Founders of Hong Kong's Ocean Empire congee chain hit with HK$7 million lawsuit
Advertisement
Choi Wong-hoe and Siu Chor-kee, owners of the 33-year-old Ocean Empire Food Shop, were named as defendants in a civil claim filed in the High Court on Monday.
The popular chain, which operated more than 30 branches in its heyday,
abruptly shut its remaining seven outlets in May this year, citing reasons such as the worsening operating environment in the city.
The two founders said they made the
difficult decision after struggling to keep the business afloat despite selling their property and making personal loans.
According to the writ, seen by the Post on Tuesday, an outlet of the congee restaurant chain in Tuen Mun's Paris London New York Cinema Shopping Centre had failed to pay at least 14 months of rent, air-conditioning charges and government rates.
Advertisement
The landlord,
Chinachem Finance Company, claimed that the tenant 'unilaterally abandoned possession of the premises' without its consent when the restaurant ceased operation and returned the keys of the shop to the building's management office on May 8.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
2 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
China eyes bigger global role for yuan as US dollar stability questioned
China is stepping up efforts to internationalise the yuan, as growing doubts about the US dollar's stability provide a window of opportunity for the currency. The People's Bank of China (PBOC) announced at its midyear meeting that it would expedite the yuan's use in trade settlement and cross-border financing. '[We'll] accelerate the expansion of the yuan's use in trade, further enhance its financing function and optimise policies governing funding pools and overseas listings of domestic companies,' the central bank said. It also pledged to strengthen the offshore market and establish stable liquidity supply channels across a full range of maturities, while speeding up the development of overseas clearing banks through Beijing's yuan-denominated Cross-border Interbank Payment System (CIPS). This marked the first time in three years that China's central bank has included a dedicated section on yuan internationalisation in its midyear meeting readout. The statement aligns with Beijing's broader strategy to raise the yuan's global profile amid mounting concerns over US debt sustainability and rising geopolitical tensions, which have cast fresh doubt on the dollar's dominance.
South China Morning Post
2 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Li family home in Hong Kong is ‘not for sale,' CK Asset says in rebuke to ‘false' rumour
Hong Kong's wealthiest family denied that their residence of more than half a century is up for sale, as CK Asset Holdings issued an unusual rebuttal of rumours that have circulated for days on social media. Social media speculation of the impending sale of 79 Deep Water Bay Road was 'entirely fabricated', 'false' and 'groundless,' CK Asset said in a statement on behalf of the company's chairman and managing director, Victor Li Tzar-kuoi 'The reports and posts on certain websites and social media platforms regarding the sale of 79 Deep Water Bay Road are entirely fabricated, speculative, and lack any factual basis,' CK Asset said in a statement on Monday. Li, who was raised in the family home, said many 'made up' rumours involving himself and his family had been circulated online. 'Some are illogical, others are simply deceptive,' he said in the statement. 'Given the rise in scam cases, I urge the public and media not to trust or spread such rumours to avoid potential losses.' Tycoon Li Ka-shing (centre) left the Harbour Grand Kowloon Hotel in Hung Hom after attending his final annual general meeting as the chairman of CK Group on May 10, 2018. He retired after the general meeting. Photo: Sam Tsang
South China Morning Post
18 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong pest control firm banned from importing workers over rejecting local
A Hong Kong pest control and cleaning company has been banned from importing foreign workers for a year after it was found to have refused to offer a job to a suitable local candidate first. Advertisement The Labour Department said on Monday that it had imposed an 'administrative sanction' on Amala Limited and would not process its applications for importing workers for one year, with the measure taking effect last Thursday. 'At the same time, the [department] has terminated the processing of an application previously submitted by the company,' a spokesman said. 'An administrative sanction has been imposed on the company, as it earlier refused to employ a qualified local jobseeker during the four-week local recruitment under the [Enhanced Supplementary Labour Scheme] without reasonable grounds, violating the requirements of local recruitment.' The move marks the first time a business has been penalised for failing to follow the scheme's rules since it was revised two years ago. Advertisement 'The [scheme] stipulates that if an employer violates labour or immigration laws, the requirements of the [scheme] or the standard employment contract, the [department] will impose an administrative sanction on the employer, including the withdrawal of approval for the importation of labour previously granted and refusal to process any subsequent applications submitted by the employer,' the spokesman said.
