Vintage vibe

"I met many people who became really close friends of mine," Brightman said. "Since then, the shop started to metamorphose into something different, something like a media center that we could entertain people with."

Brightman's Vibe community continues to connect Mui Wo residents. From children accompanied by their parents curiously discovering the shop, to Hong Kong seniors randomly dropping by to gift a few books, it is a leisurely place for residents to take a rest. Even Keung To, a singer from the popular Hong Kong boy band MIRROR, has visited it.

"It's a kind of culture that you can't describe ...people living here all tend to be friendly to each other, no matter if they know each other or not," Millward said.

"When you are in a community, you always get something back," he said. "Joining Vibe lets me play music with people I wouldn't play with, and it starts some triggers in me cooperating with a band or a musician in the shop. It's all worthwhile."

"We don't make a lot of money, but I run this shop by passion," Brightman said. Wealth is not the objective; it is the enrichment of the community and the nurturing of cultural bonds that matter most, he said.

The shop runs at a loss, Brightman said, but many local residents and friends help him manage the store as volunteers.

"They will come here every week and help me rearrange the books and greet the customers," he said. "Thanks to their help, the shop could run until now.

"The shop does not have a value in my head, instead, what it has is a sense of well-being. I spend money on this shop, but I feel that I'm giving something back to the community."

Hu Xinyue contributed to this story.