On September 18, the founder and chairman of the well-known Yunnan chain restaurant brand “Yunhai Yao”, Zhao Han, passed away at the age of 40 due to a sudden heart attack, despite medical treatment being ineffective, at the Tongren Hospital in Kunming.
The news of Zhao Han’s passing due to a sudden heart attack started spreading in the food and entrepreneurship circles since yesterday (September 17). At noon on September 19, Zhu Haiqin, co-founder and CEO of Yunhai Yao, posted on the official Weibo account of Yunhai Yao, expressing that the past few years have been challenging for the food industry and that Zhao Han had been under immense pressure. “He suffered a sudden heart attack yesterday and has forever left us,” Zhu Haiqin wrote.
Zhu Haiqin mentioned that the incident happened suddenly, and they are all deeply saddened by the loss.
In the obituary released by Zhu Haiqin, it stated that Zhao Han passed away at 14:43 on September 18 at the Tongren Hospital in Kunming, at the age of 40. The funeral service for Zhao Han will be held at the Shen Yuan Hall in Kunming Municipal Funeral Parlor (Paomashan) on September 20 at 11 a.m.
Currently, his Baidu Baike official website has been changed to grey, indicating his passing.
Born in July 1985, Zhao Han graduated from the School of Chinese Classics at Renmin University of China. In 2009, he co-founded Yunhai Yao with his cousin Lu Zhitao, and his friend Zhu Haiqin, aiming to inherit Yunnan’s culinary culture, promote the development of Yunnan’s food ingredients industry, and grow into a well-known restaurant brand nationwide.
According to Tianyancha, Yunnan Yunhai Yao Catering Management Co., Ltd. was established in 2014 and completed its Series A financing in 2012. From April 1, 2014, to December 27, 2024, Zhao Han served as the legal representative of the company. The current legal representative of the company is Zhu Haiqin.
Media reports indicated that in February 2025, there was a reshuffle in the board of directors of Yunhai Yao, where Zhao Han no longer held the position of chairman and other roles. Zhu Haiqin took on the role of chairman and CEO, overseeing all company decisions and management.
Statistics show that the number of patients with cardiovascular diseases in China has reached 330 million, with cardiovascular diseases being the leading cause of death among both urban and rural residents.