Allan Zeman

Background and personal life

Allan Zeman was born in to a Jewish family in Regensburg, Germany; and was raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where his mother worked in a hospital. When Zeman was seven years old, his father died. He started working at the age of ten. He dropped out of college, and by the age of nineteen, while working for a lingerie company, he had earned his first US$1 million.

He made his first fortune by importing clothes from Hong Kong. He frequently travelled to Hong Kong for work in the 1970s, and eventually moved there in 1975. Zeman is married to Charmaine Zeman; they have two children: Jonathan Zeman and Marisa Zeman-McConnell. He speaks English, French and some Cantonese, and is a teetotaler.

Career

In 1975, Zeman founded Colby International Group to source clothing in China and export it to Canada. In late 2000, by now a much larger and diversified company, Colby was sold to Li & Fung Ltd., a major competitor. In the early 1980s, Zeman felt that Hong Kong had no western restaurant that suited his needs, so in 1983 he opened California Restaurant in Lan Kwai Fong, a narrow street in Central, Hong Kong. He bought the entire block in 1984 and thus launched his career as both an entertainment operator and property developer.

Through Lan Kwai Fong Holdings Ltd, of which he is chairman, he drove the development of Lan Kwai Fong to be one of the most important bar and night life districts in Hong Kong. He is said to own 65 percent of the district's properties.

Meanwhile, as chairman of Lan Kwai Fong Concepts Holdings Ltd., he controls a number of restaurants in Lan Kwai Fong including California, California Coffee, China Lan Kwai Fong, Indochine, Tokio Joe, Cafe des Artistes, Tutta Luna, Jazz Club, Thai Lemongrass, BACI, BACI Pizza and Luna Di Notte.

In July 2003, Zeman was invited by the then-Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Tung Chee-hwa, to become the chairman of Ocean Park. He managed to raise visitor numbers despite the opening of rival Hong Kong Disneyland, making the park more attractive and, remarkably, the park generated record profits.

A 2007 article in Forbes magazine referred to Zeman as "Hong Kong's Mouse Killer" because of the success that Ocean Park enjoys.

Honours

In 2001, he was appointed a Justice of the Peace in Hong Kong, in 2004, he was awarded the Gold Bauhinia Star and in 2011 he was awarded the Grand Bauhinia Medal.

Film and TV

A noted film producer, Zeman is chairman of Sweetpea Entertainment Inc., a film production company based in Los Angeles. He is also involved with After Dark Films, a movie company.

Fashion

As well as having built and sold off the successful Colby group, Zeman is a director of Algo Group, another fashion business. In February 2007, he was named "Stylemaker of the Year" by Style Magazine (published by the South China Morning Post).

Property development

Zeman is a property developer and built the Andara Resort and Villas in Phuket, Thailand.

Other

Zeman is chairman of Mesco Shipyard Ltd (shipbuilding) and DKA Ltd (public relations), and a director of Wynn Resorts. He is a non-executive director of Pacific Century Premium Developments Ltd.

Political activity

He supported Regina Ip, the controversial former Secretary for Security in the 2007 Legco by-election in the Hong Kong Island constituency. However, she was defeated by Anson Chan.

In 2017, he has thrown his support to Carrie Lam, who announced on 12 January 2017 that she will run for Chief Executive Election.

Official positions

Zeman is prominent in government circles, sitting on various committees, boards and advisory bodies. He is a long-standing member of the Board of Governors of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of the Economic and Employment Council in Hong Kong. He is a board member of the Tourism Strategy Group for the Hong Kong Tourism Commission, the Cultural and Heritage Commission and the Urban Renewal Authority. He is a member of the International Events Fund Steering Committee for the Hong Kong Tourism Board. He was appointed as a member of the Services Promotion Strategy Group, chaired by the Financial Secretary. He is on the Board of the Hong Kong Arts Festival and Hong Kong Community Chest.

Citizenship

Zeman has long held the right of abode in Hong Kong; this entitled him to a Hong Kong permanent identity card. In addition, in September 2008, Zeman renounced his Canadian citizenship and became a naturalised citizen of the People's Republic of China, as he said he has lived and worked in Hong Kong for 38 years and has always considered it to be his home. The Chinese citizenship, combined with his right of abode in Hong Kong, enables him to hold a Home Return Permit for entering mainland China, and a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport for international travel.