Shanghai Wenfeng store Photo: Sina Weibo

 

Shanghai Wenfeng Cosmetology Group is being investigated by the market regulator in Putuo district of Shanghai for illicit promotions involving pricing and marketing. The regulator also noted the company was fined the maximum of 50,000 yuan ($7843.38) in July, CCTV reported on Thursday. 

Also on Wednesday, Wenfeng Group's official website and its official WeChat account "Jinri Wenfeng" were shut down.

Wenfeng Group came under the social media spotlight due to an article published by its official WeChat account on December 5 which was full of flattery to President Chen Hao, also the founder of the company. 

Chen was described as being like a "god" with "heaven eyes" in the article, which said he mastered the "rules of everything." The description on the WeChat account says the account is mainly targeting staff of Wenfeng Group and is also used for publishing "Chen's thoughts, orders and company news." 

The abnormal writing style of the article quickly attracted netizens' attention on Chinese Twitter-liked social media Sina Weibo. After the article went viral, netizens also found videos recording Chen dancing in front of his applauding employees during a meeting, which aroused netizens' doubts about the working environment and operation mechanism of the company. 

Some media outlets reported that staffers at Wenfeng Group's physical stores used various tricks to persuade customers to buy their long-term value cards. But some customers said that they were refused by the store when trying to return the card. Multiple medical accidents have also been reported at Wenfeng Group's physical stores and Chen's wife was detained by police in 2003 due to tax evasion. 

A Sina Weibo netizen named "Xiongzai Moji" said he once went to a Wenfeng Group store when he was a student. "The staffers insisted I get a perm costing about 300 yuan even though I just wanted a simple haircut," he said. Some netizens joked that the Wenfeng Group meeting seemed like something that would happen in the North Korea. 

Wenfeng Cosmetology Group was established in 1996 in Putong district, Shanghai. It has multiple businesses including hairdressing and beauty salons as well as scientific research, manufacturing, and education. The company has hundreds of branches in large and middle-sized cities and makes hundreds of millions of yuan each year, according to Wenfeng Group's official website.

Global Times