Yu Minhong has a new competitor.
Recently, former EAST BUY (ASX: 01797) CEO Sun Dongxu and departed hosts have formed what some are calling a "revenge alliance" outside the company, setting up a potential head-to-head rivalry with their former employer.
Information shows that Beautiful Tomorrow (Beijing) Technology Co., Ltd. has been officially registered with a capital of 10 million yuan. Its shareholder lineup has drawn significant attention. Sun Dongxu contributed 3.4 million yuan for a 34% stake and serves as the legal representative, director, and financial officer. Former EAST BUY star hosts Shi Ming (Mingming) and Guo Tianquan (Tianquan) each contributed 3.3 million yuan, holding 33% stakes.
The new company's business scope covers categories like fresh meat, aquatic products, fruits, vegetables, wholesale, retail, and cosmetics, which shows a high degree of overlap with EAST BUY's business portfolio.
The "Beautiful Tomorrow" Douyin account is now live, with the trio releasing their first video together. As of publication, the account has gained over 100,000 followers. Regarding Sun Dongxu, Mingming, and Tianquan starting their own venture, an EAST BUY employee commented that the three likely would not actively poach from their old company, but would probably accept anyone who approached them. However, the employee added it's unlikely anyone would leave, as a larger company offers more security.
It is noteworthy that the nearly equal "three pillars" shareholding structure of Beautiful Tomorrow has sparked external debate. Legal analysis points out this structure carries potential decision-making risks in corporate governance. Major corporate resolutions require approval by shareholders representing over two-thirds of voting rights. If any one of the other two partners does not cooperate, major decisions cannot meet the legal threshold, easily leading to a governance deadlock.
Equal Shareholding Sparks Debate
The "Beautiful Tomorrow" Douyin account is officially online, featuring a profile picture of Sun Dongxu, Mingming, and Tianquan together. They released their inaugural video today, greeting the camera in unison: "Hello everyone, we are Beautiful Tomorrow."
Statistics show the account's follower count surged by over 100,000 within five hours and continues to grow. Furthermore, the Douyin profile information for Sun Dongxu, Mingming, and Tianquan has been updated. Sun Dongxu wrote: "Ready for training? Starting soon? Come train with us @BeautifulTomorrow." Mingming wrote: "Our new venture @BeautifulTomorrow, thanks for the support." Tianquan wrote: "Welcome everyone to @BeautifulTomorrow."
Judging by the registered business scope, Beautiful Tomorrow shows an extremely high degree of overlap with EAST BUY in business layout. The descriptions for core categories like "internet sales," "technical services," fresh food, daily necessities, and jewelry are almost identical. This means, from a legal and regulatory standpoint, Beautiful Tomorrow is fully qualified to replicate EAST BUY's business model, including self-operated procurement and sales, as well as providing live-streaming sales services for third-party brands.
EAST BUY has not yet responded to inquiries about the trio founding the new company. When asked about potential poaching by Beautiful Tomorrow, an EAST BUY employee stated they likely would not actively recruit from their former company to avoid undermining it, but would probably accept anyone who approached them voluntarily. However, the employee added it's improbable anyone would leave, as the scale and influence of a larger company offer more security.
It is noteworthy that there is significant external controversy over the trio's nearly equal "three pillars" shareholding structure, with public focus on whether the allocation is stable and can avoid repeating EAST BUY's past governance issues.
Legal analysis indicates this shareholding ratio indeed carries potential decision-making risks in corporate governance. According to Company Law, major matters require approval by shareholders representing over two-thirds of voting rights. While Sun Dongxu currently appears to hold a relatively active role, if either of the other two partners does not cooperate, major company resolutions cannot meet the legal voting threshold, easily resulting in a decision-making deadlock.
The key to resolution lies in how the three parties agree upfront. The company's articles of association can allow shareholders to exercise voting rights not strictly in proportion to their capital contribution. Sun Dongxu could agree with the other shareholders on differential voting rights, granting himself a higher proportion of voting power while other shareholder rights like profit distribution remain based on actual capital contribution ratios.
In fact, prior to formally announcing their team, each had quietly signaled preparations for live-streaming sales. Previously, Tianquan's Douyin profile stated: "Live-stream time: everyone please wait, working hard on it," while Mingming wrote about "renting a place recently, renovating, handling procedures, forming a team..."
In late May, Sun Dongxu also tested live-streaming sales on his personal account "Sun Meili." Third-party data platforms showed that during his one-hour broadcast, viewership reached about 480,000, with a peak concurrent viewership of around 20,000. His shopping cart featured three books, which once ranked second on the books and magazines chart.
Challenges in Retaining Talent
Some have jokingly referred to Sun Dongxu, Mingming, and Tianquan forming a company as the assembly of a "departing employees alliance." During EAST BUY's transformation, Sun Dongxu, Mingming, and Tianquan all played pivotal roles, yet all three chose to leave within the past year.
Sun Dongxu's departure was seen as marking the end of an era for EAST BUY. He joined New Oriental in 2007, rising from a frontline teacher to a corporate executive. When the "double reduction" policy was implemented in 2021, it was he who, alongside Yu Minhong, plunged into the deep waters of live-streaming e-commerce, building the EAST BUY brand from scratch.
However, the "small essay" incident at the end of 2023 became a turning point, after which Sun Dongxu was removed from his CEO position. In November 2025, Yu Minhong confirmed Sun Dongxu's departure, stating he had thought it over carefully and decided to leave. Yu Minhong noted that he and Sun Dongxu were the founders of EAST BUY, and without Sun's effort and perseverance, EAST BUY would not have developed to its current state.
Mingming and Tianquan were the last two of the EAST BUY "F4" star hosts to leave, following Dong Yuhui and Dundun. As of publication, their combined Douyin followers number nearly 1.8 million. In April this year, Mingming and Tianquan each posted responses to their departures on social media. Their statements both pointed criticism towards EAST BUY's newly appointed executive president, Sun Jin, and drastic changes in management style.
Although Beautiful Tomorrow is newly established, its founding team's inherent traffic and fan base should not be underestimated. With the trio officially teaming up, EAST BUY will face a new competitor in the live-streaming sales sector. Currently, EAST BUY is undergoing the dual test of performance recovery and strategic transformation.
Financial Performance and Retention Efforts
According to the latest financial data, EAST BUY's operational fundamentals have shown clear improvement. The interim report for the 2026 fiscal year shows revenue of 2.312 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.7%. Excluding revenue generated by the spun-off Yuhui Tongxing in the first half of the 2025 fiscal year, total revenue increased by 17% year-on-year. The net profit for the reporting period was 239 million yuan, turning a profit compared to a loss in the same period last year. The total GMV for the live-streaming e-commerce business was 4.1 billion yuan. Excluding Yuhui Tongxing, GMV grew 16.4% year-on-year from 3.6 billion yuan in the same period last year.
This report card once restored market confidence in EAST BUY. However, the improved performance has not stopped the loss of core talent. In April this year, EAST BUY experienced a wave of host departures. In addition to the aforementioned Tianquan and Mingming, hosts Zhong Can and Lin Lin also announced their resignations.
Subsequently, EAST BUY quickly rolled out a large-scale retention plan. In late April, the company announced that, under the 2023 Share Incentive Plan, it granted 19.3014 million share awards to 302 directors, senior executives, and core employees, representing 1.82% of the issued shares. Based on the closing price of HK$28.44 per share that day, the total value was approximately HK$549 million. EAST BUY explicitly stated in the announcement that this move aims to bind the core team, stabilize management and key employees, and strengthen long-term development momentum.
Comments