This article only represents the author's own views.
Mao Geping made a name for himself as a makeup artist, touching up star actress Liu Xiaoqing in a popular TV drama about China’s most famous empress, Wu Zetian, before founding his namesake Mao Geping Cosmetics Co. Ltd. in 2000. But while celebrity came easy in the entertainment world, Mao was far less successful in his several attempts to list his company on China’s A-share market starting in 2016. Now the makeup legend has turned his sights on Hong Kong, where his company filed a listing application earlier this month.
Mao Geping’s tough road to market probably has little to do with its business performance, which has actually been quite strong in recent years. Instead, the company's over-reliance on Mao’s name and other related intellectual property (IP) may have been the regulator’s biggest concerns for not green-lighting the offering on the A-share market.