clinic in Guangdong to Asia’s biggest retail pharmacy. Above: the dispensary at the Watsons store in Prince’s Building in Des Voeux Road Central, Hong Kong in 1988. Photo: Yu Chung-yin/SCMP

Lee Man-tat, head of Lee Kum Kee sauce empire, dies at 91

Lee Man-tat is credited with turning Lee Kum Kee into a household name in Hong Kong, with the company’s products now sold in more than 100 countries worldwide.

27 Jul 2021 - 11:41PM

Lee Man-tat, chairman of Lee Kum Kee, died on Monday. Photo: SCMP

Explainer | Here’s why Vitasoy needs to tame the China boycott crisis after stock losses

Vitasoy shares plunged 10 per cent last week in the aftermath of a leaked internal memo and a backlash by consumers in mainland China. Can the firm behind the city’s venerable brand tame the crisis?

11 Jul 2021 - 12:01PMvideocam

Most Hongkongers have used Red A Plastic’s products, even if they don’t know it

Star Industrial’s Red A Plastic products are in many a Hong Kong household, and its plastic cups were made famous by Chow Yun-fat film Prison on Fire. These days, its customers include food businesses and hospitals.

16 Jun 2021 - 4:32PMvideocam

The story of Kikkoman, Japan’s most popular soy sauce

Founded in 1917 when eight Japanese soy sauce makers decided to work together, Kikkomen is now Japan’s favourite soy sauce and popular all over the world.

13 May 2021 - 12:33PM

Kikkoman makes several kinds of soy sauce to meet the particular tastes of people in different parts of Japan, and it is widely consumed in other markets too. Photo: SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

How Hello Kitty became the poster kitten for uber-cute

Hello Kitty, the cat with no mouth, was born in 1974, and by 2014, was worth US$8 billion a year. Her face is seen on everything, from toys to pencils and even water dispensers.

29 Apr 2021 - 10:33AM

Hello Kitty plushes in Hello Kitty Island Museum & Cafe in JeJu, South Korea.

The story of Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki, anime film legends

From My Neighbor Totoro to The Wind Rises, Studio Ghibli has produced some of the biggest anime hits in the world. Its co-founder Miyazaki’s love of art shines through in its animated productions.

14 Mar 2021 - 9:15AM

11 things you may not know about historic Asian brands

From Singapore's Tiger Balm to Japan's Cup Noodles, many of Asia's top brands are now loved the world over. Here'll you find the fascinating histories of Asia's top companies and the hardworking people that built them.

13 Mar 2021 - 12:11PM

15 things you may not know about historic Hong Kong brands

Despite being a small city, Hong Kong has had a huge impact in the world of business, and many of its home-grown companies are now international names. Here are some of their stories.

12 Mar 2021 - 5:00PM

From minnow to mighty empire: jeweller Chow Tai Fook’s story

Initially just a goldsmith, Chow Tai Fook opened its first stores in Hong Kong and Macau before the second world war and now has more than 4,000 worldwide. Along the way the company changed the gold and jewellery industry.

18 Jan 2021 - 12:10PMvideocam

How Casio G-Shock was born: ‘I wanted a watch impossible to break’

Casio invented the unbreakable G-Shock watch, now in its 37th year of production, but before that it had pioneered electronic calculators, and launched digital watches, musical instruments, cameras and a pocket-sized TV.

12 Dec 2020 - 6:03AM

Yeo’s: a canned history of the Singapore food and drinks giant

From humble beginnings in Qing dynasty China, Yeo Hiap Seng moved to Singapore in 1937. After World War II, Yeo’s started making canned food, soymilk, and other drinks, and has been expanding ever since.

19 Oct 2020 - 11:23AMvideocam

Yeo’s chrysanthemum tea is a huge seller in Singapore. Photo: Kiat Tan Wei Jie

How Malaysia’s Karex became world’s largest condom maker

Karex started life as a rubber company in Malaysia in the 1920s, turned to making condoms in the 1980s, and today supplies most of the big brands around the world, including Durex.

19 Sep 2020 - 5:28PM

Karex is the largest condom producer in the world, having started as a rubber processing business in what is now Malaysia in the 1920s. Photo: Alexandra Radu

How Yamaha went from a watchmaker to a world beater

Yamaha is best known for motorbikes and musical instruments, but it has made everything from boats to warplane parts and the first CD recorder in the more than 130 years since watchmaker Torakusu Yamaha started making reed organs.

30 Aug 2020 - 1:41PM

How these Filipino brands took over the world – from San Miguel to Jollibee

Filipinos have made a home all over the world, and as their most trusted brands have followed, they’ve earned legions of loyal new fans along the way

13 Jul 2020 - 7:00AM

How Lotte went from making gum to a global leisure giant

Formed by a Korean migrant in Tokyo in 1948 to produce chewing gum, Lotte today is a global retailing, hospitality and leisure conglomerate

11 Apr 2020 - 7:35PM

An early advertisement for Lotte’s Juicy & Fresh gum on a billboard in Seoul, South Korea.

How Razer became PC gamers’ go-to hardware company

From the world’s first gamer’s mouse to the Blade laptop and Razor phone, Razer has led the way for gaming peripherals for 20 years. Its dedication to making the best gaming hardware has earned it a legion of fans.

21 Mar 2020 - 7:07PM

Razer’s distinctive Chroma keyboards. Photo: Britta Pedersen via Getty Images

Shiseido: from Tokyo chemist to global cosmetics provider

Once Japan’s first Western-style pharmacy, Shiseido – founded in the 19th century – has evolved into the fifth biggest personal care company in the world. Its dedication to quality and service has brought it millions of fans.

16 Feb 2020 - 10:22PM

The Sony story: from first tape recorder to PlayStation 5

Sony was founded in 1946 and changed music listening and video gaming with its invention of the Walkman and PlayStation. But it has not always been plain sailing for the Japanese electronics giant.

28 Dec 2019 - 7:09PM

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Stories behind top Asian brands

From Tiger Balm and Po Chai Pills to Vitasoy and Camel flasks, many of the region's most famous brands have become symbols of Asia to the rest of the world. We chart the fascinating histories of Asia's top brands - their often humble beginnings, their ups and downs, and the ways they are facing the challenges of the future.

last updated:

9 September, 2024