Investment gold retailers move into vacant Hong Kong high-street shops on metal’s rise

AdvertisementGold in Hong KongBusinessCommoditiesInvestment gold retailers move into vacant Hong Kong high-street shops on metal’s rise‘We see overwhelming demand for investment gold coins and bars,’ retailer San Gold Coins’ Sophia Chen saysReading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPPeggy YePublished: 9:30am, 22 Feb 2026The surge in gold prices has brought a wave of new investment-focused bullion retailers to Hong Kong’s prime shopping areas, adding a distinct segment alongside traditional jewellery merchants.These retailers – which sell gold coins and bars, rather than ornamental pieces – have taken up ground-floor store spaces that were left vacant during the city’s post-pandemic recovery.Their rapid expansion has been followed by the return of high-end jewellery vendors, a development that has helped stabilise rents in some of the city’s most expensive districts.AdvertisementSan Gold Coins, a mainland Chinese bullion retailer with about 100 stores across its home market, has expanded quickly in Hong Kong over the past 18 months. It opened three street-level stores in Central, Causeway Bay and Tsim Sha Tsui, and planned to add up to three more shops this year.“We see overwhelming demand for investment gold coins and bars, that’s why we decided to ramp up [store expansion],” said Sophia Chen, the retailer’s sixth-generation heir and general manager overseeing overseas business.AdvertisementWhile jewellery merchants are common in both Hong Kong and mainland China, investment gold retailers like San Gold Coins remained relatively rare, she said.AdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed0.8x0.9x1.0x1.1x1.2x1.5x1.75x00:0000:001.00x