- Ryota Grace Nakanishi
- Jul 22
- 11 min read
Updated: Jul 25
A Corporate History of Next Digital and Associated Commercial Ventures (1981–2026)
This report outlines the corporate development, retail ventures, and subsequent legal proceedings involving Hong Kong businessman Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, from his initial entry into the retail market to the conclusion of recent judicial actions.
Phase 1: Textile and Retail Foundation (1981–1990s)
1981: Jimmy Lai established the casual clothing brand Giordano in Hong Kong. The retail chain expanded rapidly across Asian markets, operating under a standard brick-and-mortar leasing model within major commercial property developments.
1994–1995: Following shifts in corporate focus, Lai divested his financial shares in Giordano to transition fully into the media and publishing sector, establishing Next Digital (formerly Next Media).
Phase 2: The 1999 E-Commerce Venture (adMart)
Launch: In June 1999, Lai launched adMart, an early direct-delivery tele-shopping and e-commerce platform designed to bypass high commercial real estate rental costs in Hong Kong.
Market Strategy: The venture utilized bulk warehousing and direct-to-consumer delivery to retail household groceries, alcoholic beverages, and electronics below standard market prices.
Retail Competition: This strategy directly challenged the established retail footprints of major local supermarket operators, including AS Watson Group (PARKnSHOP) and DFI Retail Group (Wellcome). The resulting competition triggered a multi-million-dollar retail price war across Hong Kong.
Closure: Due to high logistical overhead costs in dense urban areas and supply chain constraints, adMart accumulated significant financial losses and ceased operations in late 2000.
Phase 3: Media Operations and Financial Infrastructure
Corporate Revenue: Next Digital’s primary publication, Apple Daily, operated as a major commercial newspaper in Hong Kong. For over two decades, its revenue stream relied heavily on standard commercial advertising placements from local real estate firms, consumer goods companies, and mainstream financial institutions.
Asset Structure: The group operated via standard corporate banking channels and local real estate leases until regulatory interventions altered its operational capacity.
Phase 4: Legal Proceedings and Regulatory Chronology (2020–2026)
2020–2021: The Hong Kong Police National Security Department initiated investigations into Next Digital under the National Security Law. In May 2021, authorities ordered the freezing of assets and shares linked to Jimmy Lai under the security framework, leading to the formal closure of Apple Daily in June 2021.
Judicial Process: Lai was subsequently indicted on charges including conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and conspiracy to publish seditious publications. The High Court trial proceeded through extensive legal arguments regarding international communications and editorial oversight.
Conclusion of Trial: On February 9, 2026, the High Court concluded the proceedings, sentencing Lai to a 20-year prison term. In March 2026, his legal counsel confirmed that no further appeals against the conviction or the sentence would be filed, concluding the formal judicial process.
The prominent Hong Kong media tycoon, activist, and political prisoner Jimmy Lai has written and published over 20 books. [1]
Note: While there is a Taiwanese novelist and scriptwriter who also uses the romanized name Jimmy Lai (author of 9 books), the prominent Hong Kong activist has a distinct bibliography written primarily in Chinese. [2, 3, 4]
Book Themes and Content
His extensive collection of writings covers several core aspects of his life: [1, 5]
Autobiographies and Memoirs: Detailing his childhood, escape from mainland China, and his rise in the business world.
Business and Entrepreneurship: Reflecting his experiences founding the clothing retailer Giordano and Next Digital.
Personal Essays: Covering his philosophy on life, political views, and his well-documented love of food. [1, 5, 6, 7]
Selected Book List
Because his books were originally published in Chinese—and many have been suppressed or pulled from shelves following national security cases in Hong Kong—a unified English bibliography is difficult to find. However, some of his most notable published titles include: [8, 9, 10, 11]
I Am Jimmy Lai (《我是黎智英》): A popular autobiographical account details his journey arriving in Hong Kong with almost nothing to build a massive business empire. [5, 12]
Experience Has No Template (《經驗沒有複製品》): A book focused on his entrepreneurial insights, philosophy, and business strategies. [12]
The Taste of Entrepreneurship (《創業這條路》): A collection of guidance and personal anecdotes tailored to young entrepreneurs.
