Metersbonwe Chairwoman Lands on Blacklist for Store Rent Arrears
Zhang Yushuo
DATE:  Jun 29 2020
/ SOURCE:  Yicai
Metersbonwe Chairwoman Lands on Blacklist for Store Rent Arrears Metersbonwe Chairwoman Lands on Blacklist for Store Rent Arrears

(Yicai Global) June 29 -- Hu Jiajia, chairwoman of well-known Chinese apparel company Shanghai Metersbonwe Fashion & Accessories, faces consumption restrictions for not paying rent on a store in the center of Shanghai.

Metersbonwe has leased since 2008 a large building on the city’s upmarket Nanjing East Road in the center of Shanghai run by a consortium of the 490 owners of discrete portions of the edifice, two of whom were unwilling to renew the lease after its 2017 expiration, a local court found in a judgment it issued on June 24. The company, which was a holdover tenant in these spaces in the interim, had to pay these two owners two years' rent of CNY361,385 (USD 51,055.4) and a penalty of CNY75,567 as the company had not paid rent due by June 24, the court ordered.

The documents show that Hu Jiajia, the legal representative of Shanghai-based Metersbonwe, “is subject to a judicially-imposed ban on high roller consumption and consumer behavior not necessary for life and work.” Specifically, she may not travel by air, soft-sleeper train or ship of second class or above, and is barred from star-rated hotels, nightclubs, golf clubs and other consumption venues.

Hu, the daughter of the firm’s founder Zhou Chengjian, served as its chair and president in November 2016. Zhou, who holds 49.13 percent of the company’s shares, is its actual controller.

Founded in 1995, Metersbonwe designs, manufactures and sells apparel and accessories. Its brands include Metersbonwe, ME&CITY, Moomoo, ME&CITY KIDS and CH’IN. It has 4,700 stores and some online business at present.

The Covid-19 pandemic choked off customer traffic at the company's offline stores. Its revenue fell 46.7 percent to CNY921 million (USD130.1 million) in the first quarter, and its net profit attributable to the parent company was CNY219 million, down 671.7 percent over last year.

Metersbonwe’s stock price [SHE:002269] reported down 1.92 percent at CNY2.04 (29 US cents) in late afternoon.

Editor: Ben Armour

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Keywords:   Metersbonwe,footwear and apparel,chairwoman,consumption