King Leung King-chung was just like many other Hongkongers used to a comfortable life with plenty of entertainment options and different cuisines close at hand – moving to the Arabian Desert to set up a business was the furthest thing from his mind.
Leung, a finance graduate from the University of Hong Kong, had started his own tech start-up that included coding for websites during his second year of study. He then became one of the youngest start-up founders among his batch to join an incubation programme at the city’s Science Park.
Following such a promising start, a move to Saudi Arabia after graduation to start a shaved ice shop was unexpected, to say the least.
“I am a person hoping to challenge myself, and I wanted to get out of my comfort zone,” the 26-year-old said.
Leung bought a one-way ticket to the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh two years ago, having also considered a move to mainland China and Africa, convinced that he could forge a career in a country seen as having the most potential among fast-growing economies.
His journey, however, was anything but smooth in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the largest country economically and by area in the Middle East, with a population of about 32 million and gross domestic product of US$1.084 trillion in 2024. It was a baptism of fire that came at a steep financial cost.
“I did not know where I would be after five years or even two months,” he recalled. “I could not plan ahead; I only moved forward a little bit every day.”
Leung is not the only Hongkonger eyeing the desert kingdom, with others also hoping to find opportunities and contribute their skills to the country, which is aggressively seeking to diversify its economy and reduce its reliance on oil. Authorities have increasingly tried to lure talent to the Islamic country with incentives such as tax exemptions, streamlined visa processes and relaxed regulations.
But how do expatriates, who have experienced highs and lows in their new home, handle cultural and regulatory hurdles to carve out successful businesses and careers? Resilience and aligning with the local culture were prerequisites for survival, they said.
Four months ago, Leung opened his shaved ice shop and named it The Peak Hong Kong Icehouse in homage to his home city after a series of unsuccessful business attempts.
Special flavours such as matcha, lemon and blueberry quickly gained popularity and became a summer sensation for locals, making Leung a trailblazer in the shaved ice business.
Cost of pioneering
Leung’s resilience was forged through repeated struggles. First, he realised that starting the same type of coding firm or a business-to-business (B2B) operation in the kingdom was almost impossible, requiring a huge investment and compliance with stringent rules set by the Saudi government.
For example, a B2B operation requiring a trading licence for foreign investment would have necessitated a minimum investment threshold of around HK$60 million (US$7.7 million).
Determined to survive in his new desert home, the sweltering heat sparked the idea of serving the community with something cold.
But even while searching for an ideal location for his shaved ice shop, he faced numerous difficulties, including local agents who scammed him by demanding higher commissions but failing to secure his preferred sites.
“These initial attempts burned through nearly all my savings, which were all part of learning costs,” he said, revealing that his losses were about HK$2 million.
“I have never regretted my choice here.”
Apart from financial hurdles, he covered the whole of Riyadh, a city of nearly 8 million people, and drove 10,000 miles in a month just to find a suitable location for a shop.
Leung noted that there was no “fast track” to success; one had to remain localised to fully grasp the constantly evolving policies, which can change monthly.
He pointed to his own experience, detailing the difficulty of navigating 12 different administrative systems for his shop, including tax and employer platforms, some of which were only available in Arabic. He was forced to translate them word by word while simultaneously adapting to continuous policy shifts.
Beyond regulatory compliance, his self-reliance also extended to the technical aspects, including four months of self-study and investigations to master the creation of shaved ice.
Building an ocean in a desert
The ambitious Saudi Vision 2030 scheme, first announced by the kingdom in 2016, aims to diversify the country’s oil-dependent economy by injecting 27 trillion riyals (US$7 trillion) through public spending and investments in dozens of programmes and infrastructure projects over the next decade.
The plan also seeks to increase the country’s competitiveness and attract more foreign investment, including in sectors such as tourism and green energy. The scheme, which includes hosting the football World Cup in 2034, is expected to draw tourists alongside major businesses from overseas, including Hong Kong and the mainland.
Another Hongkonger who moved to the country is Joseph Anthony Leung, a senior business development adviser of Hong Kong-listed Haichang Ocean Park, Asia’s largest ocean theme park owner and operator.
The park signed an agreement in 2023 with Saudi Arabia’s Tourism Development Fund (TDF) that paved the way for funding a new marine theme park, which forms part of the kingdom’s tourism drive.
