Hong Kong is a place brimming with talented and intriguing people. In our new 27 Questions column, we get up close and personal with notable Hong Kong personalities, learning about their whims and aversions, pivotal life moments, and hopes and dreams — all revealed in roughly the same amount of time it takes to sit through a round of speed dating.
This week, we talk to Bohan Qiu — senior PR executive at a luxury e-commerce site and co-founder of Totem Collective. Formerly a student of journalism and politics at the University of Hong Kong, Qiu’s extracurricular activities — including a stint spent modelling in Paris — resulted in a career shift towards the world of fashion. Known for his prolific interest in how fashion exerts macrocosmic influence over the social and political mainstream, Qiu spends what little free time one imagines he has writing as a contributor to SCMP Style. We get to know one of Hong Kong’s hardest-working fashion insiders below.
Name: Bohan Qiu
Age: 24
Neighbourhood: Wan Chai
Occupation: PR executive
At Old Bazaar Kitchen in Wan Chai. They cook the best bak kuh teh, lamb stew and the most incredible chilled squid!
Anybody who champions his profession while still remaining very down to earth.
Modelling.
Espresso Martini.
When I passed my driver’s license exam!
Oh, night owl for sure.
WeChat!
Hot pot.
Small living spaces! I dream about a little house with a garden.
Xinjiang!
Rats.
When I was on my way to an event at Harbour City. I’ve always loved riding the Star Ferry. It feels like I’m between two spaces and don’t really exist anywhere. It’s one of the few places in Hong Kong where I feel at peace.
My Nintendo Switch! I’m actually quite a big gamer.
Happy Together by Wong Kar-wai.
Berlin, for sure. It’s a city where everyone can always reinvent themselves.
When you know how to order at a local restaurant with all the correct abbreviations and slang!
Liu Wen, Haider Ackermann, Tilda Swinton, Timothée Chalamet and Du Juan.
“The Suburbs” by Arcade Fire.
I take the Star Ferry.
Transient.
Fresh laundry.
I think I’m not bad! My signature dish is my grandma’s recipe for a special type of Chiuchow-style satay noodle that’s topped with beef and Chinese kale. I’ve floored people of every conceivable nationality with this dish.
“INSANEEEEEE!”
When I was 18 years old, I had an incredibly cliché yet romantic encounter of the Before Sunrise kind in Budapest.
Roughly 50–60? Nowadays I wear two pairs made by my Belgian friend’s brand ROMBAUT. They’re uber cool vegan leather sneakers that also happen to be incredibly comfy.
I can’t be alone for too long. I need human energy to sustain myself!
I was in a Berlin club, trying to introduce gong therapy in a corridor adjoining two rooms. I was figuring out how I could persuade a bouncer to smuggle the gong into the club!
