The story
The company is based in Hong Kong but its products are sold in over 100 countries worldwide including China, and in many overseas markets, including North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand. Its primary brand, Lee Kum Kee (李錦記; 李锦记; lei5 gam2 gei3; 'the Lee Kum brand') is popular throughout China and the overseas Chinese community. Lee Kum Kee was named Most Popular Brand On-line at the 2004 Hong Kong Top Brand Awards.
The company was founded by Lee Kum Sheung (李錦裳; 李锦裳; lei5 gam2 soeng4), an owner of a small eatery in Nanshui, Zhuhai, Guangdong that sold cooked oysters. In 1888, he formed the Lee Kum Kee company to market his version of oyster sauce, a staple sauce, seasoning and condiment in Cantonese and southern Chinese cuisine. It continues to be run as a family business by the Lee family.
From 1902 to 1932, the company's office was located in Macau and in 1932 it moved to its newest headquarters in Hong Kong. Lee Kum Kee opened a production plant in City of Industry, California, in Greater Los Angeles in 1991. Production bases are located in Xinhui, Huangpu, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Los Angeles. The Xinhui factory is the largest operation occupying 1.33 million square meters.
In April 2016, the Lee Kum Kee family donated $21 million to fund Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness, to "help identify how positive aspects of living can lead to better health and a longer life" and "coordinate research across many disciplines at Harvard University" and "understanding the complex interplay between positive psychological well-being and human health."
The family was worth an estimated $15 billion in 2019.
From Wikipedia’s article on Lee Kum Kee, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4