三胞對House of Fraser承諾落空
When China’s Sanpower Group bought House of Fraser in 2014, its founder, Yuan Yafei, talked boldly about his plans to take the 166-year-old UK department store chain global.
2014年，當中國三胞集團(Sanpower Group)收購英國House of Fraser百貨公司時，三胞創始人袁亞非大膽談論了他讓這家擁有166年曆史的英國連鎖百貨進軍全球的計劃。
The entrepreneur and former local government official not only promised to inject capital into the cash-strapped retailer, but his vision also included new outposts in Russia and the Middle East and most importantly a push into China with up to 50 new stores under the name “Oriental Fraser”.
這位企業家曾經是中國地方政府官員，他不僅承諾向這家資金緊張的零售商注入資本，而且他的願景還包括在俄羅斯和中東開設新店，最重要的是打入中國市場、以“東方福來德”(Oriental Fraser)的名字開設多達50家新店。
None of that has happened. This year’s planned April launch date of a flagship store in Nanjing passed without any sign of the fireworks and dancing lions that usually accompany grand openings on the mainland.
這些計劃全都沒有實現。今年4月計劃在南京啓動旗艦店的日期已經過去，沒有任何燃放煙花和舞獅慶祝的跡象，而在中國內地有新店盛大開幕時往往伴隨着這些活動。
Traditional retailers around the world are struggling to compete against new online competitors — a plight highlighted by the collapse of British department store BHS and poor first quarter sales from US department stores Nordstrom and Macy’s as well as the clothing group Gap.
眼下世界各地的傳統零售商正苦苦掙扎於與新的在線對手競爭——英國百貨公司BHS破產，美國百貨公司諾思通(Nordstrom)和梅西百貨(Macy's)、以及服裝集團Gap第一季度銷售慘淡，突顯了這一困境。
House of Fraser, a mid-range department store chain with roots in Glasgow, is no exception. Weighed down by the costs of a ￡300m debt refinancing, the company posted its fifth straight year of statutory losses for 2015, despite double-digit online sales growth and increased revenue.
作爲一家中等規模的連鎖百貨，誕生於英國格拉斯哥的House of Fraser也不例外。儘管實現了兩位數的在線銷售增長、營收也有所增加，但是在3億英鎊債務再融資成本的重壓下，2015年該公司連續第五年錄得虧損。
But the retailer’s delayed debut in mainland China also stems from other problems. Three people close to House of Fraser say Sanpower, a retail-to-property conglomerate, failed to provide the expected capital boost. The new owners also shook up the company’s leadership and reshaped expansion plans for China.
但是該零售商推遲在中國內地的首次亮相還源於其他問題。三位熟悉House of Fraser的人士稱，業務涵蓋零售業和房地產的綜合企業三胞集團未能提供預期中的資本注入。這個新東家還重組了House of Fraser的領導層，並改變了其在中國的擴張計劃。
Rather than opening new stores, Sanpower is revamping some of its existing properties and renaming them Oriental Fraser. It has also shifted the Nanjing store launch to later this year, saying the plans have changed because of seasonal clothing considerations and plans for Chinese new year.
三胞沒有開設新店，而是改建一些現有物業，將之重新命名爲“東方福來德”。它還將南京旗艦店的開業時間推遲至今年晚些時候，稱出於服飾季節性的考慮和有關中國新年的計劃而改變了原有計劃。
House of Fraser could also change hands again soon. er International, the owner of UK toy store Hamleys, said in April that it was considering acquiring an interest in the business.
House of Fraser還可能很快被再次轉手。4月，英國玩具零售商Hamleys的所有者千百度國際控股有限公司(er International)曾表示，正在考慮收購該公司股權。
The fate of House of Fraser is being closely watched, in part because it was on the leading edge of a wave of Chinese expansion into more developed markets. Mainland companies have spent more than $220bn on outbound acquisitions since the start of 2015, reaching record levels in the early months of 2016.
