Pet fair opens in Wan Chai

The annual four-day Pet Show opened in the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wanchai on Thursday.

Pets are an essential part of life for many Hong Kong people. Placed in trollies, some dogs looked excited as they visited the pet fair with their owners.

Others seemed to be calmer.

Dogs that were not in a trolly had a leash around their necks. As an annual event, the pet fair gathered nearly 1,000 exhibitors this year, offering visitors a slew of products.

Among the booths that sell pet food, a Singaporean brand focuses on premium products, made with ingredients such as seafood and wagyu beef.

"Hong Kong is a very sophisticated market, so customers are very focused on the quality," said Exhibitor Nick. "So in Singapore, we do seafood supplies, we see the demand in Hong Kong, that's why we just purely make into freeze dry products. So that, humans and pets can consume the same food."

A first-time Japanese exhibitor at the fair said his dog food products will enter the Hong Kong market in April.

"I think how people love dogs is actually the same in any countries around the world," said Masa Nagai. "But because Hong Kong people are more exposed to more variety of brands, so I think it's more competitive. It's really the entrance to the Asian market, in that sense, Hong Kong is kind of the ideal location."

The venue also sets up a Hong Kong style casual cafe, or Cha Chaan Teng, which is in fact a photo spot for owners to take pictures with their pets.

Each owner can bring only one pet to the fair. More than that, then the person and their pets will be denied entry.