A key chain warehouse of the PriceSmart Membership Shop in Beijing has been closed since Thursday after protests by goods suppliers.

The move by PriceSmart to shut shop at its key store on Xueyuan Road followed protests by suppliers, nearly 100 of whom picketed the gates in protest at late payments for their goods on Thursday.

Some are owed more than 1 million yuan (US$120,000).

This is not the first time angry suppliers have protested against PriceSmart.

Gates blocked

On Sunday, the Jiazeng Company blocked gates with seven motor vehicles and more than 50 people, the Beijing Youth Daily reported.

A vice-chairman of the Jiazeng company was arrested and accused of public disorder.

Shoppers - all of whom are members of the store - are calling for refunds on their membership cards.

A notice outside the store said it would re-open in the near future, but no date was given.

At the gates, customer Lu yesterday said he was waiting to be reimbursed for the money on his card.

"I still have scores of yuan in my membership card. And I'm luckier than many members, whose cards still have nearly 1,000 yuan (US$120) on them."

Lu bought the card for 120 yuan (US$15) last year. "Of this, 20 yuan (US$2.4) is the membership fee, and the rest is to spend in the shop," he said.

Card

This is the minimum that must be spent on a card, but many customers load up their cards for convenience.

The Beijing Youth Daily says there are more than 50,000 PriceSmart members in the capital city. PriceSmart has four warehouses in Beijing.

A member of staff at PriceSmart said, "The store was closed last Thursday without any explanation.

"Nobody told me when it will open again."

Sources with PriceSmart refused to comment yesterday.

PriceSmart operates membership warehouse clubs in Latin America, the Caribbean and Asia, according to its official website.

(China Daily January 11, 2005)