China top yoga chain shut 82 studios — founder pledged to repay hundreds of millions

FineYoga (梵音瑜伽) was China's largest direct-operated yoga chain, with approximately 82 studios across Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, and Chengdu. The brand positioned itself as a premium yoga education and practice platform, offering both membership-based classes and teacher training programmes.

In late February 2023, all 82 studios shut simultaneously without advance notice. Members arrived to find locked doors; employees reported unpaid wages. Individual consumer losses were reported as high as ¥110,000 in Guangzhou alone, reflecting the prepaid tuition model that required members to purchase class packages months or years in advance.

On 26 February 2023, founder Rao Qiuyu (饶秋玉) posted an announcement via the official WeChat account. She cited failed fundraising as the immediate trigger and described 'extreme debt pressure.' Rao stated that all her personal assets had been liquidated and pledged to repay debts totalling 'several hundred million RMB' (几亿) through various methods including future earnings.

As of July 2026 — over three years after the closure — debt clearance remains incomplete. Significant consumer complaints persist regarding prepaid tuition refunds, teacher training fee reimbursements, and unpaid employee wages. The case became a reference point for the structural risks of prepaid membership models in China's fitness and wellness sector.

Shut all 82 studios at once, citing failed fundraising and extreme debt; founder pledged to repay hundreds of millions, but debts remain unpaid three years later.

The prepaid tuition model created a structural time bomb — members paid for classes months or years in advance, and when new enrolments slowed, there was no cash to honour existing commitments.

FineYoga's 82 direct-operated studios created a massive fixed cost base (rent, staff, utilities) across 6 major cities that could not flex when demand softened post-pandemic.

Failed fundraising removed the capital lifeline that had been sustaining operations — once external capital dried up, the company's cash-flow insolvency became immediately visible.

The simultaneous closure of all 82 studios suggests months of hidden insolvency — prepaid cash from new members kept the lights on while the business was already dead.

When a chain of 82 studios closes simultaneously, the insolvency was already months old — prepaid cash from new members was keeping the lights on while the business was already dead.

As of July 2026, FineYoga's debt clearance remains incomplete. Members and teacher trainees continue to pursue refunds through consumer rights channels. The case is cited alongside Will's Fitness collapse as evidence that China's prepaid fitness model is structurally unsustainable, and that the operators who benefit most from the model are often the last to bear its costs.