(Yicai Global) April 6 -- After Yicai Global found that the Shanghai headquarters of Tiger Attitude Chartered Pastry Bank was empty and all offline stores in the city were temporarily closed, the bakery chain said it had moved HQ to its laboratory and that its online business continues to function as normal.

Tiger Attitude’s Shanghai HQ was moved to the nearby Tiger Attitude Laboratory, a staffer at the firm told Yicai Global. The person declined to comment on the status of Tiger Attitude’s bakeries but said that online stores are still open and are receiving and fulfilling orders as usual.

During a visit to Tiger Attitude’s HQ in Shanghai, Yicai Global found the office was empty, and the company’s nameplate at the reception had been removed, together with other office supplies and sundries.

Tiger Attitude’s Shanghai HQ had over 100 employees at its peak, an employee at Intlef Oil and Gas Group, the office’s sub-lessor, told Yicai Global. Around March last year, job applicants crowded the office for interviews, but earlier this year, those coming by were mostly creditors taking anything that could be sold, the person added.

“Tiger Attitude moved out on March 31,” the Intlef Oil and Gas staffer noted. “The firm owes us more than CNY1 million (USD145,360) consisting of four months of rent and the penal sum, and we heard that it hasn’t paid salaries for around four months either,” the person said.

“Tiger Attitude probably didn’t receive funds from investors this year because it would have paid us the rent if it had,” they added.

Tiger Attitude secured tens of millions of Chinese yuan from investors, including Sequoia Capital and GGV Capital, a senior manager told Yicai Global in January.

All 11 Tiger Attitude stores in Shanghai have halted operations, according to Meituan’s crowd-sourced review app Dianping. All phone calls to the stores went unanswered. Moreover, Yicai Global visited three of its bakeries and confirmed they were also closed.

Founded in 2019, Tiger Attitude adapts traditional Chinese pastry and cake-making to the tastes of young consumers. It opened its first store in Changsha, Hunan province, and began a quick expansion in major Chinese cities, thanks to the initial financing from renowned venture capital firms, including GGV Capital, Tiger Global, and Sequoia China.

Tiger Attitude has had a difficult time due to Covid-19, and at the end of last year, the firm said it was shuttering some outlets and preparing to introduce the franchise model. Afterward, online rumors said the firm was ready for liquidation as its capital chain was broken and that it allegedly owed CNY200 million (USD29 million) in pay to its workers. Tiger Attitude denied the rumors on March 31.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione