珍宝王国是香港地标,由香港仔避风塘内的珍宝海鲜坊和旁边的大笪地海鲜坊组成。大笪地海鲜坊建于 1952 年,由黄洛财创办;珍宝海鲜坊造价超过 3000 万港元,于 1976 年 10 月 19 日开业。鼎盛时可容纳 2300 名客人,外观仿古代中国皇宫。44 年运营期间共接待超过 3000 万名访客,包括伊丽莎白二世、吉米·卡特和汤姆·克鲁斯,也曾出现在《007 之金枪人》和《龙争虎斗》等电影中。

这家餐厅自 2013 年起就已不赚钱。到 2022 年,累计亏损超过 1 亿港元。2020 年 3 月 1 日,运营方香港仔饮食企业宣布无限期停业并裁掉全部员工,称是新冠疫情所致。2021 年 3 月,将珍宝捐给香港海洋公园的方案被搁置,因为政府拒绝承担每年高达数百万美元的持续维护费用;随着海事牌照到期、又找不到泊位,公司最后决定把船拖离香港。

2022 年 6 月 14 日,珍宝被拖离香港, reportedly 目的地是柬埔寨。四天后,船只在西沙群岛附近遇到恶劣天气,在超过 1000 米深的海域倾覆。此事在香港引发强烈反弹,议员称这是一段文化遗产的流失。大笪地海鲜坊则留在香港,被新邦有限公司收购并计划翻新。姊妹船海上皇宫在 1997 年亚洲金融危机后被出售,曾在马尼拉湾运营到 2008 年,后来又被拖往中国青岛。

累计亏损逾 1 亿港元;地标沉没于海上

珍宝在疫情前已经连续 7 年亏损,累计亏损超过 1 亿港元,但运营方一直没有拿出可行的扭亏方案。

新冠疫情一夜之间切断了依赖旅游的客源,2020 年 3 月的无限期停业声明成为最后一击。

没有形成可行的保存方案——捐赠海洋公园被拒,政府也不愿为维护买单,最后船只被拖到海上,结果倾覆。

品牌和几十年的历史,不能替代能赚钱的商业模式。一个严重依赖旅游、且多年亏损的地标,危机不是制造问题,而是把问题照出来。

珍宝于 2022 年 6 月在南中国海倾覆。大笪地海鲜坊留在香港,被新邦有限公司收购,计划翻新并争取在 2026 年重新开业。姊妹船海上皇宫在马尼拉运营至 2008 年,后被拖往青岛。围绕未付费用和船只所有权的法律纠纷延续到 2024 年。

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参考来源

  1. Wikipedia — Jumbo Kingdom en.wikipedia.org
  2. The Guardian — Floating Hong Kong restaurant capsizes in South China Sea (20 Jun 2022; encountered adverse weather passing the Paracel Islands; water depth over 1,000 metres making salvage extremely difficult; towed away the previous Tuesday; closed in 2020 and laid off all staff) theguardian.com
  3. HKFP — Hong Kong's iconic Jumbo Floating Restaurant sinks in the South China Sea (20 Jun 2022; capsized on Sunday; accumulated deficits of more than HK$100 million since 2013; water depth exceeded 1,000 metres) hongkongfp.com
  4. BBC News — Hong Kong: Iconic floating Jumbo restaurant sinks (20 Jun 2022; sank on Sunday near the Paracel Islands; water depth over 1,000 metres; closed in March 2020; had not been profitable since 2013) bbc.com
  5. CNN Travel — Hong Kong bids farewell to Jumbo Kingdom (15 Jun 2022; sister boat Tai Pak dating back to 1952; in March 2020 owners announced an accumulated loss of over HK$100 million and closed the restaurant until further notice; a dozen tugboats towed Jumbo away at around 7 a.m. on 14 June; guests included Queen Elizabeth II, Jimmy Carter and Tom Cruise) edition.cnn.com
  6. The Straits Times (AFP) — Famed Jumbo Floating Restaurant fades into the sunset (15 Jun 2022; opened in 1976 by the late casino tycoon Stanley Ho; reportedly costing more than HK$30 million to build; could house 2,300 diners; cumulative losses had exceeded HK$100 million) straitstimes.com
  7. Bangkok Post (AFP) — Hong Kong's floating restaurant to close 'until further notice' (2 Mar 2020; as of March 3 and until further notice, Jumbo Kingdom will suspend day-to-day operation; run under Melco's subsidiary Aberdeen Restaurant Enterprises; decision taken in light of the severe impact of Covid-19; opened in 1976 by Stanley Ho) bangkokpost.com
  8. The Standard — Jumbo originally heading to Cambodia: Marine Dept (22 Jun 2022; Marine Department said the owner applied for a departure permit on June 13 to tow the boat from Hong Kong to Cambodia; capsized in the South China Sea on Sunday) thestandard.com.hk