| U-Right International Holdings Limited 佑威國際控股有限公司 | |
| Type: | Listed company |
| Foundation: | 1983 |
| Defunct: | 2008 |
| Founder: | Mr. Leung Ngok |
| Location: | Hong Kong |
| Key People: | Former chairman: Mr. Leung Ngok |
| Area Served: | Mainland China Hong Kong Saudi Arabia |
| Num Employees: | 400 (2008) |
| Industry: | Fashion retailing |
| Homepage: | Provisional Liquidators of U-Right International Holdings Limited |
U-Right International Holdings Limited (HKEX:), or U-Right, was a garment distributor and retailer headquartered in Hong Kong. It offered men's and ladies' casual wear under the brand name of U-Right through retail outlets and distribution points.[1] It utilized and licensed the Swedish Texcote technology, which is a material processing technology based on the principles of nano-technology. It also had its own production base in Shunde and Shenzhen of Guangdong to develop its nano-technology products.[2]
U-Right was founded by Mr. Leung Ngok in Hong Kong in 1983 and Mr. Leung served as the company chairman until 2008.[3]
U-Right had acquired the Texcote Technology from Swedish scientists. This specific textile was water repellent, dirt resistant and carried environmental properties. Its subsidiary U-Right Nano Textile (China) Ltd. produced Texcote-built products for other clothing companies.[4] U-Right launched Texcote-based products in 2002. Nano-coating clothes only increased production cost by 3%, yet the profit margin of nano-coated products was 50% higher.[5] In 2003, the company announced exceptional results thanks to its nano-coated solutions[6] and invested $50 million in a new nano-technology plant in mainland China to accelerate its Texcote-based production.[7] In 2006, the company announced it could nano-coat a million items a month thanks to its increased production capacity.[8]
From 2005 to 2007, in Hong Kong alone, the company store count went from 18 to 65. In mainland China, in 2007, U-Right owned 40 stores and 360 franchise stores. U-Right launched the stores Sevendays which carry top-tier fashion products (4 stores in 2007), and the high-end fashion brand Pezzx (2 stores in 2007). In 2007, U-Right started to sell brands others than their homemade brands.[9]
In 2008, U-Right was liquidated by Deutsche Bank, its creditor, as HK$1.3 billion debts was disabled to pay back. And provisional liquidator took over U-Right. Retail stores were closed down and 160 employees were laid off.[10] [11] Mr. Leung, U-Right's former chairman, was also declared bankrupt by the Hong Kong High Court.[12] Its shares still suspended trading until further notice.[13]