SINGAPORE: Local eyecare brand Nanyang Optical will be appointing liquidators at a meeting on Feb 13, according to a notice filed in the government gazette.
Published on Monday (Jan 26), the notice said the meeting of the creditors will be held at 2.30pm on Zoom, and those attending would receive a full statement of the company’s affairs, a list of creditors and the estimated amounts of their claims.
On its website, Nanyang Optical lists six outlets, one each at Northpoint City, Stars of Kovan, Parkway Parade, The Clementi Mall, Junction 8 and Wisma Atria. The outlet at Wisma Atria is branded as Alexis Eyewear Boutique.
Four stores will be closed as part of the liquidation process, according to a report in The Business Times. The stores at Junction 8 and The Clementi Mall, which are under franchise arrangements, will continue operating.
When contacted by CNA, managing director Bernard Yang declined to comment, citing the ongoing voluntary liquidation process.
In December, Nanyang Optical posted on social media that its Stars of Kovan outlet was short on manpower and would serve customers by appointment only. Its Northpoint City outlet opened in May last year.
The brand previously told CNA that it had been hit by a double whammy of sluggish sales and rising operational costs, including rent.
At the time, Mr Yang said the company had to make difficult choices at its Marine Parade outlet, including cutting the hours of its part-time staff and downsizing its unit.
He noted that rent always rises, and consumers’ spending habits have changed. He also observed that customers were comfortable purchasing spectacles overseas and through e-commerce platforms.
Mr Yang then said the company would focus on growing its e-commerce platform and could adopt a “hybrid retail” model in future.
Nanyang Optical was founded in 1960 after beginning as a lens grinding workshop in Geylang in the 1950s.