Belle International Holdings Limited is a women's shoe retailer in China, with 22% of the domestic market share.[2] It is engaged in the manufacturing, distribution, and retail sales of footwear products.[3] As of its IPO in May 2007, the company had 3,828 retail outlets in 150 cities in China and 35 in Hong Kong, Macau and the US.[4]
History
Belle's founder and chairman, Tang Yiu, started Lai Wah Footwear Trading Ltd. in 1981 in Hong Kong.[5] He started Belle International in 1991 as a shoe wholesale manufacturer, and the company expanded into retail in 2004.[2] It attracted private equity investors including Morgan Stanley and domestic Chinese private equity manager