01

The number one customer is actually one of our own?

Not long before the actual controller lost contactOn August 24, the regulatory authorities just issued an inquiry letter for the 2025 annual report to Chiba Jewelry.

According to Chiba Jewelry’s 2025 annual report, the company’s sales to Beijing Liuguang Brocade Culture Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Liuguang Brocade”) that year was 71.2896 million yuan, accounting for 16.29% of the total annual sales, an increase of 84.56% over the previous year. In 2024, the sales contributed by this customer will be 38.6268 million yuan, accounting for 5.04%.In one year, it went from being the fifth or so customer to being the top buyer, accounting for one-sixth of the company’s revenue.

It’s not just the growth rate that’s abnormal. The inquiry letter directly lists the “three similarities” between Liuguang Brocade and Qianye Jewelry: first,The corporate email address of Liuguang Brocade is the same email address as Qianye Jewelry (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd.；第二，The historical registration address of Liuguang Brocade is consistent with the historical address of Qianye Jewelry；第三，Liuguang Brocade was formerly known as “Beijing Xinchong Jewelry Co., Ltd.” and has a deep connection with Chiba Jewelry.. Accordingly, the supervision requires the company to explain,Whether there are related relationships or other interest arrangements between Liuguang Brocade and the company, controlling shareholders, actual controllers, directors, supervisors and senior management, annual audit accountants Grant Thornton were also required to express a clear opinion on the authenticity of sales revenue.

Even more intriguing is the trend in accounts receivable. At the end of 2024, Qianye Jewelry’s accounts receivable balance against Liuguang Brocade was still 12.6013 million yuan, which dropped sharply to 113,200 yuan by the end of 2025.A major customer with an annual purchase of more than 70 million yuan almost has cash on hand and owes nothing.In the jewelry wholesale industry, which generally has a payment period, this kind of “refreshing” seems unreasonable. Chiba Jewelry has always classified Liuguang Brocade as an “unrelated party” in its annual report.

Multiple industrial and commercial information cross-confirmed that this number one customer is most likely the “family member” of Qianye Jewelry. From June 2022 to August 2025, the supervisor of Liuguang Brocade is Amber Xiu; and the newly appointed chairman of the supervisory board of Chiba Jewelry on July 23, 2025 is also named Amber Xiu.The public resume shows that this person joined Chiba Jewelry in August 2003 and worked his way up from shopping guide, store manager, and sales manager. He is an old employee who has worked in the company for 23 years.

At the same time, from July 2024 to August 2025,Yang Kai, the former actual controller of Liuguang Brocade, holds 99% of the shares, and the legal representative of the labor union committee of Beijing Chiba Jewelry Co., Ltd. is also named “Yang Kai”.

The streamer tapestry may not be an isolated case. 2020 to 2025,Beijing Jintai Bailong Jewelry Co., Ltd. has appeared on the list of the top five customers of Chiba Jewelry for six consecutive years, and its cumulative sales in the past six years have exceeded 148 million yuan. Cai Xianbao, the legal representative of Jintai Bailong, happened to serve as a supervisor of Liuguang Brocade from June 23 to November 6, 2022; The historical industrial and commercial registration address of Jintai Bailong is also consistent with the historical office address of Chiba Jewelry. There is also a branch under Cai Xianbao’s name, which was once called “Beijing Qianye Jewelry Co., Ltd. Sanhe City Yanjiao Branch”. Also highly suspected of being “one of our own” is Shenzhen Zhenpinhui Jewelry Co., Ltd., the fourth largest customer of Qianye Jewelry in 2022. Its shareholder and legal representative Zheng Daluo has the same name as the core figures of many branches of Qianye Jewelry.

The client’s suspicions have not yet dissipated, and there are similar shadows hidden in the supplier list.. Beijing Kufen Cultural Creative Co., Ltd. (later renamed “Beijing Kufen Cultural Technology Co., Ltd.”) is the fourth largest supplier of Chiba Jewelry in 2024, with a purchase amount of 15.9811 million yuan; it jumped to the second largest supplier in 2025, with a purchase amount of 42.5781 million yuan.

Industrial and commercial information shows that Li Meiqin, the legal representative and second largest shareholder of Kufen Culture, has long served as the legal representative or executive of many subsidiaries of Chiba Jewelry., its industrial and commercial registration phone number also overlaps with many subsidiaries and branches of Chiba Jewelry.

As of press time, the 10-trading-day response period has long passed, and Chiba Jewelry has not publicly released a response to the inquiry letter.Now that the actual controller has lost contact, there is a high probability that it will be difficult to get an answer to this inquiry.

02

Anne Hathaway endorsement

Highlights of Chiba Jewelry

Chiba Jewelry was founded in 2001.Lin Mingjie, the first jewelry major from China University of Geosciences, started a business in Beijing with his wife Gao Xiaosong and sister Lin Huixian, focusing on the “KEER Chiba” brand, making gold, diamond and inlaid jewelry.

