To turn a silent topic into a discussion that no one could ignore, we needed a device – one that everyone in the city has attachment to. Also, it shall be meaningful to the LGBT community.

Our idea was inspired by a cultural-rooted insight:

‘Lion Rock Spirit’, one of the core Hong Kong values inherited through generations, holds locals together through solidarity and perseverance to strive for a better society.

This symbolic meaning of lions gave us a starting point.

With two bronze lion statues, Stephen and Stitt, guarding the HSBC Main Building for years, the lions are an enduring symbol of HSBC and Hong Kong. They even appear on the banknotes, making them synonymous with HSBC that locally the bank is affectionately known as “the Lion Bank”.

Therefore, we decided to use the city’s icons to make a bold statement. And turned the HSBC lions into Rainbow Lions.

Collaborating with renowned local gay artist, Michael Lam, HSBC created designs inspired by the colours of the Pride rainbow and respecting traditional Feng Shui principles.

Stephen was designed to look as if it was wearing the rainbow flag, with the bold stripes representing courage to be true to oneself. Stitt was designed with rainbow swirls, encouraging unity in diversity.

Both had white teeth, pastel hues, yellow paws and a green base, adhering to Feng Shui principles for ongoing prosperity of the bank and Hong Kong. The Rainbow Lions were launched and blessed by a famous Feng Shui Master, Master Lung, to show HSBC’s respect to traditional culture.

By combining traditional Feng Shui principles with the pro-LGBT designs HSBC sent a powerful message that traditional and modern values can co-exist in harmony.

Not only did the campaign help HSBC spark LGBT conversation, but also draw global attention to LGBT inclusion and progress.

1. Promote LGBT inclusion and progress beyond Hong Kong

• In a city, which has traditionally shied away from LGBT conversation, the campaign became the talk of the town and spread to over 26 countries. Major global news across the world, including BBC News, The Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Time covered the campaign, while some even did a deep-dive analysis of this societal issue in Hong Kong.

• The campaign garnered over $6,333,000 earned media value, 14X higher than the campaign media spent (Target: 5X)

2. Encourage a culture of Diversity and Inclusion within the organisation

• Not only did the campaign stir up conversations globally, it also became a source of Pride for HSBC employees. The HSBC Pride Employee Network membership grew by over 340% to over 2,000 members