all Eigendreh!

Lower thirds:

00:14 Yvonne Kai, ABC Cake House owner
00:38 Phoebe Wong, Office clerk
00:50 Yvonne Kai, ABC Cake House owner
01:33 Amit Oz, Conspiracy Chocolate Co-founder
01:55 Sindy Wong, Head of Tourism and Hospitality, InvestHK
02:15 Sindy Wong, Head of Tourism and Hospitality, InvestHK

Script:

For generations this Hong Kong bakery has been making mooncakes.

A traditional Chinese pastry that symbolises unity, and family.

SOT - Yvonne Kai, ABC Cake House owner

"I try to keep the recipe as similar as my grandfather did.”

The pastry is eaten in Hong Kong and China during the Mid Autumn Festival, a time of thanksgiving, and celebration of the moon goddess.

Phoebe Wong has been buying her mooncakes here for years and reserved ten boxes, months in advance. That’s over 400 euros worth of pastries.

SOT Phoebe Wong, Office clerk

“Gift for my family. I really like mooncakes. Delicious!”

But despite loyal customers like Phoebe - traditional mooncakes are no longer the money-makers they used to be.

SOT Yvonne Kai, ABC Cake House owner

“30 or 40 years ago, they would cover the whole year's business. But now a lot of people concentrate on their diet, so they don't eat a lot now. So I think it is like, one third of the year maybe.”

For those who DO still buy, tastes are changing.  

Demand has doubled this year for this high end chocolate mooncake.

Made in Hong Kong from ethically sourced ingredients, it has none of the hallmarks of a traditional mooncake - the flakey pastry, the chicken lard and the egg in the middle.

A difference that is also its appeal, according to the producers.

SOT - Amit Oz, Conspiracy Chocolate Co-founder

“You sometimes need to go to uncharted territory, because if you stay too close to something else, all you are is not that thing.”

Premium mooncakes can be a bellwether for business sentiment across Hong Kong.

Hong Kong's economy bounced back from a slump in 2022... and has shown steady growth ever since. The mooncake budgets have grown along with it.

SOT Sindy Wong, Head of Tourism and Hospitality, InvestHK

“No matter whether it’s a good time or a challenging time, we would love to spend some money on it. It's just, you know, how much we are spending.”

The opulent mooncake gift sets are often used in international corporate gifting…

Making them a growing source of soft power for China and Hong Kong.

SOT Sindy Wong, Head of Tourism and Hospitality, InvestHK

“We can use mooncakes, you know, to promote this culture. So I think, mooncakes in mid-autumn will be bigger and bigger."

While almost everyone celebrates the Mid Autumn Festival… It can look very different, from household to household.

According to official figures, almost a quarter of Hong Kong residents live below the poverty line. And yet Forbes ranks the territory third globally for number of billionaires.

The two types of mooncakes represent two different worlds… poles apart, but in a single city.