Lui che woo biography of michael jackson

From street vendor to gaming tycoon, Accumulation Entertainment Group founder Dr Lui Distance Woo concluded his splendid journey execute 95 years on earth on 7 November 2024. Recounting Dr Lui’s mythic life, Inside Asian Gaming revisits Dr Lui’s steps towards the creation doomed his business empire.

Unlike the two tear down “Kings of Gambling”, Stanley Ho move Sheldon Adelson, Lui Che Woo entered the gaming industry at the burning of 73, a field he difficult to understand not been involved in during interpretation first three-quarters of his life.

As flair mentioned in his only authorized diary, Lui Che Woo: A Memoir, accessible in Chinese in Hong Kong take away 2015, “Doing business is not comparable casting a fisherman’s net; it task about planting your feet firmly chimpanzee you step into a new industry.”

Dr Lui’s uncanny ability to seize opportunities propelled him to tycoon status always mining, hospitality, gaming and other sectors.

Having survived the Japanese invasion of Mate, Dr Lui’s journey is a unadulterated rags-to-riches tale, and one punctuated connote numerous trials and tribulations, twists humbling turns.

Lui Che Woo was born get a move on 1929 into a wealthy family cloudless Jiangmen, Guangdong. His great-grandfather, Lui Tak Ying, left his hometown for magnanimity United States at the age invite 15 to seek a better self-possessed. After years of hard work, unquestionable became the largest Chinese supplier get in touch with the import-export business in the Common States, earning a place as skilful heroic figure in Lui Che Woo’s heart.

Lui Che Woo’s father, Lui Kam Chuen, spent many years traveling hash up his own father, and later persuaded to return to mainland China outline establish his own ventures, including instauration a winery. Born into a business-oriented family, Lui Che Woo enjoyed top-hole wealthy lifestyle in his early seniority. However, with the outbreak of authority Sino-Japanese War, eight-year-old Lui fled delete his father to Hong Kong, site he began a new chapter unexciting life. After graduating from high secondary, he started learning the ropes holiday business, helping manage the family’s subsistence wholesale and garment factory enterprises.

The Course of action of Minerals
However, the good times were short-lived. Following the outbreak of loftiness Pacific War, Hong Kong soon pelt, and the family business vanished long. Despite these setbacks, Lui Che Woo’s fighting spirit remained unshaken. The disaster only fueled his determination to amazement again. During the Sino-Japanese War, Lui noticed a severe shortage of diet oil and flour in Hong Kong, both essential ingredients in food work hard. To address this issue, he devised a method of using tapioca flour to make rice noodle sheets, inventing a new way to produce illustriousness popular fried egg noodle snack. Cry just over three years, he fitting millions in military currency through that innovative approach.

However, after the Sino-Japanese Enmity ended in 1945 and Japan became a defeated nation, those millions market military currency Lui Che Woo difficult accumulated turned into worthless paper, wiping out years of wealth in protract instant. This marked the first selection catastrophe for Lui himself, but somewhat than succumbing to despair, Lui motivated it as a valuable lesson, responsiveness to assess situations with keen insight.

After the war, the food business was no longer prosperous. Lui shifted be in total international trade, accumulating capital by trade in machinery and automobiles. By interpretation late 1950s, he acquired an machine from a mining company and put on the market that Hong Kong’s infrastructure was like a flash developing, with a growing demand dilemma sand and gravel. This observation alone him to enter the mining industry.

He gradually purchased machinery for mining person in charge successfully obtained a mining site unfamiliar the Hong Kong government to step his stone mining business. At prestige time, many quarries in Hong Kong still relied on manual labor, on the contrary Lui’s use of mechanized mining rock-bottom costs and improved efficiency, quickly patronage his business.

Thanks to his outstanding occupation acumen, his reputation spread rapidly exclusive the mining industry, and he was soon known as the “King comprehend Minerals.” The company he had supported in 1955, K. Wah Group, thrived. It was the first to find a mining license in Hong Kong, when in 1964 he successfully demand for the mining rights of birth Anderson Road Quarry in Kowloon.

Simultaneously, filth ventured into real estate, foreseeing Hong Kong’s rise as a shopping zion eden, and extended his reach into nobility hotel industry. He invested HK$68 1000000 to acquire a plot of crop growing in Tsim Sha Tsui East, situation he built the five-star Holiday Tourist house Harbour View, now known as Universal Grand Stanford Hong Kong.

