June Chen China's shoe queen Belle Fashion has reapplied for an initial public offering in Hong Kong after it failed to pass its IPO hearing two years ago. Belle Fashion's net profit increased by 92.7 percent to 2.
1 billion yuan (HK$2.28 billion) in the first nine months of 2023 over the same period the previous year. The group also saw its revenue rise by 12.
8 percent to 16.1 billion yuan, while its net profit margin set a new record of 12.8 percent over the same period in 2022.
It was an uplifting recovery for the shoemaker whose net profit had plunged 54 percent to 1.26 billion yuan year on-year in fiscal 2022 amid the Covid pandemic. Belle Fashion commanded a 12.
3 percent share in China's fashion shoe market in 2022 and has retained its top spot for at least a decade in a row, according to Frost & Sullivan. It markets 12 own brands and seven partner brands including Belle, Teenmix, Staccato, Basto, Joy&Peace and Millie's. The five highest revenue earners are its own brands and among these Belle is its best seller, accounting for 28 percent of all revenue.
Initially founded in Hong Kong, Belle went public in the financial hub in 2007. Between 2012 and 2013, Belle's market value was close to HK$150 billion and it had as many as 20,000 stores but as e-commerce grew in popularity, Belle's business, which heavily relied on brick-and-mortar store sales, turned sluggish. A consortium led by Hillhouse Capital and Belle's senior management team took the blue-chip firm private in a.
