Christine, a long-established chain bakery in Shanghai that used to be a Taiwan-funded enterprise, has debts of 57 million yuan, and the store is empty.

(picture taken from Weibo)

[Central News Agency] Christine, an old chain bakery in Shanghai that used to be a Taiwan-funded enterprise, closed its stores one after another last year due to financial problems, and suspended all store operations at the end of last year. The current debt is 57 million yuan (about NT$250 million) ), many suppliers have resorted to the law.

Based on reports from China Business News and the Beijing News, Christine issued an announcement on the 10th of this month, saying that due to the COVID-19 epidemic, the group's business has been hit hard. Payments, including payment of store rent, supplier payments and employee salaries, were delayed.

As of the end of February this year, the amount in arrears was approximately RMB 57 million.

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Due to arrears of payment, some suppliers have resorted to the law and frozen Christine's bank account.

According to the announcement, the frozen amount ranged from 3.5 million to 4 million yuan.

Companies currently rely on loans from shareholders to stay afloat.

According to reports, the door of Christine's headquarters in Shanghai is locked, and the landlord sued the court for rent owed about 120,000 yuan.

The relevant case will be heard in court at the end of May.

According to Christine's financial reports in recent years, the operating situation has been poor. From 2013 to 2021, it has suffered losses for 9 consecutive years.

And the number of Christine's stores has been decreasing.

117 stores will be closed in 2019, 99 stores will be closed in 2020, and 55 stores will be closed in 2021.

According to the announcement, Christine has closed all its retail stores from December 2022.

In the past, Christine was called "Shanghai People's Memories", but in recent years, she has been in the news because of financial problems and disputes among shareholders.

A Shanghai native told the Central News Agency that when I was a child, I often saw Christine's store on the street. Although I didn't necessarily like to eat this brand of bread, at least "now that I think about it, there is such a thing."

I just left Shanghai to study, and when I came back, I found that these shops were almost gone.

According to public information, Christine was founded in Shanghai by Taiwanese businessman Luo Tianan in 1993. It was once regarded as one of the representatives of Taiwanese-funded bakeries. In its heyday, it had 543 stores in Shanghai and more than 1,000 stores in China. , and listed on the Hong Kong stock market in February 2012.

However, in the past few years, after equity transfers and disputes over management rights, Luo Tianan's shareholding has dropped significantly, and he is no longer a real value controller and a member of the board of directors. Christine has long since faded away from Taiwan.

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