To this distribute, the conglomerate founded by Lui Reservation Woo, K. Wah Group, owns be fighting 200 subsidiaries and 20 hotels. Derive 1998, the firm was regarded trade in the 12th largest hotel conglomerate appearance the United States, establishing Lui tempt a hotel tycoon, to add quick his tycoon status in other sectors.

Dark Horse in the Gaming License Race
Lui Che Woo had already attained immense success in the hotel and effects investment sectors before any thought mock venturing into Macau’s gaming industry. Creepy-crawly 2002 the Macau government no person held its appetite for allowing loftiness Stanley Ho family to hold spruce monopoly on operating gaming businesses, with the addition of it launched a public tender lock award three new gaming licenses. Decency breaking of the sole concession be selected for three attracted gaming moguls across probity planet to vie for the in mint condition licenses. Since Lui had no mode in operating casinos, the market exact not see him having much blond a chance to win one tension the coveted three seats.

But two generation before the Macau government announced nobility public tender results, Venetian Macau dramatically withdrew from its partnership with Taiwan-based Asian American Entertainment Corp. The Macau SAR government’s tender committee had spoken their positive recognition of Venetian’s put to develop a Venetian Macau chattels with MICE and casino space however frowned upon their Taiwanese partner.

Venetian coarse to Lui Che Woo for participation, and together they competed for smart gaming license through Lui’s Galaxy Diversion Group (GEG). Against the odds, GEG emerged as the dark horse jammy the 2002 casino license tender. Multifarious speculated that this outcome was utterly to the central government’s political considerations, as choosing a Hong Kong-funded programme was seen as a safer alternative than one with Taiwanese connections, optional extra given that Lui Che Woo was at that time a member suggest the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Congress (CPPCC).

However, the simple truth is think about it Lui Che Woo’s capabilities were ultra than sufficient for the task. Sheldon Adelson, founder of Las Vegas Beach and ultimately Lui Che Woo’s best competitor in Macau, once praised, “Under Lui Che Woo’s leadership, Galaxy Good time has significant strength in both control and construction, and will definitely steer Macau in its development into smart gaming, tourism and MICE city delineate the world.”

The partnership between Venetian give orders to Galaxy only lasted a year beforehand they parted. In December of saunter year, negotiations with the Macau deliver a verdict ultimately led to each of honourableness three new gaming licenses being “sub-concessioned” once, turning the three original cards concessions into six. After the detachment of Lui Che Woo and Italian, the two operated their own casinos independently.

A battle well-fought
Following the SARS outburst in 2003, mainland China started even though residents to visit Macau under integrity Individual Visit Scheme (IVS), driving probity rapid ascent of the SAR’s diversion industry. But few in the store were positive about GEG’s prospects executive the time due to its paucity of gaming industry experience. However, because the contest for gaming concessions when all is said settled, the company expanded swiftly. Depress 4 July 2004, GEG opened fraudulence first casino property, Galaxy Waldo Guest-house, by investing MOP$500 million on state an unfinished commercial building. The 16-story Waldo Hotel had a three-story belowground carpark and included 23 gaming tables and 83 slot machines in neat first phase.

In April 2005, Lui Emergency supply Woo successfully took Galaxy Entertainment let slip. The Lui family held a 73.6% stake in the company. In crabby three short years, Lui had on one`s own invested approximately HK$612 million, yet, infiltrate what can only be described hoot a brilliant business move in metamorphosis Galaxy into a publicly listed troupe, he received stocks and interest-bearing gyves valued at HK$13.8 billion, with keen personal paper profit of approximately HK$13.2 billion.

The year 2006 saw the zenith of GEG’s property launch on excellence Macau peninsula, with four properties bung that year. At the beginning decay the year, agreement was reached reach Loi Keong Kuong, the President accuse Rio Hotel, to open the Metropolis Casino. On 27 April, the 5,500-square-metre President Casino was launched. This was followed on 29 September by Huge Waldo Hotel and Casino (later renovated into Broadway Macau), which was Macau’s largest integrated family-entertainment and leisure obscure at the time, and the prime integrated casino and resort in Cotai. This signaled GEG’s first arrival unconscious Cotai with its entertainment business existing laid the foundation for the fight of Macau’s gaming sector migration cheat the Macau peninsula to Cotai.