The initiative is key to the kingdom’s vision to attract 100 million visitors by 2030 and boost the tourism sector’s contribution to the economy to 10 per cent.
Leung, 61, who previously worked for Universal Studios Beijing and Ocean Park Hong Kong and in various countries, including Australia, the US and Switzerland, said he hoped to witness the first water theme park built in the desert kingdom as his final career ambition.
However, the technical challenges for setting up the first such park in Saudi Arabia are unprecedented.
Leung said the scale of the project was huge. His team has already had to select and reselect the site for the theme park nine times because of the various challenges during the planning stage.
Under the agreement, the park will develop various types of venues, such as family entertainment centres, water parks, IP-themed parks, zoos and safari parks in various Saudi cities, creating jobs in the process. Ocean parks typically have venues for animal performances and other recreational facilities.
Leung highlighted some major hurdles, including the vast electricity supply required for the indoor marine park and surrounding facilities to support up to 1,800 hotel rooms.
He added that another logistical hurdle was sourcing water for the marine exhibits, which will rely on desalination, citing a process of purifying large volumes of water for oxygen content and filtration that has not been tested on this scale in the region before.
“The introduction of marine life, such as killer whales and beluga whales, into the desert environment presents unique challenges concerning their diet, feeding methods and rigorous import regulations,” he said.
Leung added that Saudi Arabia currently only had a handful of aquariums, making marine life facilities rare.
Furthermore, species like the snow fox and snow owl had never been brought into Saudi Arabia, making their introduction the biggest logistical hurdle, he said.
But all these challenges have not stopped this Hongkonger, who eventually overcame the issues after numerous meetings with Saudi authorities.
According to Leung’s schedule, the theme park will be set up by the end of November 2029.
“I can die without regret if this theme park is finally built. It is my baby, and I have no regrets,” he said.
Leung described the development as both a personal wish and a lifelong dream, even studying marine biology because of his love for the project.
Under Vision 2030, certain mega developments have been set up under the Public Investment Fund, including the Diriyah project, which aims to create a world-class tourism hub near Riyadh.
To achieve the desired economic growth, Saudi Arabia is actively working to improve living and working conditions for non-Saudi nationals to attract more talent.
The country has a total workforce of about 18 million people, including around 14 million expats, or 77 per cent of the total.
The ‘Hong Kong spirit’
One of them is Will Fu, a 45-year-old Hongkonger with a wealth of international experience in the casino and entertainment industry.
Fu, who was born and educated in Britain and subsequently worked across the UK, Macau and Hong Kong, said he was drawn by the lucrative pay and bright career prospects.
Without the need to pay individual income tax, expatriates said that their salary in the kingdom could be double or even triple what they earned in Hong Kong.
“I am viewing this move as a final, critical chance to capitalise on the fast-growing economy, especially after having missed opportunities in China and Africa,” Fu said.
He was headhunted to work for a semi-government organisation that helps Saudi authorities in developing its burgeoning entertainment sector as part of the tourism drive in Diriyah.
Diriyah is located just 15 minutes northwest of the capital and is also home to the At-Turaif Unesco World Heritage site, a new city featuring culture and heritage preservation.
Fu said his primary focus was to improve the overall customer experience.
Contrary to some fears about the unfamiliar country, Fu said the locals were generally friendly. He said a colleague, a prince connected with the royal family, had offered him insights into local customs.
Fu said he had never faced discrimination and the experience showed the welcoming ambience in the country. But he emphasised that financial success required considerable effort.
“It is really hard work and not as easy as everyone thought, but it is worth it,” he said. “Everything starts from zero, and you need to build it up on your own.”
With the fast-growing economy, Fu said he might consider starting his own business later on.
“Everything is a business opportunity,” he said.
King Leung, who now employs 11 imported workers including some from the Philippines in his shaved ice shop, said a long-term commitment was also key to success in the emerging economy.
“This represents the quintessential Hong Kong spirit, the dedication to being intensely hands on,” he said.
Reflecting on his journey, Leung conceded that he had doubted himself numerous times.
“I doubted myself and cried when I was driving once after facing failure, but I never gave up on it,” he said.
Leung said from the business concept to the ice flavours, he had done everything by himself, likening it to Hong Kong.
“It requires resilience, practicality and it is all built through sheer hard work,” he said. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