After more than ten years of hard work and accumulation, 2On October 29, 2015, Chiba Jewelry was listed on the New Third Board, with revenue of 1.113 billion yuan and net profit attributable to the parent company of 70.84 million yuan that year.。

In 2016, Chiba Jewelry signed a contract with Hollywood star Anne Hathaway as the brand image spokesperson, and has been the only official cooperative jewelry brand in China during New York Fashion Week since 2015.

The investment in marketing will soon see results.In 2017, the company’s performance reached its peak: revenue of 1.357 billion yuan and net profit attributable to the parent company of 94.28 million yuan., a year-on-year increase of 17.65% and 60.70% respectively. It is the pinnacle of the company’s development.

At that time, founder Lin Mingjie once proudly stated that there was “nothing like the only jewelry brand” like Chiba that could open direct-operated stores in more than 40 cities across the country——As of the end of May 2015, 233 of the company’s 240 stores were self-operated stores.。

After landing on the New Third Board, Chiba’s development has grown rapidly, and its capital ambitions have also expanded.In April 2017, Chiba Jewelry signed a mentoring agreement with Northeast Securities and officially launched the GEM IPO; in January 2022, the listing plan was changed to the Beijing Stock Exchange; But in September of the same year, the company signed a termination coaching agreement with Northeast Securities.Two attempts at A-shares failed.。

不過After the peak, there is a long downhill road caused by strategic mistakes and the golden cycle.. In 2022, the company’s revenue dropped to 714 million yuan, and the net profit loss attributable to the parent company was 5.6859 million yuan; in 2023, the company’s revenue was 677 million yuan,After briefly rising to 767 million yuan in 2024, it plummeted to 438 million yuan in 2025Yuan, revenue has shrunk by nearly 70% in the past eight years.

03

人去樓空

Governance paralysis revealed by an announcement

Northeast Securities’ announcement on September 11 gave the most dangerous warning:First, the actual controllers Lin Mingjie and Gao Xiaosong cannot be contacted.；其二，The board of directors cannot convene normally——The board of directors of Qianye Jewelry currently has only three members. After Lin Mingjie and Gao Xiaosong lost contact, they no longer meet the requirements of the “Articles of Association” that “more than half of the directors must be present to hold the meeting”; thirdly,The company was unable to fulfill its information disclosure obligations.

Northeast Securities bluntly stated that relevant risk matters “It involves affecting the company’s ability to continue operating and may trigger forced termination of listing.” There are major flaws in the corporate governance mechanism.。

The capital market responded quickly. On September 10, Chiba Jewelry’s share price closed down 28.57% to 0.85 yuan/share; on September 11, it plummeted again 49.41% to 0.43 yuan/share, with the cumulative decline in two trading days reaching 64%.The total market value is only 47.48 million yuan, a decrease of more than 98% from the peak market value in 2017.。At the same time, all the company’s store products on e-commerce platforms such as JD.com, Tmall, and Douyin have been removed from the shelves.。

An employee who has resigned told China Business News,Work has come to a standstill across the company since the boss couldn’t be reached last week, employees resigned one after another.The company has wage arrears, with the longest wage arrears lasting up to half a year.Relevant people from the China Jewelry and Jade Jewelry Industry Association also told the media on September 11 that Lin Mingjie was also unable to be contacted.

First Financial ReporterCome to the headquarters of Qianye Jewelry – No. 22, Xidawang Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing.推開門，The entire office area was dark and there was not a single staff member in sight.; Recruitment documents and unpacked express packages were scattered at the front desk. Three of the express delivery orders clearly stated:The name of the actual controller Lin Mingjie is included in the “Loan Early Expiration Notice” sent by the bank on September 8.

The impact has already appeared on the periphery:Franchisees on platforms such as Xiaohongshu have put up “store closing and clearance” posters, offering discounts of up to 35% on regular-priced mosaic products.; Some old customers also expressed regret for Chiba’s early designs – the brand’s residual heat is still there, but the purchase link has disappeared.

It is worth noting that before the thunderstorm, the company’s accounts were still a “profitable” report card——The 2026 semi-annual report shows that the net profit attributable to the parent company in the first half of the year was 14.4791 million yuan.But under the surface of this profit, supervision has already turned on the red light:

The National Equities Exchange and Quotations issued a letter of inquiry on the company’s 2025 annual report on August 24., pointed directly at the issue of “inventory and liquidity” and requested an explanation of the unsalable or overstocked inventory and subsequent liquidation arrangements. This is the second consecutive year that supervision has inquired about the company’s financial report.

A person in the jewelry industry of a listed company quoted by Blue Whale News said,There are rumors in the market that the two missing persons may have left the country and appeared in Thailand a few days ago. The amount owed to suppliers may reach tens of millions of yuan.——However, this statement has not been confirmed by Chiba or the supplier.

04

千葉隕落

From “focusing on self-operation” to over 1.1 billion yuan in gold inventory

The fall of Qianye Jewelry was not caused by a day’s cold, but by the superposition of three forces.