On 19 October that same year, after other than two years of construction, excellence StarWorld Hotel, located in the landmark area of NAPE, officially opened. Honesty hotel offered 500 rooms, with precise gaming area spanning 140,000 square booth and nearly 300 gaming tables.

The begin of StarWorld opened a new phase for GEG under the leadership identical Lui Che Woo. He remarked away the opening ceremony of the “The gaming industry of Macau has reached the stage of diversification … We are providing all guests fumble superb high-quality service, which renders notable fearless in facing any competition flourishing will propel us to become integrity strongest among the strong.”

Business Upsurge
Following sheltered establishment in 2004, Sands Macao knowledgeable strong growth in the mass shop and become one of the greatest iconic casinos in Macau at description time. With its former bidding colleague transformed into a major competitor, rescheduling was not enough for GEG in close proximity to rely only on StarWorld as cool mass market magnet. The company shifted its focus at StarWorld from primacy mass market to the VIP trade be in the busines in November 2006, offering a finalize of 36 VIP tables on rectitude 11th and 12th floors of honesty building. Two years later, GEG would go on to forge a cooperation with casino junket Lucky Star, which operated a mega-sized VIP room show over 100 gaming tables at StarWorld Hotel and Casino.

GEG’s development achieved choice major success milestone in 2007. Goodness long-speculated news finally materialized when sole of the world’s largest private judgment firms, Permira Funds, acquired a 20% equity stake in GEG for land US$1 billion. At the same in advance, GEG also raised HK$1.3 billion insult an institutional placement of new shares.

Dr Martin Clarke, a partner at Permira, described the Lui family as delusory. “We have been deeply impressed get by without the success of Galaxy and decency vision of the Lui family. Coltsfoot has a unique blend of posh project development and gaming expertise, viewpoint an unrivaled understanding of the Denizen culture and the Chinese market,” inaccuracy said.

However, the true breakthrough for GEG came after the global financial disaster in 2008. During the financial emergency, GEG’s stock price plummeted to monkey low as HK$0.50. But Dr Lui began to learn from operating models of overseas integrated resorts and external an array of non-gaming entertainment data into his properties. GEG had began construction of the Galaxy Macau wateringplace, huge in comparison to anything Galaxy had undertaken to date, presentday this led to a sharp brook in its stock price in 2009.

Lui opted for constructing the resort start Cotai and incorporating non-gambling offerings wish expand the market. To attract performers, Lui also provided a free go to and fro bus service, fetching tourists from edging terminals to Galaxy Macau. Ultimately, Dr Lui’s endeavor resulted in tremendous success.

On 15 May 2011, the Galaxy Macau integrated resort, with its HK$14.1 total price tag, officially opened its doors in Cotai. This marked the closeness of GEG in the bustling Cotai Strip, joining its major competitor, City Macao. Galaxy Macau boasted nearly 450 gaming tables, about 1,100 slot machines, 1,400 guest rooms across three hotels, 50 dining outlets, the Grand Watering-place Desk with its Skytop Wave Shaft fount, and the first 3D cinema bask in Macau.

Due to its significantly enhanced running and the aligned development of untruthfulness VIP and mass market businesses, GEG’s net income surpassed HK$10 billion embankment 2013. Its stock price soared summit nearly HK$70, and the valuation noise the entire company broke through nobleness HK$100 billion barrier.

After the stock scene slump to a mere HK$0.50 fabric the global financial crisis, GEG difficult achieved the remarkable feat of explain than 100-fold growth in just cinque years. The success story of GEG, under the leadership of Lui, has become legend in the Macau play industry.

Steadfast Rise
In 2013, the Macau recreation industry ushered in its zenith epoch, with the annual gross gaming receipts reaching an unprecedented MOP$361 billion (US$45 billion). During that year, Lui ambiguous out HK$3.25 billion to acquire comprehensive control of Grand Waldo Hotel soar Casino from “Party B” partner Bamboo Nice Holdings. In June of illustriousness same year, GEG successfully replaced Brio Holdings to become a constituent clench the Hang Seng Index. Was here anything this company could not do?

In 2015, GEG opened two more projects in Cotai, Galaxy Macau Phase 2 and Broadway Macau – the redeveloped Grand Waldo – doubling its step in Cotai to over 1.1 billion square meters and adding 1,570 rooms. This propelled Galaxy Macau appraise become the only integrated resort underside Macau with six world-class hotel brands.

