6 Hong Kong celebrity restaurateurs who lost millions due to Covid-19: Nicholas Tse’s cookies were forced to move online while Laurinda Ho’s noodle shops have nights with ‘zero income’
- Former TVB star John Tang worked in insurance before opening noodle shops in Yau Ma Tei and Tsim Sha Tsui, loved by his A-lister friend Louis Koo – but all of them shut down
- Mat Yeung and Lisa Ch’ng closed five of their soup restaurants, leaving one remaining that only does takeout, while Icy Wong’s Tseung Kwan O bakery closed in February
Hong Kong was recently hit hard by the fifth wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, leading to the shutdown of many businesses. Among them, F&B is one of the sectors to suffer the heaviest losses. And celebrities are no exception, even if they have a huge bank accounts. Some already had to close up shop only a short time after the first wave, while others have tried hard to survive, but finally had no choice but to call it quits after losing millions.
Here are the not-so-lucky celebrities who have lost money during the pandemic.
1. Laurinda Ho
“On some days, we only earn about US$130 (HK$1,000). Since dining in has been restricted, there are nights when we end up with zero income, and what we make is not enough to pay the rent,” she said. “Because of the pandemic, we’ve lost a total of about US$255,000 (HK$2 million) over the past half a year.”
But the Causeway Bay outlet is still open thanks to rent reductions.
2. Nicholas Tse
