Xianhezhuang defeated the capital! The aura of "star catering" is gradually lost.
Star catering can't escape the "short-lived" curse is staged again. Recently, a reporter from Beijing Business Daily found that the Beijing stores of Xianhezhuang Braised Hotpot (hereinafter referred to as "Xianhezhuang") created by artist Chen He have all been closed. This is also a reproduction of a city store contraction after incidents such as franchisee rights protection and Chen He's withdrawal from shareholders.
Image from Xianhe Zhuang Weibo
In fact, the voice of "short-lived" star stores has been constant, often revealing operational management shortcomings after fading the star halo. From the perspective of long-term development of the brand, the halo effect of stars cannot make catering operators once and for all, and operating a brand is the long-term way.
Xianhezhuang Beijing stores have all been closed
There are also no stores at the headquarters location
According to Beijing Business Daily, Xianhe Zhuang, which has a star halo, pressed the pause button in the Beijing market. Recently, the third-party platform Dianping searched for "Xianhezhuang" stores in Beijing and showed that there was no Xianhezhuang store information on the page. Subsequently, the reporter of Beijing Business Daily visited the Beijing Xianhezhuang store that was previously operated, and all of them have been closed.
From the scene, it can be seen that the store originally located in Longhu Changyang Tianjie has now been replaced by Banu Mao Belly Hot Pot, which was also the first store in Beijing at that time in Xianhe Zhuang. At the same time, the Huacai Commercial Center store has been renovated and surrounded by Chef Fei's fried meat with chili. In addition, Xianhezhuang Sanlitun store, Xianhezhuang Xidan store and Xianhezhuang Fengke Wanda store are all closed.
Regarding the closure of the Beijing store, the reporter of Beijing Business Daily repeatedly called Chengdu Xianhezhuang Brand Management Co., Ltd., Sichuan Zhishan Brand Management Co., Ltd., and Fujian Xianhezhuang Catering Co., Ltd., but they were either not connected or hung up. However, according to the relevant staff of Xianhe Zhuang headquarters, Dianping no longer shows store information and should be all closed. When asked whether the brand is still continuing to open up the franchise business, the other party said that the franchise business has not been suspended and has been attracting foreign investment.
Screenshot from Dianping app
According to the Beijing News, in addition to Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu, where Xianhezhuang headquarters are located, currently have no operating stores. In response to this situation, the Beijing News reporter called the customer service of the official website of Xianhezhuang, and the customer service staff said that the Chengdu Taikoo Li store has indeed been closed, and there is currently no Xianhezhuang store in Chengdu, but it plans to reopen another store, and the customer service staff said that it is unclear about the operation of stores in Beijing, Shanghai and other regions.
Southern Metropolis Daily reported that all Xianhezhuang stores in Guangzhou are currently closed and closed. The relevant person in charge of Xianhezhuang headquarters said that all stores in Guangzhou have been closed, and all contracts were terminated last year.
According to the visit of the reporter of the China Times, all the Shenzhen stores have been closed, and some of the exterior decoration of the original site is still there, but the store has been empty, the tables and chairs are in a mess, and some stores have been taken over by other catering brands, and the "Xianhe Zhuang" sign is no longer hanging.
According to public information, Xianhe Zhuang is a hot pot brand invested and established by Chen He and other artists, and began business in May 2015. In May 2022, the topic of "Chen He withdrew from Fujian Xianhe Zhuang shareholders" rushed to Weibo hot search, and in June of the same year, Xianhe Zhuang Braised Hot Pot issued a statement, saying that Chen He was not originally the main operator of the Xianhe Zhuang brand and a direct shareholder of Chengdu Xianhe Zhuang Brand Management Co., Ltd. Chen He also posted a Weibo explanation of Xianhe Zhuang's operation disputes and other issues, saying that he would always maintain the identity of the founder and work hand in hand with the franchisees of all stores.
Chen He, Yang Kun, Hu Haiquan, Xue Zhiqian...
