Great Networking Spot of Hong Kong

By Victor Cattermole

Asia Pacific Bureau Chief

This month I was fortunate enough to get in to the halls of the famous Foreign Correspondents Club in Hong Kong. Without a doubt one of the most prestigious networking venues in the city.

The first impression of the FCC is that the British defiantly left their mark in some spots around Hong Kong. This great character building sites on a prime piece of Hong Kong central real estate just at the top of the famous Lan Kwai Fong night club zone. Diving in to the history of the club is most interesting and dates back to 1943 when a group of journalists were fighting for the right of freedom of speech in the media. This of course at a time when communism was sweeping over China and threatening Hong Kong.

The venue oozes history, style and elegance from the first step in the door. The majority of the building has a cell phone ban, which is great, and a dress code although not a written rule clearly the members are proud and like to maintain a standard fitting of such a great venue.

If you need to know what’s going on in Hong Kong this is the place to come. Obviously there are the usual media people frequenting the place but also several prominent business executives, diplomats and a wide variety of people are welcomed here.

The FCC provides facilities over several floors, includes several bars and eateries from local cuisine to fine dining dishes from all over the world.

A look over the FCC website (http://www.fcchk.org/) and you will see the history including past presidents from so many of the great established names of global media.

The FCC in Hong Kong is undoubtedly one of those places you must visit, you can’t help wanting to base yourself there for a week or two because you know at any moment someone famous is going to walk through the door.

The cost of membership is quite high, around US$200 per month, being a thrifty kiwi though I worked out they have reciprocal rights with other clubs around the world and so for US$20 a year in my club in New Zealand I get to use the Hong Kong FCC for 6 weeks of the year. That’s ample time for me to soak up the presence of this great historic meeting place in Hong Kong.

________________________________________________________

Posted to THE NATIONAL NETWORKER. To subscribe for your free newletter, go to www.TheNationalNetworker.com. For the complete National Networker Relationship Capital Toolkit and a free RSS feed, go to: http://thenationalnetworkerweblog.blogspot.com.