IN literal terms, Niseko’s developments may be built on concrete slabs. But metaphorically speaking, they’re sitting atop powder, passion and a unique ski lifestyle enjoyed by Hong Kong entrepreneurs.

With little fanfare, Hong Kong-based entrepreneurs have come to enjoy a prominent place among the developers working in Niseko. Their projects and nationalities are as varied as Hong Kong’s cosmopolitan melting pot. “We became developers in Niseko by accident and by passion,” says Bjorn Fjelddahl, a Hong Kong brand agency owner. “We first came in 2001 for a boy’s trip of hardcore skiing and boarding – it was fantastic. Since then, we’ve been coming back with our families once or twice a year. We bought several plots of land to build a house for ourselves, and also started our development project.” Fjelddahl’s Odin Project is Swedish-French team of two brothers and one brother-in-law, building eco-friendly, luxury homes.

At the other end of the scale, Pacific Century Premium Developments, a prominent developer on Hong Kong’s waterfront, is working on an entire resort village in Hanazono and Capella Niseko, led by Hong Kong developer Harry Pang, who has assembled a dream team featuring big-name architect Tadao Ando, and international hotelier Horst Schulze. Their road to Niseko may have begun with Cathay Pacific Airways’ launch of direct services to Sapporo’s New Chitose Airport back in 2001. “The pilots were among the earliest to start getting the word out,” Tim Murphy explains, as the English managing director of Hong Kong property investment group IP Global, who is working on the Country Resort chalets, near Hirafu Station. “There were some Aussie pilots based in Hong Kong working for Cathay Pacific who flew regularly to Sapporo, skied in Niseko and came back raving about the powder.”

Like the Australians who have built, Hong Kong developers’ romance with Niseko has a deep, powdery base. Many gained a taste for skiing the pistes of Europe or North America, which led them to look for somewhere to ski closer to Hong Kong. “We first went to Niseko years ago in 2002,” Chi Guillemette says, speaking from the standpoint of a Vietnamese-Australian living in Hong Kong, a leader of the Country Resort project. “The snow was fantastic but the facilities were pretty basic. Looking at property prices, they were so cheap, so we thought ‘let’s buy’.” “We really had to do our research to find Niseko back then,” Harry Pang adds. Pang is the owner of the Annupuri Land company that is bringing Capella to Niseko. “There are almost no mountain resorts in Asia, compared to the US or Europe, instead you get hundreds of beach resorts,” he says. “I got to Niseko and thought, ‘this is the place to build a luxury resort in the mountains’.”

The golden sands and azure surf of Thailand’s Phuket resort also played its role. “Phuket was the first place in Asia that Hong Kong people bought property, before they had focused on the US and Europe,” Pang says. “In Thailand, as well as Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia, foreigners can’t buy property freehold. But Japanese property law gives foreigners freehold rights in Japan, which makes it much more attractive. This property law is only starting to become known overseas.”

Pacific Century Premium Development’s road to Niseko came through the realisation that the buyers of residences in Bel-Air, a luxury waterfront project in Hong Kong’s Cyberport precinct, might also want holiday homes. “Working on Bel-Air, we realised that many of our affluent customers were also interested in buying homes in luxury resorts overseas,” executive director at Pacific Century Premium Development Wendy Gan says. “These customers are not only interested in holidays, but also in investing. We discovered Hanazono in Niseko was a wonderful ski-resort, and realised that it could also be transformed into an all-seasons destination with golf in the summer.”

Hokkaido’s fresh natural food, which is famous in Hong Kong, has also been vital to luring development to Niseko, Pang explains. “Hokkaido has the fresh foods that people in Asian cities want,” he says. “When Asians travel, 50 to 60 per cent of their choice of destination is based on the food quality. In Switzerland, food quality is always a complaint.”
Hong Kong developers are also catering to city dwellers who welcome Hokkaido’s cooler, less humid summers and the safe environment for families. “It’s a fantastic place for families, perhaps the safest holiday destination in Asia,” Guillemette says.

The increasing numbers of tour groups from Hong Kong will encourage more developers, says Mae Young, a Hong Kong real estate agent who is selling Niseko property. “People are surprised at how cheap it is to go to Hokkaido. It’s totally different to Tokyo, where everything is so expensive, especially the food. People arrive here on tours and come back as independent travelers once they discover how easy it is to get around. Pretty soon they’re thinking about buying a place.”