Their F&B outlets are "not happy"
According to Chao News previously reported, data shows that nearly 62% of celebrities open stores choose the catering industry, however, in sharp contrast to the low cost and high return, in recent years, star restaurants have repeatedly burst out of poor taste, poor service, expensive prices, franchisee collective rights protection and other incidents, such as Hangzhou's two Xianhe Zhuang hot pot on the platform with a score of only 3.7 and 3.8 points, "few varieties of dishes", "not fresh", "poor service" comments can be seen everywhere.
According to Jiupai News, in March this year, the star bakery "Niujiao Village" added three new pieces of information on the enforceees, with a total amount of more than 713,100 yuan, and the enforcement courts included Beijing Chaoyang District Court and Beijing Daxing District Court. It is reported that the enterprise is a baking chain enterprise based on the production and sales of croissants, and focuses on the "star route", with stars Xia Yu, Yang Kun and others participating in the shares, and artists such as Tan Jing and Cai Guoqing have supported its platform.
Also in March, Guangzhou Hongong Catering Service Co., Ltd., an affiliate of "Hongong's Tea", which had been fined for tax evasion, was listed by the Guangzhou Panyu District Market Supervision Administration for abnormal operations because it could not be contacted through its registered residence or business premises. According to the official website of Hongong's tea, Hu Haiquan is the co-founder of the company's tea brand "Hongong's Tea". Industrial and commercial information shows that Hu Haiquan once held shares in the company through Guangzhou Jiangquan Investment Co., Ltd., and withdrew from the company's shareholder list on January 6 this year.
The tea drink brand "Natural Stay" associated with artist Guan Xiaotong has not escaped the curse, and has been sued for a franchise contract dispute.
As early as 2021, Shanghai Shangqian Catering Management Co., Ltd., an affiliate of Shangqian, added a new cancellation record, and the reason for the cancellation was the resolution to dissolve. It is understood that the members of the liquidation team are Li Yuanlin, Wang Yanjun and Xue Zhiqian's father Xue Liangyuan, and the registration authority is the Baoshan District Market Supervision Administration. From 2012 to 2019, the well-known artist Xue Zhiqian served as a shareholder of Shanghai Shangqian Catering Management Co., Ltd.
Withdraw from shareholders when earning a franchise fee
Star catering has long become a capital game
According to Beijing Business Daily, according to IPG China Chief Economist Bai Wenxi, stars were keen to create catering brands in order to use their popularity and influence to achieve revenue conversion and monetization. Xianhe Zhuang and other catering outlets with a star halo have operational problems, mainly because these brands have not improved their cost performance based on product innovation, and are destined to become a phased hot spot and difficult to sustain.
Bai Wenxi said that the behavior of artists showing up as founders to attract a large number of franchisees to withdraw their shares can reduce legal risks after they use their influence to monetize, but at the same time, it will also have a negative impact on their own reputation and image. For franchisees who are interested in the "star effect", it is also necessary to fully consider the commercial transformation effect, durability and potential risks of the star effect.
According to Jiupai News, on March 22, the staff of Fengke Wanda Plaza Niujiao Village said that the stored value cards handled by the store could not be used, "The directly operated stores have all run away, we are franchised stores, we have not been able to contact the head office since December last year, they still owe us hundreds of thousands of unsettled payments, and we are also fighting a lawsuit." ”
Chao News reported that with the capital operation and risk control of traders, coupled with highly replicable industry characteristics and the huge influence of stars to quickly hit the brand, and then absorb a large number of franchisees into the game, by earning high franchise fees, a "cash cow" dressed in the coat of star catering was quickly cultivated.
According to the reporter, the franchise fee of Xianhezhuang hot pot is as high as 550,000 yuan, including brand use, personnel training and other projects. In addition, the store also has to pay 2% of the turnover to Zhishan Group every year, and Zhishan will share dividends in proportion to the star boss.
It can be seen that star catering has become a capital game.
Daily economic news is synthesized from Beijing Business Daily, Beijing News, Chao News, Jiupai News, Southern Metropolis Daily, and public information