Fattening Up Food Essays (《肥佬黎食門答卷》 series): Volumes showcasing his passion for culinary culture, restaurant reviews, and food memories.
Notable Biographies
If you are looking for English-language material about his life, prominent books about him include:
The Troublemaker: How Jimmy Lai Became a Billionaire, Hong Kong's Greatest Dissident, and China's Most Feared Critic: Written by his former business associate Mark L. Clifford and published by Free Press. [6, 9, 13, 14]
[14] https://bookpal.com
Full List of His Books
Jimmy Lai (Chee-ying), the founder of Next Media and Apple Daily, has authored over 20 books. Most of his works are Chinese-language collections of his essays and columns, primarily focusing on business management, entrepreneurship, philosophy of life, and food, rather than direct political texts. [1, 2, 3]
The extensive, chronologically arranged list of his published books includes the following:
The "Facts and Prejudices" (事實與偏見) Series
The vast majority of Jimmy Lai's books were released through his own publishing house, Next Publications (壹出版), as numbered volumes under his signature column title: [4, 5]
事實與偏見 (Vol. 1) – Facts and Prejudices (1993)
我退休失敗了 (Vol. 2) – I Failed at Retirement (1994)
我的理想是隻糯米雞 (Vol. 3) – My Ideal Is a Lo Mai Gai (1995)
你有無見過 consultation? (Vol. 4) – Have You Ever Seen a Consultation?
兩個大漢打邊爐 (Vol. 5) – Two Big Guys Having Hotpot
肥佬黎打真軍 (Vol. 6) – Fatty Lai Plays for Real
大風吹，吹物治主義 (Vol. 7) – The Wind Blows Towards Materialism
好樣的，香港人！ (Vol. 8) – Good Job, Hongkongers!
死頂 (Vol. 9) – Endure It
我做生意的心得 (Vol. 10) – My Experience Doing Business
正義必勝？打死不信！ (Vol. 11) – Justice Always Wins? I Refuse to Believe It!
黎智英踏上生意路 (Vol. 12) – Jimmy Lai Embarks on the Business Road (2007)
創業家的黎明 (Vol. 13) – The Dawn of an Entrepreneur (2008)
創新就是尋找笨方法 (Vol. 14) – Innovation is Looking for the Dumb Method (2009)
生意要處處通，觀點要與眾不同 (Vol. 15) – Business Needs All-Round Connectivity, Perspectives Need to Be Different(2009)
肥佬黎食遍天下 (Vol. 16) – Fatty Lai Eats Across the World (2010)
樂觀是我最大的本錢 (Vol. 17) – Optimism Is My Biggest Asset (2011)
經驗出智慧 (Vol. 18) – Experience Brings Wisdom (2012)
夠了！退休！ (Vol. 19) – Enough! Retire! (2013) [4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11]
Other Independent Works & Anthologies
Beyond the main sequential series, he has published separate books tracking his lifestyle philosophies, food reviews, and broader worldviews: [12]
肥佬黎食遍天下 (Fatty Lai Eats Across the World - standalone expanded editions)
笑吧!別忘了感恩 (Smile! Don't Forget to Be Grateful) – Co-authored with artist Walasse Ting (丁雄泉)
人生不是名利場 (Life Is Not a Vanity Fair) – Published in 2018, this book compiles his later socio-political commentaries and life essays written while he was still free. [4, 6, 13]
⚠️ Important Clarification on Recent Titles
If you are looking for information regarding the widely discussed book "The Troublemaker: How Jimmy Lai Became a Billionaire, Hong Kong's Greatest Dissident, and China's Most Feared Critic" (Chinese: 《黎智英傳：從億萬富翁，到中國最懼怕的批評者》), it is highly relevant to note that Jimmy Lai did not write this book. [13, 14]
It is an unauthorized biography published by his close business partner and former Next Digital director, Mark L. Clifford (Vision 2047), which features excerpts from Lai's prison diaries and letters. [13, 14, 15]
[16]
[12] https://www.scmp.com
[13] https://ippa.org.tw
[16] https://www.scmp.com
Niche Topic
Jimmy Lai did not primarily challenge Hong Kong's local oligarchs; instead, his primary target was the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Beijing's political control over Hong Kong. [1, 2]
While Lai was an elite billionaire himself, his activism and his pro-democracy newspaper, Apple Daily, focused heavily on advocating for universal suffrage, freedom of expression, and resisting Beijing's encroachment on Hong Kong's autonomy. However, his political stance implicitly disrupted the traditional pro-Beijing establishment, which is heavily comprised of Hong Kong’s traditional tycoon and corporate oligarch class. [1, 2, 3]
Key Targets of Jimmy Lai's Advocacy
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP): Lai was a fierce and vocal critic of mainland China's authoritarian governance, using his media empire to directly denounce party leaders. [2, 4]