House of Fraser的命運正受到密切關注，部分是因爲它曾處於中國向更發達市場擴張浪潮的前沿。自2015年初以來，中國內地企業已斥資超過2200億美元進行海外收購，在2016年頭幾個月內便達到了創紀錄的水平。
Frank Slevin, House of Fraser’s chairman, pushes back against the notion that his company has suffered under its new owners. He argues that the company’s development is strong and on track in both the UK and China. Once the refinancing costs are stripped out, House of Fraser posted adjusted pre-tax profits of ￡1.3m in the year to end of January against a ￡3.7m loss in the previous year.
House of Fraser董事長弗蘭克•斯萊文(Frank Slevin)反駁了有關其公司在新東家手中遭受痛苦的說法。他認爲，該公司的發展強勁，在英國和中國的發展都在軌道上。在去掉再融資成本後，在截至1月底的財年中House of Fraser經調整的稅前利潤爲130萬英鎊，而此前一年爲虧損370萬英鎊。
“We believe that the business is extremely well positioned for the future of retailing. Since the acquisition we have strengthened the management team, successfully refinanced the business and delivered its strongest results in 10 years,” Mr Slevin says.
“我們相信公司已經充分準備好迎接零售業的未來。自從被收購以來，我們加強了管理團隊，成功地完成了再融資，並實現了十年來最強勁的業績，”斯萊文表示。
Sanpower, which owns 89 per cent of House of Fraser, declined to answer questions regarding the company. Sports Direct, the UK retail chain controlled by Mike Ashley, owns the remainder. A spokesperson for Mr Ashley declined to comment.
三胞擁有House of Fraser 89%的股權，拒絕回答與House of Fraser相關的問題。由邁克•阿什利(Mike Ashley)控股的英國零售連鎖店Sports Direct擁有剩餘股權。阿什利的發言人拒絕置評。
Hopes were high at House of Fraser when Nanjing Cenbest, a Shanghai-listed department store chain controlled by Sanpower, announced it was buying a controlling stake in the UK company in April 2014.
2014年4月，當三胞控股的在上海上市的連鎖百貨南京新百(Nanjing Cenbest)宣佈收購這家英國公司的控股權時，House of Fraser曾被寄予厚望。
The retailer had repeatedly changed owners over the previous three decades, with stints under the al-Fayed family, a stock market listing and in the hands of Icelandic investment group Baugur, which went bust during the 2008 financial crisis.
在此前30年中，這家零售商曾多次易手，經歷過法耶德家族(Al-Fayed)、公開上市、以及冰島投資集團Baugur（在2008年金融危機期間破產）。
Sanpower was a welcome change. One person who toured China with Mr Yuan in September 2014 said the conglomerate was eyeing prime real estate in major cities to launch new “Oriental Fraser” stores that would reflect the UK company’s culture adapted for China.
迎來三胞，對House of Fraser來說是一個可喜的轉變。一位曾於2014年9月與袁亞非一起參觀中國的人士表示，三胞集團着眼於大型城市的高端地產來開設“東方福來德”新店，新店將反映出這家英國企業適應中國特色的文化。
Sanpower had also agreed to inject ￡75m into House of Fraser UK for, among other things, a technology revamp, according to three people with first-hand knowledge of House of Fraser and the deal. The people said the Chinese owner also promised then-chief executive John King would become executive chairman.
據三位瞭解House of Fraser和該交易第一手情況的人士表示，三胞還同意向英國House of Fraser注入7500萬英鎊的資金用於技術改造等。他們稱，三胞還承諾讓時任House of Fraser首席執行官的約翰•金(John King)擔任執行董事長。
Instead, in early 2015, Mr King was notified that he would not take the executive chairman position and he was appointed to a non-executive director. Mr Slevin, a former HSBC banker based in Hong Kong, took the chairman’s job in early 2015. He denied that Mr King was ever guaranteed the job.
