City Beat spies report that there has been a substantial exodus of long-term employees from Curtain Wonderland in recent months

It seems all’s not well inside Curtain Wonderland, which is part of Australia’s biggest window covering empire.

Kresta reported a pre-tax loss of $1.74 million over the four months to the end of April.

NOT ALL’S WELL

IT seems all’s not well inside Curtain Wonderland, which is part of Australia’s biggest window covering empire.

City Beat spies report that there has been a substantial exodus of long-term employees, including senior staff, from their southeast Queensland operations over the past few months.

Some have resigned, some have been handed pink slips by WA-based parent company Kresta Holdings, which is majority owned by Chinese billionaire Xianfeng Lu.

There are even allegations of harassment and bullying in the group, which has sold blinds, curtains, shutters and awnings for more than 40 years.

“Many great employees have been forced to resign because no one is listening and pleas of help ... have gone ignored,’’ said one distraught worker who just left the group after more than 25 years.

“Curtain Wonderland had a very healthy business with 250-plus employees, including a thriving workroom which proudly made all its own curtains.

“The workroom is virtually closed, the majority of staff has been made redundant and all work now goes to China.’’

“This was a thriving company making good money but I can tell you now that it is losing money.’’

A Kresta manager in WA said yesterday the claims would be investigated.

LOSING MONEY

ASX announcements back up the financial allegations about Kresta, where Lu’s company APLUS snared an 84 per cent holding in a $27 million deal nearly three years ago.

Xianfeng Lu illustration by Jonathan Bentley.

Last month the group reported a pre-tax loss of $1.74 million over the four months to the end of April, citing “restructuring costs’’ among the causes. Revenue slumped 8 per cent to $25.2 million. That followed an $857,000 net loss in the year to December and $1.8 million in red ink in 2015. Sales turnover tumbled more than 10 per cent last year to $85.8 million as loss-making stores trading under the Vista brand shut their doors.

Rarely traded shares in the company, which floated way back in 1971, closed yesterday at just 11¢ . That’s down from a high of 41¢ back in 2010.

WHO IS LU?

SO who is Xianfeng Lu, who serves as both Kresta’s chairman of the board and managing director?

He made a splash back in 2015 when he forked out $280 million in cash to snare Australia’s biggest dairy, Van Diemen’s Land Co in Tasmania.

Dating back to the 1820, it includes 25 farms spread across 19,000ha of land.

It’s understood that Lu made his fortune in seafood retailing in China ahead of the 2003 launch of APLUS, which claims to be the country’s biggest manufacturer of sunshades.

With exports to about 70 countries, APLUS has nearly 1500 employees and a market cap of more than $1 billion.

THE ODYSSEY

DON’T even think about feeling sorry for Brisbane bizoid John Lazarou.

The Coffee Club boss took off this week on a two-month European odyssey with a couple of mates.

They’ll be basking in the glory of Prague, Nice, the French Riviera and Greece.

Lazarou couldn’t help rubbing it in, either. Just to ramp up your envy, he posted a picture on Facebook of the group’s boarding passes, passports and a couple of drinks as they chilled in the airport lounge.