Hong Kong's Pro-Beijing Administration: Through Apple Daily, Lai targeted local officials implementing Beijing's policies, especially during the 2019 anti-government protests. [5, 6]
The Traditional Tycoon Class: While Lai didn't wage an explicit war against local oligarchs, his full-throated support of the pro-democracy movement alienated him from Hong Kong's business elite, who traditionally favor political stability and close ties with Beijing to protect their commercial interests. [7, 8]
Recent Developments and Imprisonment
Because of his aggressive political stance and support of the protest movements, Lai became a primary target of the government's crackdowns: [9, 10]
Asset Seizure: The government froze his shares and millions in assets linked to his media company, Next Digital, forcing Apple Daily to close in 2021. [11]
National Security Conviction: After a highly publicized trial, a Hong Kong court convicted Lai of national security offenses, including conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and publishing seditious materials. [12]
20-Year Sentence: In February 2026, the 78-year-old Lai was sentenced to 20 years in prison. His legal team announced in March 2026 that he would not appeal the conviction or the sentence. [13, 14]
[10] https://www.wsj.com
[14] https://www.bbc.com
Details
Jimmy Lai actually did challenge Hong Kong’s elite oligarchs in the retail sector through a massive, high-profile e-commerce venture in the late 1990s.
While Lai originally made his fortune founding the casual clothing brand Giordano, he later took on Hong Kong's most entrenched retail corporate duopoly by trying to disrupt how residents bought groceries and household goods. [1, 2, 3]
The Retail Duopoly Target
Hong Kong’s supermarket and retail sectors have long been heavily dominated by a powerful corporate duopoly: [3, 4]
AS Watson Group: A division of billionaire Li Ka-shing's CK Hutchison (which operates PARKnSHOP supermarkets).
DFI Retail Group: A subsidiary of the colonial British conglomerate Jardine Matheson (which operates Wellcomesupermarkets). [3, 4, 5]
These two giants effectively controlled the grocery pipeline, heavily protected by Hong Kong's sky-high commercial real estate prices, which made it nearly impossible for new brick-and-mortar competitors to secure store space. [3]
The Disruption: adMart
In 1999, Lai bypasses the real estate barrier by launching adMart, a pioneer direct-delivery e-commerce and tele-shopping business.
The Strategy: Instead of renting expensive storefronts, adMart used warehouses and phone/online ordering to sell groceries, alcohol, and electronics at heavily discounted prices. [3]
The Price War: Lai directly targeted the profit margins of Li Ka-shing and Jardine Matheson. adMart undercut PARKnSHOP and Wellcome on staple goods, sparking a fierce, multi-million-dollar retail price war in Hong Kong.[3, 4]
The Pushback and Collapse
The oligarchs fought back using their immense systemic leverage:
Supplier Boycotts: Due to the duopoly's leverage, major product suppliers and distributors allegedly boycotted or restricted supply to adMart to avoid angering PARKnSHOP and Wellcome. adMart frequently struggled to keep major brands in stock. [4]
Logistical Obstacles: Operating a massive delivery fleet in ultra-dense Hong Kong proved incredibly expensive before modern e-commerce infrastructure existed. [3]
Facing massive financial losses from the aggressive price wars and supply bottlenecks, Lai was forced to shut down adMart in late 2000. While the venture failed, it remains one of the few times an independent entrepreneur directly attempted to break the corporate stranglehold of Hong Kong's traditional tycoons on the everyday consumer market. [3]
History
Historically, traditional Hong Kong tycoons and oligarchs have strictly avoided backing Jimmy Lai. No major local oligarch has ever publicly or financially supported Lai due to the threat it would pose to their vast commercial empires.[1]
The relationship between Lai and the local business elite is defined by structural opposition rather than cooperation, though a few nuanced historical exceptions exist.
