Man of the Hour

Luk’s first foray across the border confirmed his suspicions. The Chinese market was slowly beginning to open itself up to the world, and the storied history that Cartier provides would prove a perfect match with the modern Chinese consumer’s needs.

But there was one little problem that needed addressing first.

“I didn’t know a word of Mandarin,” Luk laughs. “My first meeting was with China Duty Free and for two hours we didn’t understand each other. We even tried writing things down but then realised I didn’t understand simplified Chinese and they didn’t understand traditional Chinese.”

Heading back to Hong Kong, Luk thought about how he could learn the language – fast – and he happened upon a near-perfect solution.

“I decided the most practical way was not to find a tutor but to go to karaoke and just learn it by singing Mandarin songs,” says Luk. “So when I sing now I sound perfect but when I talk, I have a funny accent. But it works and that’s what is important.”

What really captured Luk’s imagination back in the early 1990s was just how quickly things were moving ahead in China

“It was the fast pace that first excited me, incredible,” he says. “And then it was just learning about the culture. It is the same still today. China wants to break out and see the world and welcome the world. There is an energy there. We started our China operations in 1992 – the first store was in Shanghai. Today we have around 40 boutiques in China and are opening at a pace of around seven per year.”