Shandong Ruyi votes out top execs at Japan's Renown

​Japanese apparel maker Renown Inc said the company’s top executives were voted out of its board on Thursday by China’s Shandong Ruyi, its parent company.

The ouster is the latest scuffle involving Shandong Ruyi, which has pursued global brands with an ambition to become China’s LVMH but faces financing woes.

Renown said CEO Yoshiyuki Jinbo and Chairman Minoru Kitabatake failed to be reappointed at its annual general meeting, with opposition from Shandong Ruyi.

Renown, a storied apparel maker with a collection of men’s and women’s clothing brands, has struggled with years of losses and recently reported it was struggling to collect over 5 billion yen ($45.2 million) in debts from its Chinese parent.

Shandong Ruyi emerged as a leading shareholder in Renown a decade ago and has since become its majority stakeholder.

The Chinese group has spent billions of dollars to buy a range of European luxury brands and Asian labels, including French fashion house SMCP and Britain’s Aquascutum.

But it has been facing increasing refinancing pressure due to the debt it took on for these deals and has also been hit by the impact of the global coronavirus outbreak.