Charmaine Li

For the cross-section of Hongkongers who start their mornings with a tall glass of milk, Kowloon Dairy’s pasteurised portfolio – whether glass-bottled or paper-cartoned; high-calcium or skimmed; chocolate- or papaya-flavoured – continues to be a mainstay contender since the company’s founding in 1940. Charmaine Li, who has risen to the head of the long-held family business started by her grandfather Li Lan Sang, took the reins as joint CEO in 2019, seven years after her appointment as executive director. Before her ascension to the Kowloon Diary enterprise, Li held communications roles with brands like Cartier, Asprey & Garrard, Burberry and Prada. Taking after her maternal grandfather, who was a studio executive and producer at Shaw Studios, Li also founded her own film production company Tiberius Productions in 2010. And yet another hereditary interest? Horse racing, she reveals. “I share the same passion for horses as my father and grandfather had and regard my involvement in the sport as a great part of my life.”