Backing up old phone data and suggesting movie-inspired itineraries: retail pros turn shopping into memorable HK experience

A telecommunications company customer service manager and a lifestyle retail chain assistant branch manager are proving that genuine human connection matters more than chasing sales targets – because, as they say, “true sales begins with the warm connection between people.” 

Lam Ka‑miu, 3SUPREME premium services manager, and Ronald Chan Wang‑fai, Victorinox assistant store manager, are prime examples of professionals who live by a “people‑oriented” service creed. They believe the trade of selling is rooted in sincere sharing and interaction – customers’ trust and long-term support can only be won with wholehearted services.

“I would say I’m rather like a monkey – energetic and full of wittiness. Maybe that’s because I was born in a Year of the Monkey,” Lam laughed. Her
cheerful, sincere personality has made her a “homey advisor” in her clients’ eyes.

She recalls an elderly man, long emigrated to the United States, who came into her branch to buy a prepaid SIM card. Throughout some small talks during the service, she learned that the customer returned to Hong Kong to take care of family matters after his wife passed way. Lam noticed that his mobile phone was of a very old model. However, the client was reluctant to replace it as it was filled with years of memories of his late wife.

Lam didn’t push for a sale. She patiently listened to his concerns, and introduced the prepaid SIM cards available before selling him a new phone. Lam took the time to explain the functions of getting a new phone and recommended one that is suitable for seniors, guiding him step‑by‑step as the client backed up his treasured data.

“Take care of your feelings before you take care of the problem. I have always believed in this,” Lam said. Spending effort in taking care of the widower’s emotional needs, Lam found out that he enjoyed table tennis, and suggested that he distract himself from grief during his stay in town by visiting a table tennis club nearby and enjoying dim sum at a nostalgic Chinese tea house. On his departure, the widower thanked Lam with a text message for her thoughtful arrangements.

Lam keeps her clients’ names in her phone contacts. “I have a little habit of sending birthday greetings to my clients, hoping they find me a bit different from ordinary staff.” She also sends them tailor-made product information and offers based on their data usage habits.

This people‑first approach has earned her over 160 compliments in just two years. “Your customers will definitely feel your sincerity. Long-lasting relationships can only be formed between people with genuine interactions,” she said.

Bridging distance through interaction

For Chan, sales goes beyond hard-selling products. It’s about an interaction between the salesperson and potential patrons. When he joined Victorinox in 2016, Chan had little retail experience. Yet he was good at understanding others’ feeling and taking care of them. His attentiveness and earnestness got him promoted almost every other year, making him assistant store manager two years ago.

His regular customers not only drop by the store to catch up with him from time to time, but also become friends so close that Chan shares his life’s milestones with them. For instance, one of his clients treated him to a dinner upon learning that he was getting married. Another client who is a frequent business traveller from Malaysia drops in with his daughter every time when they are in town, and brings Chan his hometown souvenirs.

Recently, a Beijing tourist wandered into the store. Chan broke the ice and learned that the tourist was a fan of Hong Kong films, and came to see the blockbuster Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In. As Chan connected with the tourist, he suggested for him to visit Kowloon Walled City Park to enjoy the nostalgic ambience as portrayed in the movie, and recommended for him to see another local blockbuster, The Last Dance, which showcases the authentic Hong Kong culture that the tourist was interested in.

After watching the movie, the tourist came back to Chan and shared his excitement. He also bought a suitcase and a Swiss Army Knife™ set engraved with Hong Kong landmarks – taking a piece of the city home.

“Living in times dominated by tech and the Internet, a genuine human touch is ever more precious,” Chan said. “Sales is a give-and-take process. A sales pitch that just focuses on the product feels distant to a customer. But if you get down to understand your customers’ need with patience and make them feel comfortable during the visit, that may open a door for future patronage even when they leave empty-handed.”

A glass of water, a promise – the art of resolving complaints

In the service industry, customer feedback and complaints are common. Lam and Chan see them as chances to turn a situation around. They both share
the belief of taking care of customers’ feelings before everything else. 

When dealing with complaining customers, Lam first offers them a seat and a glass of water, then listens to them with patience. “A customer comes to the store in person because they believe you can solve their problems,” she said, adding that she sees such complaints as chances to improve with a thankful heart – after all, they could have just called the CS hotline.

“Don’t just follow the standard procedures as instructed. It is important to put your customers’ feelings first,” said Chan. In cases of complaints, Chan shines a light of reassurance to the complainants by emphasising that he will follow their case categorically, such as telling them: “We will do our best on
your case.” That sense of responsibility often breaks the deadlock. “If you resolve the case well and calm their irritated minds, it is very likely that they will get something else on their way out – that has happened many times indeed!”

Both of them won the Gold Award in the “Outstanding QTS Merchant Service Staff Award (Supervisory)” under the Hong Kong Tourism Board’s Quality Tourism Services Scheme – proof of the value of sincere service.

Echoing the ‘New Outstanding Services Award Scheme’ jointly introduced by the Tourism Commission and the Hong Kong Tourism Board, the ‘Praise Quest – Hospitable Hong Kong’ series will share stories of frontline service practitioners in tourism-related sectors with the trade and the public to promote the spirit of hospitality by ‘going the extra mile’ together.