Story of Simon Birch

People often ask about my inspirations and how I developed @the14thfactory. This is my story...

07

My first events were called Club With No Name and the title changed every month (Club with no Shame, Blame, Brain, etc ). Small and underground and $5 to get in. Super fun.

But partnering with DJ Joel Lai, together we levelled up as dance parties exploded in HK.

Event flyer of Way Out East
Our new events were called Way Out East. We held dozens over a few years using hotel ballrooms, convention centers, anywhere they would let us (post-1997 HK emptied out and landlords were desperate for business).

We would regularly get thousands of people lining up to go nuts to Sasha, Paul Van Dyk, John Digweed, Goldie, Nick Warren and so many more amazing talented DJs.

Party scene in Hong Kong in the early 2000s
I set up an agency called Supermodified and would tour the DJs all over Asia and I acted as manager and warm-up DJ. Fun times and got to stay in amazing hotels in amazing cities, exploring them and learning much, Tokyo still my favourite.

Proud that I still have friends from Korea to Jakarta, Tokyo to Taiwan. I DJ'ed at Zouk, Womb, Korean beach parties, Beijing warehouses. So many crazy stories. Lost DJs, police raids, screaming fans, sleepless nights, wonderful strangers.

The party scene in the late 90's in Hong Kong was the ignition for so many fashion brands, hairdressers, actors, artists and cool kids, many of whom are very well known and respected today. Gangsters, film stars, millionaires, drag queens and fashionistas all under one roof and quite often wasted..!
Party scene in Hong Kong in the early 2000s

But within a few years, the Hong Kong government clamped down on parties as there was often a Chinese mafia presence (drug trade competition) and clashes between the different gangs, even a murder at party at the Hong Kong Convention Centre. I had a couple of awful dramas with gangs, Joel and I still have scars, I remember negotiating with a big boss in Shenzhen to make amends over a conflict.

The government introduced new laws and overnight, parties were banned and by 2001, we were out of business.

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