The Fifth Intangible Cultural Heritage Mart Successfully Launched Payment Asia Helps Traditional Merchants with Online Transformation

One-stop experience including performance,workshop,and retail

Reviving traditional culture in the city center with e-factors

HONG KONG,Oct. 21,2022 -- Hong Kong Culture Festival (HKCF) successfully launched the fifth edition of the Intangible Cultural Heritage(ICH) Mart at Tai Kwun and Central Market from Oct 14th to 16th. The event themed "Connecting Intangible Cultural Heritage to Innovation",celebrates Hong Kong's unique cultural heritage against our city's iconic landscape. As the sponsor of this year's Mart,Payment Asia,an electronic payment solution provider,hopes to provide merchants with online payment methods and help traditional merchants to have more exposure through electronic means.

Guests and intangible cultural heritage artists

This year HKCF is connecting traditional craftsmen and other ICH practitioners with the new generation through e-commerce channels,thus giving new momentum and market opportunities to cultural heritage.

This year's ICH Mart was presented as a carnival for the first time,with a traditional handicraft market and workshops,as well as a variety of performing arts,allowing citizens to bring the whole family to participate and experience the fun of traditional culture. Payment Asia provides a variety of payment channels for on-site intangible cultural heritage merchants,including QR code payment,POS machine collection and others. The convenient electronic payment platform has attracted many young consumers. It is hoped that by combining traditional intangible cultural heritage with e-commerce elements,the influence of traditional culture on the new generation will be expanded.

Desmond Chu,Business Director of Payment Asia,said,"As we find ourselves on the brink of a new era,it is vitally important for us to learn from the past,and keep the heritage that made Hong Kong successful. To preserve the cultural heritage in the new era,we must be innovative in the ways to interact with the young generations and use technology to pass our culture to the next generation. Payment Asia will keep supporting the traditional business to deepen the online transformation."

Kary Lee,Marketing Manager of Payment Asia,said: "Hong Kong has many intangible cultural heritages with a long history,but they are not so famous among the public. I hope that through this market,more intangible cultural heritages can adapt the digital approach and become sustainable with the help of e-commerce,eventually become part of people's lives."

Hong Kong is going to open to international audiences with several upcoming events. ICH Mart would seize this chance to revive Hong Kong's cultural landscape,raise the interest of the new generation in traditional culture,and integrate traditional culture into modern life. The Mart will create a sustainable environment for ICH through e-commerce,social media,and other technologies.

Series of cultural events at ICH Mart

There are over 480 records in the Hong Kong Cultural Heritage Database,covering everything from performing arts to traditional handicrafts. In addition to the Mart,the organizer provided a series of workshops,including cheongsam,traditional Chinese medicine,flower plaque,mahjong tiles,shadow puppets,Hakka unicorns,and Dit Da Jow (medicinal wine). Citizens brought their whole families to participate and enjoy the fun of culture during the weekend.

From October 15th to 16th,audiences enjoyed Hakka unicorn dance,lion dance and kung fu performances at Tai Kwun and Central Market. The brands that participated in the 2022 ICH Mart include Cammie Chan Cheongsam,INNOTIER,and others.

HKCF has been hosting the Intangible Cultural Heritage Mart since 2016. It is to date the most comprehensive arts and cultural festival dedicated to traditional and intangible cultural heritage in the region,with four primary foci: "Visual Arts","Performing Arts","Intangible Cultural Heritage" and "Martial Arts Culture".

About Payment Asia

Established in 1999,Payment Asia has been committed to providing innovative online payment technology,and electronic payment solutions for SME enterprises and even multinational companies in Asia. Payment Asia prepares simple and time-saving online payment systems for customers,covering credit cards,debit cards,UnionPay and e-wallets,and tailor-made omnichannel payment solutions for enterprises. In the past 10 years,we have actively innovated and added elements such as digital marketing,e-commerce solutions,and consulting to our business to meet the needs of merchants. Payment Asia has developed rapidly and has served more than 10,000 local and overseas merchants.