Today, the self-made property magnate carries a Chinese passport, and is a local delegate to the National People's Congress of China.
But he is more popularly known as the father of Lan Kwai Fong, the city's best known night spot.
Mr Zeman, now chairman of Lan Kwai Fong Holdings, believes that today's Hong Kong still provides opportunities for those who want to make it big.
"Hong Kong is an international marketplace. People from all over the world come here to do business. And so in my mind, I think that Hong Kong will always be an opportunity for people who are creative, able to think ahead, who can come up with a product that's a little different. If you're one of those categories, there's always opportunity," he said.
In 2004, Mr Zeman was given the opportunity to revamp local attraction Ocean Park, in light of Hong Kong Disneyland's impending opening.
He focused on the educational and conservational aspects of the Ocean Park and, tapping his Lan Kwai Fong experience, gave people new experiences.
Today, Ocean Park is the city's top tourist attraction.
"Hong Kong needs to keep re-inventing itself. There's a lot of competition now for Hong Kong, as you say, Singapore, Macau, Hengshan Island where there's a new aquarium opening up, Shanghai Disney," Mr Zeman said.
"I've always said that competition makes you better. I never worry about competition. As long as you're providing a good experience for your guests, your customers, they'll keep coming back."
Mainland tourists are coming back by the droves.
Hong Kong is now less a gateway to cheap mainland factories and more a playground for wealthy Chinese consumers.
Last year, a record 28 million mainland tourists visited the territory, spending at average of US$1,500 per stay.
The retail boom caused by tourist arrivals in recent years has pushed rents to record levels. In Causeway Bay, the city's busiest shopping district, retail space commands average rents second only to New York's Fifth Avenue.
Douglas Young co-founded of Goods Of Desire (GOD), an emporium of lifestyle products, just a year before the 1997 British handover of Hong Kong.
"Hong Kong has always been a very expensive place to do business," he said. "That part hasn't changed, but I think the situation probably has gotten worst now.
"I probably wouldn't be able to start GOD today because the entry barrier has just been lifted so high. I think the problem with companies like ours, being private and local, without big funding, is that we simply don't have the budget to promote ourselves "
Trained as an architect, Mr Young has helped to put Hong Kong on the design map by taking inspiration from the city's culture, past and present.
With five stores in the city, GOD is expanding into Singapore with plans for more stores on the mainland.
- CNA/wm
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