Amanda Cheung on reimagining philanthropy, nightlife and heritage

Amanda Cheung – entrepreneur, philanthropist and entertaining conversationalist – is quickly jotting down notes and sketching out mind maps when I catch up with her on an average Wednesday afternoon. The born-and-raised Hongkonger is managing director of the charity First Initiative Foundation (FIF), established in 2010 by her mother, jewellery designer and philanthropist Michelle Ong. Cheung seems to talk – and think – with her hands, as if an endless stream of thoughts and ideas is at her fingertips. “Generally when I start talking about things, I get very excited,” she laughs.

There is certainly plenty for this multi-hyphenate to be excited about these days: on top of her work with FIF, she is co-founder of Gokan, which ranks among Asia’s 50 Best Bars, and runs her own agency, Wild Child Creative. She’s also director of brand and heritage for the family business, Garden, one of Hong Kong’s longest-established bakery and confectionery brands with products found in supermarkets across the city.

Beyond the energy she brings to her projects, there is a streak of ingenuity in Cheung that shapes how she gets things done and makes her something of a nonconformist. She’s a go-getter by nature – someone who likes to encourage new ways of thinking and collaborating.

“I may be a bit more passionate about things, and then people will think that’s just an artist’s personality – like, ‘Ahh, maybe you can’t think straight,’” she says. “Because you’re so passionate, or thinking big picture, you must be impractical. You must have a great imagination, but perhaps be lacking [when it comes to the] execution. That’s absolutely incorrect.”

One look at Cheung’s previous projects shows she has a track record of thinking outside the box and backing up those unconventional ideas. There’s Furrytales, a collaboration between FIF and Hysan Development that provided a platform for pet charities to expand their public outreach, in late 2021 and early 2022. In 2023, FIF’s annual charity gala shone a spotlight on the Hong Kong tradition of paper craftsmanship with a programme celebrating local artisans. The event showcased collaborations between veteran paper craft practitioners and next-gen artists such as Stickyline, a creative duo recognised for large-scale paper sculptures that blur the line between engineering and art.

“It’s in this middle ground [between established institutions and emerging creatives] that we try and pull things together, to fill in the gaps,” Cheung says of finding inventive ways to bring people together in a frenetic city like Hong Kong. “Creativity is about finding solutions. … It’s about [producing] something that has impact, that brings joy.”

Championing charitable causes through community activations is something that comes naturally to Cheung. “My mum was heavily involved with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, the Girl Guides … all these [organisations] before she founded FIF, when she was my age or even younger,” she muses.

Cheung grew up volunteering alongside her siblings, an experience that taught her about how people can get involved with giving back in ways big and small. Starting with her patronage of the arts through FIF – which supports aspiring and established Hong Kong artists with scholarships, networks and exposure, and goes beyond mentorship and funding to help them build commercially viable careers – she wanted to do something similar in F&B.