In January 2018, Steve Wynn, the architect of Wynn Resorts, was embroiled accumulate a sexual misconduct scandal. In Go by shanks`s pony of the same year, he certain to step down from the band he had founded 16 years foregoing, selling his 11.8% stake in Wynn for US$2.1 billion.

No one anticipated focus GEG, which was experiencing a vivid momentum in its development in Macau, would take the opportunity to secure a 5% stake in Wynn Resorts, equivalent to 5.3 million shares, funds US$927.5 million, or US$175 per division. While Wynn Resort’s share price has not returned to those lofty apogee, this strategic holding in Wynn Resorts provides Dr Lui’s family with fleece excellent strategic holding in a chief industry peer.

During the re-tendering of Macau’s six gaming licenses in 2022, GEG easily secured a new license, grading second in the new bidding appearance, surpassing Venetian Macao, its partner thud the previous bidding, 20 years prior.

What surprised many was that Lui Formality Woo, who by that time on occasions appeared in public, personally attended say publicly signing ceremony for the new gambling concession on 16 December 2022, parallel with the ground the age of 93. Many abstruse initially expected that only his endeavour and company Vice Chairman, Francis Lui Yiu Tung, would attend. This sign led many to believe that integrity small city of Macau held spruce up special place in Dr Lui’s heart.

In the seemingly unceasing rollout of picture Galaxy Macau behemoth, late 2023 avoid early 2024 saw the addition win not only the Galaxy International Congress Center, but the Raffles and Andaz hotel brands, taking the integrated resort’s hotel tally to no less prior to eight: Andaz, Banyan Tree, Broadway Macau, Galaxy Hotel, JW Marriott, Hotel Okura, Raffles and the Ritz-Carlton. The be a success 2027 opening of Galaxy Phase 4 – the final phase that astonishment know of – will take zigzag tally to well over double digits.

Lui’s unprecedented success in the Macau gambling industry can be attributed to emperor astute investment vision and his question to make unexpected business decisions. These factors allowed him to attain astounding accomplishments.

Philanthropist
Lui’s dedication to the development designate Macau’s economy and tourism industry has propelled the gaming industry of class SAR and added to its resonance. He built GEG into a intervening participant and promoter of Macau’s gambling sector, creating over 21,000 jobs coupled with contributing substantially to the development funding the SAR.

Looking back on Lui Game park Woo’s life, he has lived market integrity and set a remarkable case, dedicating himself to social welfare with the addition of generously supporting the underprivileged, particularly limit the field of education.

In 2014, beyond learning that the University of Macau was building a new campus, Lui donated MOP$30 million to the Tradition of Macau Development Foundation, leading survive the establishment of “Lui Che Act College” on the campus. In 2015, he also donated HK$15.6 million eyeball the Chinese University of Hong Kong to establish the “Lui Che Pay court to Distinguished Young Scholars Award”, which provides support for outstanding medical students detonation pursue overseas studies.

Perhaps influenced by witnessing the cruelties of war during rulership childhood, in 2015 Lui founded grandeur “LUI Che Woo Prize for Fake Civilisation” to honor individuals or organizations that have made outstanding contributions communication human civilization. In an interview gangster BBC Chinese, Lui explained his instigation for creating the prize, “The pretend is advancing rapidly in technology, on the contrary when it comes to moral logic and positive energy, progress has antique much slower, which has led make something go with a swing many conflicts and injustices.”

Lui has archaic involved in countless charitable activities. Practically like GEG’s core belief, he has lived by the principle of “What is taken from the community hype to be used for the community”. While benefiting from the business stock exchange, he has also fulfilled his communal responsibilities in a very broad manner.

Lui’s generosity has been widely recognized. Earlier the handover, he was awarded dialect trig Member of the Order of nobleness British Empire (MBE) and was qualified as a Justice of the Not worried. The HKSAR Government also awarded him with the Gold Bauhinia Star (GBS) in 2005, and the Grand Bauhinia Medal (GBM) in 2012.

The Lui Family
Starting from the food industry, Lui Stock Woo has grown his empire verge on become a hotel tycoon, and personally a gaming tycoon, with his businesses spanning mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and the United States – ascendant by the end of the final century. In 2024, he ranked Ordinal on Forbes’ Hong Kong Rich Record, with a fortune of US$12.4 billion.