Why Oligarchs Never Backed Him
Economic Retaliation: Hong Kong's traditional tycoons (like Li Ka-shing or the Kwok family) derive their wealth from real estate, ports, and infrastructure, all of which require smooth regulatory relationships with Beijing. Openly aligning with a fierce China critic like Lai would mean commercial suicide. [2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
Elite Hostility: Lai's media properties, like Apple Daily and Next Magazine, built their massive reader bases partly by routinely exposing the personal scandals, cozy government ties, and monopolistic practices of Hong Kong's tycoons. This earned Lai deep elite hostility. [2, 6]
The Nuances: Tactical Intersections
While there was no direct banking, a few interesting points cross paths:
Advertising "Under the Table": Before Beijing's 2020 national security crackdown, Apple Daily was the second-most-read newspaper in Hong Kong. For decades, major local companies, supermarkets, and property developers bought advertising space in his papers strictly for commercial reach. However, as Beijing's pressure intensified, tycoon-owned companies launched a coordinated advertising boycott against Lai’s media empire to starve it of funds. [2, 6, 7, 8]
Sympathy from Political Moderates: Historically, a handful of wealthy, old-guard figures within the establishment (such as the late legislative leader James Tien) occasionally shared Lai's concerns about Beijing eroding Hong Kong’s legal autonomy. However, this sympathy was purely rhetorical and never translated into financial or structural backing for Lai's radical activism. [9]
Lai Self-Funded His Movement: Court records and financial affidavits show that Lai did not need the backing of other oligarchs. He entirely self-funded his political operations and anti-CCP media ventures using the massive wealth he accumulated from selling his clothing brand, Giordano, and running Next Digital. [6, 10, 11, 12, 13]
[11] https://www.scmp.com
[12] https://www.bbc.com
[13] https://www.bbc.com
Truth
Hong Kong oligarchs did business with Jimmy Lai, but strictly through corporate, arms-length transactions rather than collaborative partnerships. [1]
While the oligarchs themselves personally and politically kept their distance from Lai, their corporate conglomerates could not completely ignore his business empire. [2, 3]
Their commercial interactions occurred across three specific areas:
1. Corporate Advertising Spending
For nearly two decades, affiliate companies owned by Hong Kong’s richest families heavily fueled Jimmy Lai's Next Digital empire. Because Lai's Apple Daily newspaper was the second-most widely read paper in Hong Kong, oligarch-backed companies treated advertising with him as a commercial necessity: [4, 5]
The Properties & Retail Sectors: Real estate conglomerates owned by families like the Kwoks (Sun Hung Kai) or Henderson Land regularly bought advertising space to list new luxury apartments. [6]
Supermarket Outlets: Even during the fierce retail rivalry with Lai's adMart, Li Ka-shing's PARKnSHOP chain and Jardine Matheson's Wellcome chain continued buying ad inserts in Apple Daily because that was where the consumers were. [4, 7]
2. Supply and Logistics
When Jimmy Lai owned the highly successful casual clothing brand Giordano in the 1980s and early 1990s, he operated like any other major retail magnate. [2, 8, 9, 10]
Landlord-Tenant Transactions: To open his flagship clothing stores across Hong Kong, Lai's company regularly signed lease agreements and paid millions in rent to the major commercial real estate oligarchs who owned the city's premium shopping malls and office towers. [11]
3. Financial Infrastructure
Until the government-mandated asset freezes and crackdowns forced Next Digital to shut down, Lai’s various companies held dozens of active corporate bank accounts. These operations relied on the standard financial pipelines provided by Hong Kong's major local banking institutions. [4, 12, 13]
The Bottom Line
If the question is whether they formed joint ventures or close strategic alliances, no—the oligarchs never partnered with him. However, if the question is whether their commercial empires exchanged money with Lai's businesses, yes—they engaged in regular transactional business until Beijing made doing so a political liability.