The first is the depletion of cash flow and the “puffiness” of assets.. The financial report shows that as of the end of June 2026, the company’s monetary funds were only 933,700 yuan, a decrease of 74.58% from the end of 2025, of which approximately 540,000 yuan has been frozen by litigation; andOf the total assets of 1.589 billion yuan, inventory is as high as 1.535 billion yuan., accounting for 96.56% of the total assets – this company has almost all its assets on a cabinet of gold jewelry.

Even more dazzling is the turnover: In the first half of 2026, the inventory turnover rate was only 0.12 times, while in the same period, competitors Lao Fengxiang, Chow Dasheng, and Chao Acer were 4.71 times, 1.31 times, and 1.96 times respectively.Chiba Jewelry’s inventory turnover days exceed 1,500 days. Lao Fengxiang’s was 97 days, Chao Acer’s was 165 days, and Zhou Taisheng’s was the longest, only 354 days.

From a structural perspective, the latest financial report did not disclose the proportion of gold in inventory, butThe 2024 financial report disclosed that more than 80% of Chiba Jewelry’s 1.47 billion yuan inventory was gold, and inventory with a storage age of more than 3 years accounted for 48%, mainly reserves.——It is not only goods that are in the warehouse, but also accumulated funds that are difficult to realize quickly.

The company’s total liabilities are approximately 290 million yuan, including 133 million yuan in short-term borrowings. A company with less than one million yuan in cash on its books but nearly 300 million yuan in debt, the space for maneuvering has bottomed out.

The second level is the “sharp turn” of the channel. Chiba Jewelry started its business by focusing on self-operation in the early years. Lin Mingjie once made it clear that he would not consider franchising. However, after the epidemic, self-operation efficiency declined, and the company gradually transferred its stores to franchisees.By the end of 2024, there will be only 1 self-operated store and 95 franchise stores left, and staff will also shrink simultaneously.——There were 357 active employees at the beginning of 2024, which dropped to 99 at the end of the year. By the end of June 2026, there were only 86 employees left.

At the same time, the company is putting resources into e-commerce live broadcasting. In 2024, e-commerce revenue will be approximately 528 million yuan, accounting for nearly 70%; however,In November 2025, the new “gold tax” policy coupled with high gold prices, the company suspended low-price promotions and live broadcasts by experts, and e-commerce revenue plummeted.——In the first half of 2026, e-commerce will only19.6325 million yuan, down 89.75% year-on-year, the proportion dropped to 9.22%. In a year when revenue was almost cut in half, the company’s net profit was able to maintain a slight increase by reducing personnel expenses: in 2025, “restructuring and optimizing personnel” will reduce cash paid to employees by 19.37 million yuan year-on-year. This is in line with what former employees expressed to the media“No year-end bonus will be given upon resignation” “Salary has always been irregular”The statements corroborate each other.

The third level is the fragility of family governance. As of the end of June 2026, Lin Mingjie, Gao Xiaosong, and Lin Huixian directly held 52.37% of the shares, and they were also all members of the board of directors.；Lin Mingjie is the chairman, president, secretary of the board of directors, and financial controller.. After the board of directors was reduced from 5 to 3 people in May 2026, the three members of the family took all the director seats; in the “Important Notice” of the semi-annual report, the person in charge of the company, the person in charge of accounting work, and the person in charge of the accounting department were all signed by Lin Mingjie.

The personal credit of the actual controller is deeply tied to the company: As of August 27,Lin Mingjie’s cumulative restricted rights reached 25.201 million shares, accounting for 15.88% of the total share capital, which is more than half of his personal shareholding ratio.. Once the core people are disconnected, decision-making, fund scheduling, and daily operations will be instantly disconnected.

Industry cycles amplify the above risks. According to data from the World Gold Council,In the first half of 2026, China’s gold jewelry demand will be approximately 136 tons, a year-on-year decrease of 30%, while the demand for gold bars and gold coins was approximately 314 tons, setting a historical record for the first half of the year. Under high gold prices, consumers are reducing weight and turning to investment products, and gold jewelry retail sales are generally under pressure. A chain gold store franchisee cited by Tonghuashun also mentioned that the same volume of goods sold under high gold prices requires more funds. Once there is a backlog of goods, the pressures on inventory and capital turnover will overlap.

For the precarious Chiba Jewelry, can it “come back from the dead”? The key depends on the following key time points——Do you want to reply to the inquiry letter from the share transfer system? Does it trigger the determination of forced termination of listing? And can the missing couple actually show up?As of press time, neither Northeast Securities nor Chiba Jewelry has announced the reason for the loss of contact between the founders and his wife. Employees’ salary arrears, supplier payments and consumer shopping money are still pending.A brand that once had an annual revenue of more than 1 billion yuan and could afford the endorsement of international superstar Anne Hathaway is on the verge of bankruptcy and closure. Its strategic mistakes are regrettable.。

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