然而，2015年初，金接到通知稱，他不會擔任執行董事長，而是被任命爲非執行董事。前匯豐銀行(HSBC)常駐香港的銀行家斯萊文於2015年初接任董事長一職。他否認曾有人保證過金會得到該職位。
Mr King, who declined to comment, soon left the company, followed within months by the chief financial officer and chief customer officer.
金很快離開該公司，隨後數月內首席財務官和首席客戶官相繼離職。金拒絕置評。
The people with knowledge of events at House of Fraser last year said the original leadership clashed with Chinese management over money as well as the style and presentation of the “Oriental Fraser” brand.
瞭解House of Fraser去年發生的一系列事件的人士稱，原有領導層與中國管理層在資金以及“東方福來德”品牌的風格和呈現問題上出現了衝突。
At the time of the buyout, House of Fraser’s management hoped to break new ground in China with a new retail concept.
在被收購時，House of Fraser的管理層希望以新的零售概念在中國打開新局面。
“[Yuan Yafei] was presented with a completely different store,” one person close to the deal says. “But later when he saw the pricetag he said there was no money for that.”
“他們（向袁亞非）展示了一種完全不同的百貨公司，”一位接近該交易的知情人士稱，“但是後來當他看到價格後，他稱沒有錢做這樣的百貨公司。”
Mr Slevin says the company plans to revamp some existing stores owned by Sanpower and that strategy could be replicated with other Chinese department store operators. “It was always intended that House of Fraser would expand in this way,” he says.
斯萊文稱，該公司計劃對一些三胞所有的現有商場進行改造，該策略可複製到其他中國百貨運營商。“從一開始對House of Fraser的擴張方式就是這樣設想的，”他稱。
The injection of ￡75m never came. Instead, House of Fraser is using its own cash to pay for developments in the UK and China.
承諾注入的7500萬英鎊從未兌現。相反，House of Fraser目前正用自己的資金支付在英國和中國發展的費用。
“The worry now is that, without cash from China, HoF can’t keep investing,” says one person briefed on events at the company.
“現在的擔憂是，沒有中國的資金支持，House of Fraser無法繼續投資，”一位知情人士表示。
Mr Slevin declined to comment on any promised capital expenditure before he joined the company in early 2015. He says that Sanpower has made a commitment to financially support House of Fraser should it be required, but that need has never arisen.
斯萊文拒絕對發生在他2015年初加入該公司之前的任何資本支出承諾置評。他稱，三胞承諾在必要情況下在資金方面支持House of Fraser，但是目前尚未出現這種需求。
“There is an ongoing dialogue between management and the shareholder on possible capital expenditure programmes but that can’t be translated as a promise,” he says.
“管理層和股東之間目前正在就可能的資本支出計劃進行對話，但是不能將此理解爲承諾，”他表示。
Meanwhile, Sanpower’s listed food and clothing retailer, one of China’s biggest, posted a widening loss of $27.3m for the first three months of this year. Sanpower itself has gone on a buying spree over the past two years, most recently agreeing in November to pay $1.4bn for China Cord Blood, a New York-listed, China-based life sciences company.
與此同時，南京新百在今年第一季度的虧損擴大至2730萬美元。三胞旗下的南京新百是中國規模最大的食品和服裝零售上市公司之一。三胞集團過去兩年瘋狂併購，最近的一筆是去年11月同意出資14億美元收購中國臍帶血庫企業集團(China Cord Blood)。後者於紐約上市，是一家總部位於中國的生命科技公司。
Now House of Fraser could be on the block again.
如今House of Fraser可能被再次出售。
er International, which bought 256-year-old UK toy shop Hamleys late last year, said in an April filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange that it was considering acquiring the retail chain.
4月，千百度國際在向香港交易所(HKex)提交的文件中表示，正在考慮收購這家連鎖零售商。該公司於去年年底收購了擁有256年曆史的英國玩具零售商Hamleys。
People briefed on the potential deal say that the plan is for er to take equity in House of Fraser while Sanpower takes shares directly in er.
據瞭解這筆可能交易的人士稱，計劃是千百度收購House of Fraser的股權，同時三胞直接收購千百度的股票。