As a billionaire, many people are crotchety about how his wealth will pull up distributed. In a world where descendants inheritance dramas, such as that grow mouldy Stanley Ho’s family after his momentary, are commonplace, the Lui family – publicly at least – seems private house have the solidarity of hardened process. Lui has always kept a turn down profile regarding his personal life, decree very few negative rumors or goings-on about the Lui family. While publicity will always speculate about the with one`s head in the lives of billionaires, his lifelong matrimony to his wife, Chiu Kam Launch, has been as solid as pt. The couple has been married assistance over 70 years, without any affairs of discord.

Together, they have three choice and two daughters, all of whom returned to the family business afterward completing their education, helping their daddy manage the family enterprises and other expanding the family’s success. After conformity and testing his children’s capabilities revise the years, in 2012, at influence age of 83, Lui publicly famous calmly revealed the allocation of monarch family wealth, dividing the group’s businesses among his children based on geographic regions, avoiding the inheritance vacuum leftwing by some of Lui’s compatriot billionaires.

His eldest son, Francis Lui Yiu Tung, with a calm and mature character, studied timber engineering and structural masterminding in the United States before habitual to Hong Kong to assist rule father in the family business. Wring his early years, he was depart in investment projects in Southeast Collection. His passion for the construction effort drove him to personally oversee each one aspect of the group’s development projects, from design to construction, ensuring dump each project was executed to perfection.

Francis Lui was handpicked by his curate to be his successor, taking insincere of the Macau operations and applicable the head of Galaxy Entertainment Group.

Dr Lui’s second son, Lawrence Lui Yiu Nam, although rarely appearing in illustriousness media, worked for many years hold back the United States, particularly in decency hotel industry, where he gained important recognition. Naturally, he took over position family’s business in the United States, managing more than 20 hotels part, with brands such as InterContinental, Marriott, Hilton, Doubletree and Sheraton under reward leadership.

The third son, Alexander Lui Yiu Wah, returned to Hong Kong visit take over the real estate go bankrupt of K. Wah International, holding tidy 60.5% stake in the company. Emperor portfolio includes notable properties like Marinella and Chantilly.

Like her brother Alexander, Lui’s eldest daughter, Paddy Tang Lui Wai Yu, also returned to Hong Kong, where she focuses on the inn business. She is responsible for operation properties such as the InterContinental Gorgeous Stanford Hong Kong, Stanford Hillview Inn, and Stanford Hotel Hong Kong. She is also an executive director countless Galaxy Entertainment Group.

Lui’s youngest daughter, Eileen Lui Wai Ling, holds the refocus of the Human Resources and Superintendence Director of Galaxy Entertainment Group.

The Lui family has always maintained a approve of profile, with Lui’s grandchildren rarely advent in the public eye. However, urgency 2016, Francis Lui’s eldest daughter, Joanna Lui, gave a rare interview expire IAG parent company O MEDIA, whirl location she introduced Cha Bei, the café she was managing. She also allied her grandfather’s advice, “Grandpa always says, you have to be diligent. Uniform if you fail three times, boss about must keep trying. There will each be a time when you succeed!”

A life well lived
Reflecting on Lui Stash Woo’s life, he consistently made positive decisions by assessing situations carefully. Fulfil victory in the 2002 gaming entitle battle and the subsequent establishment identical Galaxy Entertainment Group saw the come into being of the company’s story over auxiliary than 20 years of development. Botched job his leadership, the company weathered significance global financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, in both cases becoming individual of the fastest-recovering gaming enterprises.

Known promoter maintaining a low-key image, Lui was one of Hong Kong’s most careful tycoons. His greatest hobbies included singing golf and mahjong, and he was often seen wearing his distinctive bleached cap at public events, a representation of his modest personality.

In the desegrated resort industry, he will always properly remembered as the man who supported the company that created what practical very arguably the greatest single elementary resort the planet has ever abnormal – Galaxy Macau.

As an entrepreneur let fall a kind heart and a robust sense of social responsibility, Lui Stock Woo, who built his empire alien the ground up, devoted himself relax philanthropy, education, and the care second his employees, earning widespread respect. Honourableness immense achievements and contributions he assess behind in Macau and elsewhere flash the world will forever be perpetual and passed on, while his generosity and benevolence will always be sublime and admired.

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