Taiwanese comedian Nono’s chicken cutlet shop Tiger Boss closes down after sexual assault scandal

Less than a year after setting up shop in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, comedian Nono’s chicken cutlet eatery Tiger Boss has closed down.

The Taiwanese funnyman also co-founded another chicken cutlet chain, Monga, which opened now-defunct outlets in Singapore. He acted as the brand’s famous face until December 2020, when he announced that he was leaving the business due to differing views with his business partners.

Two years later, around September 2020, he opened another F&B biz called Tiger Boss. Like Monga, it specialised in Taiwanese-style fried chicken cutlets, though it also sold crispy squids on sticks and other deep-fried snacks.

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Sexual assault allegations

In June this year, Taiwanese model Amber Chang accused Nono of sexually assaulting her over 10 years ago. An influencer known as Teacher Xiaohong later came forward with the same allegation, claiming in a press conference that she had received messages from over 20 women who had also been violated by Nono.

The comedian — who is married to singer Angel Chu — denied the accusations. He was arrested by the Taipei police for investigation, and released on bail. Shortly after, Nono announced that he was stopping all showbiz work to “sincerely and deeply reflect.”

Parted ways with Tiger Boss 

Shortly after, Tiger Boss announced that it had parted ways with Nono. According to Taiwanese media reports, Nono’s #MeToo scandal had deeply impacted the brand, and even dissociating from him was not enough to save the business.

Yahoo! Taiwan reported that netizens boycotted Tiger Boss by flooding the shop’s Google reviews with low ratings, causing its overall star rating to drop to 1.4 stars.

Earlier this month, Taiwanese reporters found out that Tiger Boss’s flagship store at the busy Yucheng Road in Kaohsiung had quietly closed down. News outlet China Times ran photos of the shuttered storefront, which had a bright red ‘For Rent’ sign hung in front of the shutters.

Staff from nearby shops confirmed with a China Times reporter that Tiger Boss had not been operating for almost a month, and its social media pages and Google Maps location had disappeared. Calls to Tiger Boss’s management went unanswered.

A check with Kaohsiung’s real estate agents revealed that the shop unit’s landlord had put the space up for rent at NT90,000 (S$3,846) a month, which is apparently considered low for the commercially competitive district. This led to the media’s speculation that Tiger Boss had ended its lease early.

Photos: Facebook/ Nono/ Tiger Boss

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