Fashion tycoon who dreamed of building China’s LVMH set to lose prime Hong Kong property worth US$64 million: sources

A receiver has appointed Savills to sell the entire 23rd floor of Bank of America Tower in Central and three parking spaces

The property was bought in 2018 by a company controlled by Qiu Yafu and other directors of Shandong Ruyi Technology Group, sources say

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Bank of America Tower in Hong Kong’s Central district, pictured in October 2020. Photo: SCMP / Dickson Lee

Published: 10:50pm, 23 Nov 2022Updated: 11:45pm, 23 Nov 2022

A fashion tycoon who once hoped to build an empire billed as China’s version of LVMH has lost a prime office property and three car-parking spaces in Central, as a receiver is now seeking to sell the portfolio for HK$500 million (US$64 million), according to sources familiar with the matter.

The receiver has appointed international property agent Savills to sell the 13,880 sq ft 23rd floor of Bank of America Tower in Central, along with three parking spaces, the property agency said on Wednesday.

The statement did not disclose the original buyer, but sources confirmed the property was bought in 2018 by a company controlled by debt-ridden fashion tycoon Qiu Yafu and other directors.

The asking price, which works out to HK$36,000 per square foot, is HK$200 million less than the HK$701.8 million (HK$50,000 per square foot) a company called Forever Winner International Development paid for it, according to data from the Land Registry.

Ruyi Holding Group Chairman Qiu Yafu, pictured in November 2018, spearheaded more than US$4 billion in acquisitions in an attempt to build a the company into a fashion empire. Photo: Reuters

Qiu, via his Shandong Ruyi Technology Group, made US$4 billion worth of overseas acquisitions in three years starting from 2015 in an attempt to build a luxury empire on the level of LVMH, the French powerhouse that owns its namesakes Louis Vuitton and Moët Hennessey, as well as many other brands.

Ruyi’s acquisitions included UK outerwear maker Aquascutum and French fashion retailer SMCP, whose labels include Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot. The group also bought Hong Kong-listed Trinity, which controls British bespoke tailor Gieves & Hawkes, in 2017 from Victor Fung Kwok-king, the chairman of the Li & Fung Group.