After news that 7-Eleven, a household name in Hong Kong 24-hour convenience shopping, is set to open a new outlet in Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong’s most popular hang out, bar owners now ask whether it is just a mere convenience store or a liquor bar. A second 7-Eleven outlet is set to open next to Al’s Diner and opposite Bar George and Stormies. An existing shop is at D’Aguilar Street across the neighborhood. 

7-Eleven provides convenience to folks who embark on a late-night hunt for chips, pain relievers and softdrinks at a time when supermarkets and dispensaries have called it a day. But in the case of those in Lan Kwai Fong the outlets offer a different kind of benefit. While chips, pain relievers and soft drinks sold at 7-Eleven are more expensive than ParknShop and Wellcome supermarkets, the shop guarantees much cheaper bottles and cans of liquor compared to established bars in Lan Kwai Fong. And why not, 7-Eleven operates with minimal number of staff and supported by an efficient logistical support. On the other hand, bars like Bar George and Stormies have to spend a fortune investing on interior decorations, hiring live bands and a platoon of bartenders, waitresses, cooks and cleaning crew. Adding insult to injury is the volatile leasing rates in the city where it is not uncommon for landlords to ask bar owners double or triple the rent they are previously paying.

With 7-Eleven just around the corner, youthful party-goers can drop by for a cold bottle of beer. It would be much more expensive if they do it in the bars nearby, if ever they get their orders at all, by virtue of underage drinking law. 7-Eleven may not be a direct competitor for these bars — customers drinking in the shop may be liable of violating  the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance if the shop does not have liquor license fot he premises — but that offers very little advantage. Occupying a wider space in the pavement while listening to the upbeat music and enjoying the company of friends seems perfect to many, knowing that they can enjoy as much as those who are in the bars without digging their pockets deeper.

It’s not a wonder we hear bar owners complain about this emerging trend. They exert a lot of effort, spend plenty of money, only to be outmaneouvered by some unsuspecting competitor. But who can be blamed? Landlords who allow anyone who has the highest bid for shops? 7-Eleven for being too lenient in serving products to underage patrons? Or is it just the way life goes. If newspapers and magazine circulation numbers dwindle because people flock to the World Wide Web to look for news and information, the very same dilemma could be in the minds of bar owners on how they continue to operate a sustainable business, with our without the presence of that pesky 7-Eleven outlet in the neighborhood. Sometimes changes and adjustments need to happen. Hongkong Post expanded its role from just delivering mails to electronic posting, bill payment, remittance and other logistics services. But maybe there is little room to innovate bars and clubs.

In the end, it’s the market that dictates the proliferation of Lan Kwai Fong from an exclusive bars and dining enclave to a free market Hong Kong is famous for. While I see that the presence of 7-Eleven is detrimental to the businesses of bars in Lan Kwai Fong, it is unfair to remove their shops just to accommodate the interests of bar owners — unless 7-Eleven transforms these shops into exclusively selling liquor. But if bars are keen on removing the convenience outlet from Lan Kwai Fong, they better hire staff to gather evidence that laws have been violated: consumption of liquor in the shop, or handing out liquor products to young teens. 

Did I just mention today is 7-Eleven Day, 2010?