It is one of the most frustrating, and unifying, issues in the city to ensure there is room stored for all of those things that people only use once a year. Venture into Brilliant Storage Limited 黃竹坑 迷你倉, which in some mysterious way saves Hong Kong urbanites of drowning in out-of-season miscellany annually.
Summers in Hong Kong are sticky hot. However by December the people of the city regress into a flock of puff jacket, wool hat and scarf larger than a beach towel. In which places can they hibernate? Rammed out of sight in bursting wardrobe doors. The trick has been spotted by most locals: storage units in the Wong Chuk Hang area where the warm down comforters and the worst Christmas jumpers (you know which) take a long sleep.
Summer gear then, of course, there is the reverse. Inflatable unicorns, camping tents, port a grill, Rainbows beach mats… Who wants sand in the kitchen eight months? A family also shares its unit with their neighbours and thus the paddleboards, hiking poles, and swimsuit boxes travel in after the Mid-Autumn mooncakes are through. The idea is to make it a seasonal hibernation cave of your belongs.
These advantages are not only on space. Units in Wong Chuk Hang are frequently supplied with air-con or dehumidifier. It implies that wool coats won’t turn into old-fashioned mildewing sweats, and ski boots will not become fungus and mildew bags to take to the next skiing trip. Hong Kong humidity is up there with the best in the world but a decent storage unit can even outwit the most unbearable weather conditions.
Inflatable flamingos and duvets full of family memories are just some of the creative solutions being used by the people who have no idea that you have to live your life in this tiny room. This simple storage system makes it so that the issue of city living is still soft, bendable, and a little less like a game of Tetris. Seasonal swap done, and by wicked wink.